Little Red and the Very Hungry Lion Paperback – May 7, 2015 by Alex T. Smith (Author, Illustrator) (Scholastic Childrens Books) (IBRChildrensBooks)

K-Gr 2-This retelling of "Little Red Riding Hood" set in Africa recasts the wolf as a lion. Little Red's Auntie has broken out in "spots" and asks Little Red to bring her medication. This necessitates a long journey through the jungle. Lion stalks Little Red and develops a plan to eat her and Auntie. Little Red is too smart for Lion and distracts him with delays like grooming his mane into braids. When Lion's ruse is spoiled, Little Red tells him that if he was hungry, "all you had to do was ask for some food." Auntie's spots are healed, Lion's behavior is changed by Little Red's generosity, and all is well. Smith's adaptation is sadly uneven. Average writing accompanies above-average illustrations in a riotously colorful cartoon style. However, the page layout renders the story very choppy, making it ill-suited for reading aloud. Additionally, the cultural representation is half-hearted and awkward. The illustrations depict a wide variety of African animals, but other than Little Red and her family being black, nothing about the story line is particularly "African" other than the lion. Auntie's "spots" and her need for "spot cream" are also nonspecific, and Little Red improbably brings her a snack of doughnuts. VERDICT Niki Daly's Pretty Salma more successfully gives a classic tale an African spin, rendering this one a strictly additional purchase with limited appeal