Variations on a Theme of Little Red Riding Hood

Happy New Year!

I thought I would start the new year sharing some great versions of Little Red Riding Hood.

Little Red
written and illustrated by Bethan Woollvin
(April 2016 release)

Starting with the end papers, the simple color palette (black, charcoal gray, white, and red) used for this book proves dramatic. With a repeated pattern of evergreen (charcoal gray), followed by two bare tree trunks the reader's eye is immediately drawn to Little Red in her bright red cloak and shoes. The wolf, hiding behind an evergreen can been seen, but not as quickly.

Woollvin's story remains true to the original until she looks into the window to see the wolf in her grandmother's bed. The observant reader can spot an ax stuck in a tree stump in through the window, also reminiscent of the original fairy tale, but this time, Little Red makes a plan before going inside grandmother's house. The surprising twist, Little Red returns home with a new fur coat!

This might seem a little dark for a children's book, but you have to remember the original story has a much more disturbing end. In Charles Perrault's, author of the earliest known printed version of the story, entitled Le Petit Chaperon Rouge,  "Little Red Riding Hood ends up being asked to climb into the bed before being eaten by the wolf, where they story ends." The moral this story told children was not to listen to the words of strangers.

Little Red's Riding 'Hood
written by Peter Stein, illustrated by Chris Gall
(February 2015 release)

The end papers for this book remind me of the ones from the above book, except for the fact the wolf is now a monster truck named Tank and Little Red is a scooter. Both characters appear on the front end papers, but only Little Red is on the back end papers. The absence of Tank on the back papers sends the message to the read of the happy ending since Little Red is headed back home from Granny Putt Putt's house.

I am not a car fanatic, but I believe young children, especially boys will find this new version of Little Red Riding Hood fun to read and listen to during story time. The author was very creative in building the text around the scooter, cars, and monster truck. At times it feels like a stretch when reading, but this is to be expected in a fairy tale. I was delightfully surprised to see how "the wolf" was recycled in the end. Definitely an unusual twist to the classic Red tale.

Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood
written by Liesl Shurtliff

Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood by Liesl Shurtliff is unlike either of the first two. This book is a chapter book, recommended for readers in middle elementary and up. The story does not just focus on Red's travels to grandmother's house and her encounter with the Big Bad Wolf. In the first chapter, we learn of Red's magical grandmother, as well as Red's attempts at magic herself. The humor in the first chapter is wonderful for capturing the reader's attention.  The magical spells included are very clever and create a great picture in the reader's mind.

Red does travel to her Granny's house in the story and finds Granny very ill. So ill in fact Red has to wonder through the woods in order to gather the ingredients for a Cure-All potion. As Red gathers the ingredients, we are introduced to a number of magical creatures, including pixies, dwarfs, and tree nymphs. I don't want to ruin the ending of this fairy tale for you because it is not what you will expect. The villain in Shurtliff's version, or "the true story" is not who you would suspect. You will have to read  Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood to find out the rest of the story.

*To comply with guidelines set forth by the Federal Trade Commission,  the following publishers have provided a complimentary hard copy or electronic version of the book for review purposes. 

Little Red. Myrick Marketing & Media, LLC - Peachtree Publishers.

Little Red's Riding 'Hood. Orchard Books.

Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood. Random House Children's Knopf Books for Young Readers.

My review is in no way influenced by the publishing company and is strictly my opinion.

Queen of Mystery Returns

I have written a number of reviews for books written by the Queen of Mystery, Mary Higgins Clark (5/5/2011 - I'll Walk Alone, 6/3/2014 - I've Got You Under My Skin, 11/5/2014 - The Cradle Will Fall) because she remains one of my favorite authors. I always know when I find one of her books I will fall into a great read. I was excited to find All Dressed in White, the latest addition to the "Under Suspicion" series featuring television producer Lauren Moran, when perusing the NetGalley website recently.

All Dressed in White
by Mary Higgins Clark & Alafair Burke

In the third episode of the television series Under Suspicion, Laurie Moran focuses her attention and cameras on the "Runaway Bride", Amanda Pierce, who disappeared five years ago the day before her wedding to her college sweetheart. Bringing the wedding party together at a lavish Long Beach resort, Laurie and Alex are quickly launched into production. Will they be able to uncover the circumstances of the bride's disappearance? Will there be white in Laurie's future? You'll have to read Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke's All Dressed in White to find out. 

