Little Red Riding Hood

by Ed Bryan (contributor)

A simple, humorous retelling of the classic fairy tale with fun and fresh illustrations by Ed Bryan. Little Red Riding Hood sets out into the forest to take a basket of goodies to her poorly grandma. Along the way, she adds to her stores, picking beautiful flowers, gathering fallen acorns and receiving a gift of some nice, sticky honey. She thinks these treats will cheer up her grandma. But little does she know that they could just save her from the Big Bad Wolf . . . This picture book is the perfect bedtime read for children aged 3–6. Every Nosy Crow paperback picture book comes with a free 'Stories Aloud' audio recording - just scan the QR code and listen along! .

Genres: Picture Books, Fairy Tales, Childrens, Wolves

30 pages, Paperback

Published May 7, 2015

About the author

Ed Bryan has studied industrial design and worked as a 3-D artist, animator, and illustrator on video games. He likes nothing better than making up stuff and coloring it in. Ed Bryan grew up in Suffolk, England, in a house full of home computers and pencils.

Reviews

[Veronica Baldwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this rendition of Little Red Riding Hood! Little Red Riding Hood is considered a fairytale, but to me it can be viewed in many ways. Although it is labeled as a fairytale I'm also able to see it as a fable because it can teach you things even if it was explicitly explained. Fables are a style of traditional literature that make you learn a moral at the end of the story, but I feel like that happens a lot in fairytales and tall tales where it teaches you of what characteristics you should have or what you should do when you're in trouble. In Little Red Riding Hood I feel like it teaches children to have a helping hand, to stick up for yourself and others, to listen to your elders.

Another reason I love this interpretation of this story is because of the illustrations that really grasp the reader's attention and would even be able to tell the story without any words. It's a really colorful version of this story that is usually portrayed in a darker manner. The color scheme of the book conveys or more innocent portrayal of the story and of Little Red rather than other mischievous presentations of the same character and more evil presentations of the big bad wolf.

Lastly, I really liked the fact that they didn't choose the wolf to have eaten the grandma before Little Red had gotten to her cottage like in other renditions of the story. The choice of having the grandma being locked in the closet by the Big Bad Wolf keeps in tune to the more innocent nature of this retelling by Nosy Crow. Little Red Riding Hood has always been one of my favorite fairytales and reading it brought me back to my childhood.

[Fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a modern twist to the traditional tale that we all know and love. Red Riding Hood is a young girl who instead of wearing a cape, wears a red hoodie. Similar to the traditional tale, Little Red Riding hood lives in a cottage at the edge of the forest with her mother. When her grandmother isn’t feeling well, her mother asks Little Red Riding Hood to bring her grandmother a basket of food. Before she leaves her mother warms her “Be careful in the forest and beware of the Big Bad Wolf!” Not before long, the wolf appears in the forest and Little Red Riding Hood tells him where she is going and then is on her way to picks some flowers, gather acorns under the big oak tree and help a bear pour his big pot of honey into jars. Little Red Riding Hood even got to take a jar for being kind and stopping to help him. The traditional tale continues with similar elements of a traditional tale such as repetition but has a great twist at the end. Instead of a wood-cutter coming to save Red Riding Hood as the female protagonist she is able to save herself from the big bad wolf. I love this twist and nod to female empowerment.

This book would be a great addition to a fiction unit on traditional tales in a K-2 classroom. It would be a great mentor text if you wanted to compare and contrast the original tale or could be used to discuss the author's message. The book would be very enticing for your readers because of the bright, colorful, realistic illustrations that have both single page and double-page spreads. They illustrator, Ed Bryan, also does a great job of making sure the illustrations match the text. This book has a happy ending and will certainly make readers of it happy too.

[Beverly · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this version, clever Hood saves herself and her grandmother from the wolf.

[Emily Elfering · Rating 4 out of 5]

I chose to read Little Red Riding Hood illustrated by Ed Bryan. This traditional literature version of Little Red Riding Hood is formatted for earlier readers, K-2. This book could be used as an independent read for 1st grade/ 2nd grade readers and could be used instructionally with younger readers or students needing more support.

This version of Little Red Riding Hood has traditional elements while following a more simple storyline with easier words for younger students to decode as well as comprehend. In addition, there is no violence included in this version of Little Red Riding Hood which can be beneficial for certain audiences.

