Rate this book

Honestly, Red Riding Hood Was Rotten. Trisha Speed Shaskan (2012)

by Trisha Speed Shaskan(Favorite Author)

3.59 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

1406243108 (ISBN13: 9781406243109)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

Raintree

review 1: This book is a re-telling of the well-known story of Little Red Riding Hood- with a twist. It is told by the view point of the Big Bad Wolf. The story is in the first person and the Wolf is on a mission to clear his name and set the story straight. The book starts off with some background information so you, as the reader, get to know why he HAD to eat Little Red and her grandmother, which is unlike him because he is a vegetarian (on most occasions). The Wolf describes how he had not eaten for weeks and one day smelt cake and butter in the forest. Naturally he was enticed and followed the smell all the way to Little Red who looked like his favorite fruit, an apple. The wolf then talks about Little Red’s character as being very full of herself and so she naturally takes o... moren the challenge of beating him to grandma’s house. Once there, before Little Red, he eats grandma because she too reminds him of a juicy green apple. And once Little Red gets there she too suffers that same fate. No woodcutter in this story to save the day.The book is wonderfully written and is very amusing and greatly enjoyable to read. It gives new twists to the storyline and the reader reads in anticipation of what may happen next even though it is a story that everyone is familiar with. The appropriate age range for this story can be Key stage 1 or 2. It can be read to the class in Year 1 and 2. Activities can be based on looking at the differences in the original version and the Wolf’s version. It can also be used for guided reading, with focuses on writing in the past tense, descriptive words and repetition and rhyming.In Key stage 2 it can be used to inspire creative writing, such as looking at other fairy tales and writing a different point of view story of one of the villains as the narrator.All in all a great read.
review 2: This book initially caught my attention due to the eye catching cover with the statement ‘ Honestly, Red Riding Hood was Rotten!’ displayed in large bold letters. As such I believe this book would also appeal to children aware of the original tale and intrigued by the unique appeal of this story.The plot follows the wolf addressing the reader and from the outset attempting to justify his actions and gain sympathy by focusing on his extreme state of hunger. Also in a rather comical fashion it is stated that the wolf is mostly a vegetarian, thereby suggesting he is a kind character. During the course of the story, the wolf continuously highlights to the reader the vain and self obsessed nature of both Red Riding Hood and her grandmother, implying he did nothing wrong as he was really hungry and she was of course ‘rotten’.The appropriate age range for this story would be 7 - 9 year olds as the language used is quite complex with long sentences, however it could also be read during class story time to younger pupils.I like this book as it opens up the readers minds to different points of view and the way in which events can be interpreted in a number of different ways. In addition the book features vivid and engaging illustrations which help further and highlight the modern nature of the story.The book can be used in the classroom to discuss the ethical and moral issues surrounding the wolf’s actions i.e. as he was so hungry and his normal diet of apples was not available was it okay to eat Red Riding Hood. Also this book can be used to compare and contrast with the original story, and open up a discussion on the way in which other classic children’s literature would differ if there was a change in narrator. less

Download links for: Honestly, Red Riding Hood Was Rotten. Trisha Speed Shaskan

Advertising