Like I've said before, Mary Higgins Clark does not disappoint. she always provides a wonderful story line and an intriguing twist in her mysteries. I love this series and the possibilities that are available for additional "episodes" of Under Suspicion. I am reminded of J. A. Jance's Ali Reynolds series, which is another of my favorites, and I hope to see more in the future. All Dressed in White is now available in stores and online.

*To comply with new guidelines introduce by the Federal Trade Commission, Simon & Schuster has provided a complimentary electronic edition of All Dressed in White for review purposes. My review is in no way influenced by the publishing company and is strictly my opinion.

Will's Words

During the summer my son took me to New York City specifically to see as many Broadway shows as possible. I had been to NYC one other time, but my trip (planned for over a year) coincided with the first Stagehands Strike in the union's 121-year history! To say I was devastated is an understatement, but I have always been told things work out the way they are supposed to. I guess this trip proves the point because I had the most fantastic time I could have ever dreamed of having with my son.

While planning the trip he asked me what I wanted to see when we got to New York. I told him the only show I really wanted to see was Something Rotten! and he could choose the rest of the shows. I had only seen a short preview of the show while watching The 69th Annual Tony Awards earlier in the summer, but I was completely taken with the story line, music, and actors from the moment the curtains were raised.

If you don't know about Something Rotten!, and you love musical theater you should check it out. As soon as we left the theater (after staying around long enough to take pictures and get autographs from all of the leads, of course) I downloaded the soundtrack and listened to it all night.

Will's Words: How William Shakespeare
Changed the Way You Talk
by Jane Sutcliffe
illustrated by John Shelley

I bring up this musical because while reading Jane Sutcliffe's Will's Words: How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk my mind kept going back to the theater and the staging of the show. John Shelley's beautiful illustrations provide a wonderful example of the layout of London and remind me fondly of the stage set for Something Rotten! Painstaking detail can be found on each two-page spread.  Jane Sutcliffe's creative text tells the story of London and the popularity of the theater while carefully including the phrases Shakespeare originally penned and we now all use routinely. Words and phrases are bold within the text of the story (printed within a colorfully framed box) and then "Will's Words" are defined and cited showing the work in which the words originally appeared. A time line of events from 1564 (the year Shakespeare was christened) to 1997 (the year the modern Globe opened in London) appears at the end of the book along with a Bibliography.

Here are a few of the phrases used within the text:

• "for goodness' sake"
• "what's done is done"
• "wild-goose chase"
• "fashionable"
• "money's worth"
• "heart's content"
• "well behaved"
• "laughed themselves into stitches"

Not only is this a fascinating look at the influence William Shakespeare has had on the spoken word, it is also a very interesting history of his works and the legacy this master left for us all. I would highly recommend this book for all levels of school libraries, but I think it would have the most impact on high school students as far as understanding the works they are generally required to read during their final years of public school. I believe this could start an interest in Shakespeare's work for younger students if they were to read this book and see how the words and phrases we say and hear have been around for hundreds of years. Wills Words would also be a great gift to any fan of The Bard.

This book will be released on March 22, 2016.

* To comply with new guidelines introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, Charlesbridge has provided a complimentary electronic copy of Will's Words: How William Shakespeare Changed the Way You Talk for review purposes. My review is in no way influenced by the publishing company and is strictly my opinion.

Coloring to Calm

Meditations Through Coloring
By River Grove Books

I am a coloring book addict. I have been coloring for more years than I can remember.  I get very excited when I see a new coloring book and when I buy it I can hardly wait to start filling in the colors I see for the designs.

Coloring relaxes me and helps me to unwind from the days hectic schedule. At times during the day I find myself daydreaming about the pictures I will color when I get home.

I received a preview copy of Meditations Through Coloring from River Grove Books yesterday. I have to say this book grabbed me instantly. I could see the colors that needed to be added the moment I looked at the first page. The problem, the review copy I have is electronic. The images are amazing! Some are large with large spaces for color, others are extremely detailed and will require patience and time to complete. 

