Red Riding Hood: VERY FINE FIRST EDITION

In a distinctively dark and menacing version of Perrault's classic tale, the unfortunate little girl is confronted by a clever and hungry wolf. All ages.

Grade 2 Up-- Another dark, cryptic interpretation of the well-known tale. In contrast to the familiar Grimm version, Perrault's must be read as a cautionary tale with an expressed moral that warns young children, especially girls, that the most artless stranger may prove to be a salacious scoundrel. It ends with startling finality when the wolf consumes the child. Coady's retelling is simply worded and contains a few changes: it is raining, it is dark, and Red Riding Hood ``feels the wolf's eyes on her'' before she meets him. Coady's illustrations are stylistically remarkable and ?- powerful. Done in acrylic on board, his pronounced brush strokes give richness, texture, and depth to his interpretation. In an exceptionally dark palette, the red of the cloak and the gold of the interior lights glow; the atmosphere created is one of bleak foreboding. The wolf changes from a harmless, fluffy-looking creature on first encounter to an attenuated predator with luminous eyes. In closeups, Red Riding Hood is not a carefree moppet, but an enigmatic child-woman. It is unfortunate that the black text is superimposed over the illustrations making it, in some cases, difficult to read. This is less of a conundrum than Montresor's version (Doubleday, 1991), and more faithful in intent, since Perrault's ending and the appended moral are retained. It is also less grisly and therefore may be suitable for younger audiences. Coady is clearly drawn to this tale, which becomes haunting and symbolic in his hands. A noteworthy artistic debut. --Kate McClelland, Perrot Memorial Library, Greenwich, CT
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