Little Red Riding Hood

All Ages

Birth - 12 months

by Jerry Pinkney

In this inspired rendering of the classic Grimm Brothers folktale, five-time Caldecott Honor winning artist Jerry Pinkney introduced two favorite children's characters to a new generation: the sly, scary wolf and the sweet little girl in her famous red hood. Readers will squeal with delight all over again during that most memorable scene when Little Red Riding Hood declares, "Oh, Grandmamma, what great teeth you have."

Pinkney's charming, masterfully-wrought illustrations - as warm and cozy as LIttle Red's cloak and as captivating ast he clever wold himself - are sure to lure you into the heart of this treasured tale.

Age: 4 Year-olds | Title: Little Red Riding Hood | Author: Jerry Pinkney | Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers

Why we chose this book

Jerry Pinkney offers new and detailed pictures to go along with a classic story with a smart message for your growing little one in this Capitol Choices Noteworthy Book for Children. The watercolor, pencil, and ink pictures are colored with shading and depict detailed scenic backgrounds. With approximately a paragraph per page, your child has enough time to study the pictures before its time to turn the page. Fun sound effect words like "crunch, crunch" for walking in snow, or the "tap, tap" on the door are sprinkled throughout to keep the mood light, while the story itself carries some heavy lessons.

The primary lesson in Little Red Riding Hood is 'don't talk to strangers', so you can point this out to your child and talk about what happened to Little Red Riding Hood when she trusted the wolf. You can also discuss the violence, as your child may be surprised to see that the wolf actually succeeds in swallowing both the grandmother and Little Red Riding Hood, or when the woodcutter kills the wolf and opens his stomach. Be prepared for questions; easy and hard, as your child may ask about the wolf's death.

My friend Nick studied the pictures in depth, not letting me turn the page until he was ready. He thought it was amazing that "they colored out of the lines." I tried explaining to him that this style of art was not as rigid as most and it was okay to move a little out of the lines, but he was sure he'd found a mistake and was very proud of himself.

--Audra