A New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children's Book of 2022 ★ Everyone knows how "Little Red Riding Hood" goes. But Grandpa keeps getting the story all wrong, with hilarious results!
"Once upon a time, there was a little girl called Little Yellow Riding Hood—" "Not yellow! It's Red Riding Hood!" So begins the story of a grandpa playfully recounting the well-known fairytale—or his version, at least—to his granddaughter. Try as she might to get him back on track, Grandpa keeps on adding things to the mix, both outlandish and mundane! The end result is an unpredictable tale that comes alive as it's being told, born out of imaginative play and familial affection. This spirited picture book will surprise and delight from start to finish, while reminding readers that storytelling is not only a creative act of improvisation and interaction, but also a powerful pathway for connection and love.
Telling Stories Wrong was written by Gianni Rodari, widely regarded as the father of modern Italian children's literature. It exemplifies his great respect for the intelligence of children and the kind of work he did as an educator, developing numerous games and exercises for children to engage and think beyond the status quo, imagining what happens after the end of a familiar story, or what possibilities open up when a new ingredient is introduced. This book is illustrated with great affection by the illustrious artist Beatrice Alemagna (Child of Glass), who counts Gianni Rodari as one of her "spiritual fathers."
Everyone knows how "Little Red Riding Hood" goes. But Grandpa keeps getting the story all wrong, with hilarious results!
“Gianni Rodari, described as the father of modern Italian kid lit, gets a makeover here of one of his classic Telephone Tales. In this fractured version of Little Red Riding Hood, a grandpa mixes up all the particulars of the story, much to the delight of his squealing granddaughter... At each stage, the little girl emotes expressively, throwing up her arms and imagining (with squishy thought bubbles) all the right and wrong things about the story, crouching on the floor while Grandpa tries to get back to his newspaper. The star here was the fabulous illustrations, combined with gorgeous book design. Alemagna uses Magic Markers (possibly on dampened paper), which mimic watercolor and their characteristic spread, but allow her to create her own blobby version of pointillism… The large thick pages, with their buff color would make for really standout viewing of the large goofy pictures, like Grandpa and the girl racing off on a large horse (we only see their behinds, including the girl’s underwear!) with the pesky newspaper pages conveniently blowing away.” —Susan Harari, Keefe Library (Boston Latin School, Boston, MA), Youth Services Book Review
