Red Riding Hood

American author/illustrator team Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and Edward Gorey retell the classic fairy-tale from the Brothers Grimm in this picture book from 1972. The rhyming text—two stanzas per page—follows Red Riding Hood as she is dispatched to visit her sick grandmother, encounters the wolf in the forest, stops to pick flowers at his suggestion, and then finally comes to her elderly relative's cottage, now inhabited by her lupine enemy. Consumed herself, our little heroine and her grandmother are rescued by a hunter, and the wolf punished...

Having grown up absolutely adoring another fairy-tale illustrated by Gorey, in the form of Edith Tarcov's retelling of Rumpelstiltskin, I have long meant to seek out this title, convinced show more that it too would become a favorite. Unfortunately, despite my high rating, that is not to be. I enjoyed the artwork here greatly—one has but to see Gorey's illustrations to recognize them—and appreciated the vivid red accents, so appropriate for this specific story. That said, while the telling here is faithful to the original, the text itself left me cold. Somehow, I just can't warm to de Regniers' verse, which I find awkward and frustrating. My favorite book from her, textually, is her David and Goliath, which is told in prose. I'm glad to have read this one, and I didn't despise the text, but without the artwork this would have been a three-star title for me. Recommended primarily to Edward Gorey fans. Those seeking picture book versions of this tale can do far better, from a textual and storytelling perspective. show less