Based on what I see in this electronic file, it looks like the images are front and back. If this is the case that could be the one downfall I see to this book. I appreciate the 96 pages of images to color, but when I use my colored pencils, I don't like to have to place a blank sheet of paper between each of my already colored pages so the colors don't cross to other pages. Another problem with seeing only the images is not being able to feel the paper on which the book is printed. When I look for a coloring book, I feel the paper and usually select only those with higher quality paper. If the paper is too cheap (like an old fashioned coloring book, printed on newsprint like paper) I will not buy the book. I want my coloring to be display quality. If I spend the time to color the images, I want them to be beautiful and appreciated, even if I don't have the time to hang all of my pictures up in my home.  I don't have enough wall space to hang all of my coloring pages up on my walls. 

*To comply with new guidelines introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, Greanleaf Book Group has provided a complimentary electronic copy of Meditations Through Coloring for review purposes. My review is in no way influenced by the publishing company and is strictly my opinion.

Feelings in Prose

Feelings
written by Felicia Law
illustrated by Paula Knight

I love connecting children with books, especially when they have rhythm and rhyme. Felicia Law's new book Feelings does exactly this with her latest addition to the Patchwork series. This series "is a whimsical collection of books that integrate poetry to reinforce primary concepts among emergent readers".

Young children are introduced to feelings such as self-confidence, surprise,  jealousy, naughty, and fright in short poems. Each double page spread (illustration on one side and the poem on the other) depicts diverse children with facial expressions representing the various feelings. At the end of the book a list of words from the poems help parents to focus on key words for their emergent readers listening and speaking vocabulary.

I would recommend this title for parents of children from birth up to preschool. The Patchwork books are a great way to introduce young children to poetry while working on a simple concept with each title.

*To comply with new guidelines introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, Norwood House Press has provided a complimentary electronic copy of Feelings for review purposes. My review is in no way influenced by the author or publishing company and is strictly my opinion.

Home Alone the Storybook

It is hard to believe it has been 25 years since we were first introduced to Kevin McCallister (wonderfully portrayed by Macaulay Culkin) in the hilarious Christmas movie, Home Alone. Like A Christmas Story, this movie has become a must-watch each year between Thanksgiving and Christmas, sometimes more than once because of the laughter generated by the antics.

Home Alone: The Classic Illustrated Storybook
by John Hughes, illustrated by Kim Smith

Now Kevin's ingenuity is brought to a whole new generation in the form of a picture book illustrated by Kim Smith. Readers are in for a treat whether you are familiar with the classic movie written by the extremely talented John Hughes, or this is the first you have ever heard of this hysterical movie. The picture book does not disappoint. It surprisingly follows the movie very well, especially in a picture book format. I have to give props to Kim Smith for a great adaptation. I was concerned when I initially saw the title, but my fears were quickly pushed.

Home Alone: The Classic Illustrated Storybook will be released in October 2015, perfect timing for a holiday purchase. Paired with the classic movie, you've got an instant winner of a Christmas gift for all ages.

*To comply with new guidelines introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, Quirk Books, has provided a complimentary electronic copy of Home Alone: the Classic Illustrated Storybook for review purposes. My review is in no way influenced by the author or publishing company and is strictly my opinion.

Black-Eyed Susans

Black-Eyed Susans
by Julia Heaberlin

I have been reading Julia Heaberlin's books since I was first introduced to her writing in 2013 during the Texas Library Association's annual conference when Playing Dead was the book for One Book, One Conference. I was thrilled when I saw Lie Still was available through NetGalley a few weeks later. I was equally excited when I discovered her latest book, Black-Eyed Susans on NetGalley as well.

The main character is Tessa. As a teenager she was found buried in an abandoned field with bones and the body of another young girl. The book is told in different voices - Tessa and Lydia (her best friend), and moves from 1995 to the present. The years are presented in flashbacks, therapy sessions, diary entries, and trial questioning.

The time is quickly approaching when the man charged with and convicted for the deaths of the Black-Eyed Susans (named because of the flowers spread over their bodies) will be executed. Because of a variety of events, Tessa no longer believes this man (Terrell) is guilty of the crimes for which he has been convicted, and has started working with an attorney and forensic scientist to overturn his conviction.

Ms. Heaberlin is from the Fort Worth area, so fans of the great city will enjoy reading about local attractions and facilities. Like all of her previous books, this psychological thriller will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who loves a great suspenseful tale.

*To comply with guidelines set forth by the Federal Trade Commission, Random House Publishing has provided an electronic copy of Black-Eyed Susans for review purposes. This review is my opinion and is in no way influenced by the publishing company.