There's a Wolf at the Door: Five Classic Tales Retold

I admit it. I tend to root for the well-dressed baddies. I always have. When I was a child I would secretly root for Captain Hook over that snide, arrogant Peter Pan boy. And Cruella de Ville? Sure, I couldn't support her love of puppy-wear, but that lady knew how to wrap a stole, that's for sure. So when I see a villain with a certain personal flair and sense of style, I feel an odd sort of sympathy and connection. A sympathy and connection that definitely came up more than once while reading "There's a Wolf at the Door" by Zoe and R.W. Alley. Expertly weaving together five different fairy tales with a single (unlucky) villain, Alley & Alley create a product that's part picture book, part graphic novel, and all amusement from start to finish. Little known fact: You know that wolf that pops up in The Three Little Pigs? How about the one in The Boy Who Cried Wolf or Little Red Riding Hood? Would you believe that it was a same guy who also appears in The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing or The Wolf and the Seven Little Goslings? Turns out that this wolf has had a fairly rough and tumble day. After losing out his delicious pig dinner the furry fop tries his hand at a boy and his sheep. When the sheep prove to be smarter than the boy (no great feat) the wolf moves on to Little Red (getting a snoutful o' shoe), the sheep again (in disguise), and a houseful of goslings. Each time the wolf is thwarted in his attempts, finally deciding on a life of peaceful vegetarianism... and potential thrashing at others' hands. We are definitely dealing with five distinct fairy tales here (with some double backing for good measure) so you may feel a little bit surprised when you find that there are only 34 pages of text here from start to finish. It feels like a whole lot more, and that may have a lot to do with the sheer amount of material Alley & Alley have been able to cram in. For one thing, you're looking at a 14-inch book that's taller than its average 10-inch fellows. On top of that is the whole comic paneling appeal. You can work in a ton of text and dialogue if you've a panel or two to place them in. So while it might remain as trim and slim as any other book found in a picture book collection "There's a Wolf at the Door" makes for a long read. Bear this in mind when your canny kidlets attempt to coerce you in reading the whole thing before beddy bye. R.W. Alley's illustrations first came to my attention when he took the helm of the Paddington illustrated empire. His recent work on "Paddington Here and Now" so perfectly captured the little Peruvian bear's personality and charm that I was utterly thrilled to find his name gracing the cover of this book too. The choice to make it a comic was unexpected. Due to the sheer amount of text I suppose it could have gotten away as a young reader or early chapter book. But this suits it better, I think. There aren't any wordless passages, which I found interesting. Usually a graphic format