Ruby

In this animal version of the Red Riding Hood tale, a little mouse on her way to deliver a package of cheese pies to her granny falls in with a devious, smooth-talking feline

If readers notice that Ruby (a mouse) is reading Little Red Riding Hood while sniffing her mother's freshly baked triple cheese pies, they will easily imagine the next sequence of events. Ruby is given some pies to deliver to her sick grandmother and to a neighbor, Mrs. Mastiff. She is warned not to talk to strangers and especially never to trust a cat. Of course, Ruby forgets this sound advice and gets smart-alecky with a slimy reptile who steals her goodie bag. She is rescued by a well-dressed, smooth-talking cat whose drool drips down his whiskers at the sight of Ruby. When Ruby tells the cat exactly where her grandma lives, readers will be aghast, yet Ruby has a plan. All ends well-- except for the cat. There has been an recent inundation of takeoffs on familiar traditional tales, but this Red Riding Hood variation has enough plot twists and innovation to keep readers involved and interested. The illustrations show congested city roads and bustling sidewalks teeming with animals from all walks of life. Ruby is an independent, outspoken, street-smart mouse whose language is surprising, but never in bad taste; she is simply confronting the hazards of city living. Readers will know that she'll survive it all and have her fun. --Martha Topol, Interlochen Public Library, MI
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In this takeoff on "Little Red Riding Hood," Ruby the mouse reluctantly agrees to carry a bag of triple-cheese pies across town to her granny. She dons her red hooded coat and takes to the densely populated and litter-clogged city streets. Ruby ignores her mother's advice not to read as she walks, and soon bumps into "a grimy-looking reptile whose hot breath smelled very much like dirty gym socks." Of sterner mettle than her fairy-tale predecessor, Ruby tells him, "Buzz off, barf breath." This sets the tone for their less than refined exchange, which is interrupted by a nattily dressed, "velvety-voiced" cat who offers to escort Ruby to her grandmother's house. When she insists on continuing alone, the hungry cat hops into a taxi and races to granny's, hoping to make a meal of the two mice--as well as granny's neighbor. The villain's plan is foiled, of course, but by a subtly narrated stratagem that may elude preschoolers. Readers on the older end of the intended age spectrum will better appreciate Emberley's somewhat sophisticated humor, as well as the detailed pictures of the city residents--amusingly preoccupied animals projecting a wide variety of attitudes. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.