Dark. Are the kids supposed to be creepy too? Art is beautiful and unsettling. Forever impressed by the dedication "to all the wolves of the world for lending their good name as a tangible symbol for our darkness". ( )

1990 Caldecott Medal Winner

The illustrations in this book are shadowy, blotchy--suggestive of darkness and the uncomfortable feeling that something could come creeping out of the abyss beyond the seen. It's also interesting that they are boxed in and sometimes spread across multiple boxes with space in between, almost confirming that they're still safely contained despite the impression of boundlessness.

This is a Chinese Red Riding Hood story in which the wolf comes to visit three girls while their mother is away. The girls trick the wolf into allowing them to climb a tree outside the house to retrieve nuts, then, promising to share the nuts with the wolf, hoist him up and drop him to his death.

It's really an excellent take on the Red Riding Hood tale. I remember having it read to my school class as a kid, though, and being very frightened by the illustrations, especially the depictions of the wolf with reflective, or perhaps missing, eyes. They still scare me even as a 28-year-old, so maybe the illustrator just did a thorough job.

I'm not good at climbing trees, so I think I'll go call my Mommy and see if I can stay at her house tonight. ( )

I particularly like the dedication page, in which Young creates an image that is both man and wolf, and is written:

"To all the wolves of the world
for lending their good name
as a tangible symbol
for our darkness." ( )

Incredible Red-Riding Hood story from China. ( )

Independent Reading Level: Grades 2-4
Awards: 1990 Caldecott Medal