Little Red Riding Hood and the Dragon

Taking a village near China’s Great Wall as this story’s setting, Chang Compestine empowers with a retelling that casts the red-hooded heroine as a kung fu performer. A bespectacled, “gentle” gray wolf opens, offering to tell “the real story.” As Little Red heads to Na˘inai’s carrying an herbal soup and a “big, sweet rice cake,” a long lean dragon, depicted in Ang’s sleek digital illustrations with golden eyes and a green mane, becomes the villain, suggesting that the child stray from the path to dig ginseng root. Once consumed by the beast, Little Red finds within its belly a yo-yo, silk ribbons, a drum, and a suona—tools she uses in combination with martial arts to escape. Throughout, the girl demonstrates courage as she comforts Na˘inai and vanquishes the dragon for a jubilant conclusion that still manages to cast doubt on the wolf’s trustworthiness. An author’s note and glossary conclude. Ages 4–8. (Nov.)