Something I noticed about this book was that it had the typical format of this story to keep with the traditional storyteller theme yet it had its own style to it. For example, the setting stayed the same as the original story- in the forest. Within the forest the characters lived in a cottage which represents where simple folk live. The setting then changes to "the road" or "the path" to grandma's house where the main character encounters new people or influences. This is reflective of a traditional folktale.

Because this was a traditional folktale, there was less character development and instead there was more plot development. The character development that was there included bad characters and good characters, or the girl and the wolf.

Something that was interesting about this particular version of Little Red Riding Hood was there was no hero that came along, it was Little Red Riding Hood herself that was the hero . This was a refreshing twist on having the main character in a fairy tale be saved. This book could be used to highlight female success and the ability to do powerful things all within a well known classic folktale.

There are no multicultural or diverse perspectives in this version. The main reason for this is dating back to the origin of this folktale in Germany written by the Grimm brothers. The characters in this book are represented as white. The illustrator himself is also white.

The illustrations that are in this book are unique to this particular illustrator, Ed Bryan. He has illustrated many other folktales using the same style. The artistic style seems to be 3D animated art with some mixed media. For example, on some pages there animated backgrounds with zigzags and powerful pointy shapes to highlight a sneeze where others are laid out in a classic way with the words on the bottom in the pictures.

This book could be used to introduce the genre of fairy tales. I think this book could also be used within a small group setting to compare and contrast a "good" character and a "bad" character. Overall, I enjoyed reading this classic fairytale with a refreshing new look.

[RLL220_SandraJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: Little red riding hood has to go through the forest to get food to her sick grandma, but to do that she has to encounter the big bad wolf. The wolf ends up getting to grandmas house before little red riding hood and pretends to be the grandma. He even tries eat her but she uses honey, egg corns, and flowers to get the wolf out of her grandmas house. She ends up eating the food with her grandma and the wolf is never seen again.


Illustrations: Though the illustrations aren’t bright, they are colorful. There’s even pages that have the whole page filled with all color and no white space. The illustrations are very detailed, even their clothing and the background has detailed. I like that the big bad wolf isn’t seem too scary nor too friendly but just right. The text is fun to read because it has onomatopoeia and it’s not too much of it. It has small sentences that are out around the page, making it fun to follow when reading.

This book grade level is for pre-k , 1st, and 2nd graders. For Pre-K, I would read the book and make them role play different parts. For 1st graders I would make a scavenger hunt to try to find a wolf. (With clues ) For 2nd graders, I would make them make their own book of little red riding hood book.

Strengths: I like that they use onomatopoeia because I can teach kids about that topic. The illustrations are a strength because the colors are beautiful, getting the kids attention. The lesson of a little girl beating a wolf is another strength, it teaches kids that anything is possible. For weakness I really couldn’t find any.

[Mrs. Melaugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modern looking Little Red Riding Hood wearing a hoodie instead of a cape is sent by her mother to deliver a basket of healthy-looking fruits and cheese to her sick grandmother. Mom warns Red to beware of the Big Bad Wolf. Along the way, Red meets the Wolf, tells him where she is going, then stops to pick flowers and acorns. She next encounters a bear wearing a beret (perhaps suggesting a connection with Perrault’s French version of the tale?). She helps him pour honey into jars, and he gives her one of the jars. At granny’s house, the traditional exchange ends as usual with, “what big teeth you have!” When the wolf jumps out to chase her, Red first uses the flowers she picked to make him sneeze, then the acorns make him fall, and finally, the honey to attract bees that chase him away. Then Red releases Granny who was only locked in a closet. According to the back of the book, “it’s a familiar story with a new look!” However, anyone familiar with the most common versions of the story, those by Grimm and Perrault, will notice numerous changes in the storyline that go well beyond just a new look. Recommended for caregivers who are too squeamish to tell children the original version of the story.

[Sorome G · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of Little Red Riding Hood is about a little girl who was told to take a basket of goods to her sick grandmother. On her way to her grandmother’s house, little red riding hood comes across the big bad wolf. She takes her time getting to her grandmother’s house but when she gets there she gets tricked by the big bad wolf. she fights the wolf, little red riding hood, and her grandmother both enjoy the basket of food together. The theme of this story is strength and bravery. The little girl in this story was brave by fighting back instead of running away from the danger.
This story was heartwarming and very creative. The illustrations are my favorite. I liked how shiny and colorful the pictures were. The words were easy to follow through and overall very enjoyable!
I would use this book in unite that focuses on fairytale reading. Reading class focuses on different genera of stories and this could be used for that unit.

