Little Red And The Crocodile is a fractured fairy tale, that would be a great read aloud for a group or as part of a unit on Fractured Fairy Tales. The story was engaging and creative. Zara was an imaginative version of Little Red Riding Hood. She made a fun relatable character for kids. My Sons 7 and 4 wanted more color in the illustrations, but I understand that it is the style the author wanted so it opened up a discussion about the types of illustrations The loved to compare the story to the original. I would highly recommend this book to educators and families.


I received a complimentary copy of this book, this in no way influenced my review. All opinions are my own.

This story was unexpected and really cute. it actually was very close to the original tale of little red riding hood though the setting and characters, especially the crocodile (The wolf), were different it was a nice change and for those who live in areas where a crocodile and or alligator would be more common that a wolf this would be a very cute story. it was a nice twist to the story, the comic book/manga feel to it was very refreshing as well.

Little Red and the Crocodile is a take on Little Red Riding Hood. To be honest, not the greatest book. Shorter might have been cuter, but at this length the story should have been more developed.

I really enjoyed the images. All the illustrations were adorable and made me eager to turn the page.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC for an honest review.

(2.5)

I absolutely loved the artwork and new take on Little Red Riding Hood. However, I had some issues with this story. The story is set in Louisiana, but a Crocodile was chosen to replace the Wolf. There are no Crocodiles in Louisiana, so this story isn't educating children on the wildlife that is actually found in Louisiana. An Alligator could have easily replaced the Crocodile in this story. Also, the pacing seemed off and I felt that there could have been a more fun and less direct way to end the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and True Beginnings Publishing for the digital copy sent for review.

This is basically a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood with the bad guy being a crocodile rather than a wolf. I believe the story is meant to take place in Louisiana but the book only mentions it once.

I had high hopes for this book because of the cover illustrations. It was a very disappointing read. There is another children's picture book version of this that is quite exceptional because a lot of cultural research was done to complete the book. The pictures didn't get any better than the front cover.

Although it was disappointing, I am still very grateful to NetGalley for this ARC.

This isn't really what I was expecting. This is a retelling of "Little Red Riding Hood" set in Louisiana with a crocodile instead of a wolf. It leaves out the characteristic aspects of the story ("What big teeth you have, Grandmother!") and instead relies on people's familiarity with the original tale to get the somewhat preachy point across. (The message is literally spelled out in the last paragraph. Subtle, it isn't.)

I have a few problems with this. First, there's the writing. It's confusing in places, with dangling participles and unclear pronoun use. Also, there's way too much of it. At times, this is almost like a novel. Pages of text alternate with illustrations, and some of those text pages are full pages. (Others are not, which makes the book seem somewhat uneven.) Second, and perhaps more importantly, there are no crocodiles in Louisiana. Oops!

I was hoping for some twists. After all, this is billed as a "fractured fairytale". I expected a little more than the story simply changing the grandmother to an aunt, the wolf to a crocodile, and the woodcutter/hunter to a park ranger. Everything else is pretty much the same. The Louisiana setting could have been interesting, but it was underused (especially in the illustrations); the potential for a real sense of place wasn't realized. And, you know... there are no crocodiles in Louisiana. (This character could've been changed to an alligator easily and it would've made more sense. He just would've had to have been named something other than Cory to keep up with alliteration.)

Overall, this was a disappointment. I like seeing new twists on fairy tales... but they have to be done well. Changing up the characters a little bit wasn't enough to make me love this.

‘Little Red and the Crocodile’ is a wonderful modern adaptation to the European fairy tale, 'Little Red Riding Hood.' In ‘Little Red and the Crocodile’, Little Red is a modern-day girl known as Zara. Zara's mother finally believes Zara is old enough to walk to her Auntie Moshee’s house in the heart of the marshy swamp alone. As Zara's journies to her Aunt’s house, she encounters a couple of interesting characters the most noticeable one, the crocodile. Similar to the classic tale, ‘Little Red and the Crocodile’ is a golden reminder to all kids not to talk to strangers nor share any personal information with a stranger. The illustrations throughout the book are adorable and were a hit with my six-year-old daughter.

Little Red and the Crocodile by Suzan Johnson, 23 pages. PICTURE BOOK
True Beginnings Publishing, 2019. $13.
Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: G; Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW
Little Red is excited to visit her aunt over spring break -- too excited to follow her mother’s directions. Not following directions is fun and doesn’t seem to be hurting anyone. What’s the worst that could happen?
While the premise of moving Little Red Riding Hood to a Louisiana swamp sounds fun, I feel like this version doesn’t bring anything new to the story. I also feel that Johnson throws the moral of the story in at the end without any of the craftsmanship of the original tale. The illustrations are pretty cute, but my overall feeling for the book is mediocre at best.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

There's a reason why some stories are enduring and continue to amaze and delight through time. Little Red Riding Hood is often attributed to the Brothers Grimm in the 17th Century however evidence suggest that its origins lay much earlier and across several european countries, some as early as the 10th Century! The morals of the story are however what gives it the longevity and are still miraculously pertinent today. Johnsons retelling of the classic is brilliantly updated to resonate with todays young readers in such a way that we can impart life lessons with fun and adventure.

Little Red, who's real name is Zara is given the important privilege of being allowed to walk to Aunty Moshee's house by herself for the first time. The rules are simple; don't stop to talk to anyone, don't give away your personal information and always use your manners. But of course within the innocence and imagination of children, Zara does stop to talk to people she knows, stops to 'smell the flowers' and stops to talk to a very polite crocodile.

I adore the illustrations in this edition and can imagine them on the wall of a nursery or young child's room. There's so much to talk about within the pictures and this is such a clever way to engage little readers. The writing is also presented in such a way that it allows for dramatic actions to accompany.

My little bookworm loved this story and will continue to love it as she grows. Pertinent, resonant and magical - exactly what a fairy tale should be!