Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood

It's official. Liesl Shurtliff has made it onto my list of favorite others. If you haven't read one of her books yet, please do. In fact, she has a new one coming out next month. You can start there if you want. I recommend you start with Rump though.

Is it silly of me that I was actually getting a little anxious when I started to read Red? Rump was so good, and I wanted Red to be equally good, so I was afraid that my high expectations were setting things up for failure. Eventually I got over that I realized that Red is truly a wonderful book that is indeed equal to Rump. Thanks, Liesl Shurtliff, for crafting such wonderful stories!

On to the facts!

Title: Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood

Rating: 5/5

Author: Liesl Shurtliff

Pages: 247

Genre: Children's/Fantasy/Fairy Tale

Synopsis:

After the events of Rump, things are pretty quiet on The Mountain. Most people have gone, but Red is more than content to stay where she is with her family. When her granny gets sick and may be dying, Red is willing to do anything to save her, even if it means meddling with the thing she fears most--magic.

My Reaction:

Clearly you already saw some of my reaction up above, but let me stress why this story is so great.

Firstly, I didn't expect this story to be touching in anyway. But let me tell you, by the time I was down to the last handful of pages, I had a tear in my eye, maybe even two. It may not affect everyone the same way it did me, but aside from adventure and magic and all of that good stuff, at the heart of this story is really a discussion of death. I feel like this was such a great avenue to bring up the topic in a way that a child could relate too without being freaked out, but also it was something I could relate to and reflect on.

One of my favorite lines of the book was, "Life is like a story. It doesn't mean anything if it doesn't end." It was one of things that made you want to appreciate life and the time we are given, not just our own lives, but to value the lives of those we care most about.

Aside from that and other themes such as the fact that it's okay to make mistakes, Shurtliff once again has created great, memorable characters. One of the key characters is Goldie (as in Goldilocks and the Three Bears). The thing I loved about her characer is that I found he just as annoying as Red did, but then also came to love her. She made me smile and laugh, and she was a great addition to the story. 

Like Rump, Shurtliff has taken characters we are familiar with and made them completely their own. I wasn't expecting some of the choices she made, which made the adventure all the more excited. This book is another winner!

Reader's Guidance:

If you're comfortable with Disney's animated movies, you'll be comfortable with this. 

Similar Books:

Aside from Liesl Shurtliff's other books, if you fancy Red you'll may also fancy books by Gail Carson Levine, Shannon Hale, Cameron Dokey, or a few by Robin McKinley. All of these authors have either retold fairy tales or have written books that have the fairy tale feel.

Next Book:

I went to the library today and came out with not one but three books. I almost grabbed more, but I restrained myself. I'm going to start with the first on the stack which is none other than Jack: The True Story of Jack and the Beanstalk by Liesl Shurtliff. I can't help it. I just loved the last two! Please pick up a copy and read along!