[Rebecca Grabill · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun twist on a favorite story, with a little Dora the Explorer flavor. Little Red Riding Hood sets off per usual, but meets animals/collects items along the way. All of which come in handy when she defeats the Big Bad Wolf (sorry, spoiler 😂). A nice wrap-up and creative twist. The parent in me appreciates not having to read the same story as every other retelling and the author in me loves the touch of cumulative storytelling and tidy ending.

[Katie Greenwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course, more Red Riding Hood picture books and I loved this one too. It was so cute and this time Little Red Riding Hood saved herself through what she collected on her journey. She used the daisies, the acorns and the honey to rid herself of the wolf. In the original tale straying from the path and collecting flowers was what allowed the wolf to get to Granny's house before her. I really enjoyed how that was subverted. 

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fairly traditional retelling of Little Red Riding Hood until you get to the end when a resourceful Red Riding Hood saves herself and her Grandma with some things she picked up on her walk.

As Red Riding Hood picks up various things on her walk see if readers can predict how they might come in useful against the wolf. A good pick when doing fairy tale units as it lends itself pretty easily to comparing/contrasting with other retellings and it is a pretty quick read.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is pretty much the traditional storyline of the Little Red Riding Hood folktale. The only difference is that Red picks up a few things on her walk to Grandma's that she uses in fighting back the wolf.

The illustrations are cute and I appreciated the look on Red's face as she fights back the wolf. She's got the attitude that she's not afraid or backing down. Nice to see that slight variation from other retellings.

[Lauren Gerber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Modern telling and illustrations on a classic story! Ed Bryan engages readers with his vibrant illustrations throughout the whole story. I would like to have this version of Little Red Riding Hood in my classroom library along with others. I think it would be cool to do an interactive read-aloud with this book along with others of the same story for students to compare and contrast different styles of the same story!

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This new take on Little Red Riding Hood changes the ending a bit so that Little Red manages to take care of the wolf all by herself without the aid of a woodcutter or other forest friend (besides bees). The bright, colorful illustrations are sure to catch the eye of readers young and old.

[Yoselin Castillo · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was not my favorite version of Little Red Riding Hood. It kept the normal story line and just added a few twists like the acorns, the jar of honey and how she ultimately got rid of the wolf. It was an okay read, I would probably chose a different version to read to my future class.

[Sabrina Hindle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this classic story and I think it has a great message about not trusting strangers! It’s a story that most kids have heard of and they know some version of it. It keeps their attention by using suspense and it would be a book that the students can maybe even act out.

[Lindsay Lodge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another version of Little Red Riding Hood in which nobody, human or animal, gets killed. I like that a lot. I also like the fact that there is no woodcutter who saves the day - Little Red Riding Hood defends herself and rescues grandma.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

An updated version of this traditional story. Don't mess with this Little Red Riding Hood, she's got things in hand when it comes to wolves.

Detailed, colorful, interesting pictures.

[MaryLibrarianOH · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this modern update to Little Red Riding Hood, Red doesn't need anyone to save her from the big bad wolf. Her cleverness and bravery help her outsmart the bad guy.

[Courtney Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Traditional Literature: I thought this was a fun new way to tell the Little Red Riding Hood story. I think it also makes the story funnier and more interesting.

[Tiffany Hough · Rating 4 out of 5]

This retelling by Nosy Crow features wonderful artwork and a heroine who saves herself and her grandma by being kind, resourceful, and clever. As a bonus, it was lovely of Noisy Crow and illustrator Ed Bryan to feature a stylish picture book mother who is the size and shape of an average woman. Such a sight should be commonplace, but it isn’t. A refreshing update of the classic folktale.

[Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Category: Traditional Fantasy
A fun retelling of Little Red Riding Hood with a slightly different ending. Cute illustrations.

[Neha Thakkar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great contemporary version - good set for when fairy tales need replacements

[Josephine Bivins · Rating 2 out of 5]

I prefer the Brothers Grimm version where the wolf eats grandma and Little Red and then the lumberjack cuts him open. Don't shield me from the truth

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my favorite retelling of Little Red Riding Hood. Nobody gets eaten. Nobody shoots the wolf. It says contemporary and family friendly on the back.

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this edition the story is changed a little bit and modernized, but the main story is the same.

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little Red Riding Hood meets the Bigd Bad Wolf and sends him packing herself.