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kikiandarrowsfishshelf's review against another edition
4.0
Little Red Riding Hood is one of those stories that everyone knows. Folklorists have debated over it for years. Was it some kind of season changing story? Was the red hood a stand in for virginity? Was it really about werewolves? Or is it really about why women shouldn't talk to strange men, the warning about seduction and rape?
I tend to belong in the last camp. Why else is the wolf always male? Why else would Hilter use it in his anti-Jewish propganda (the Grimms were banned for a while after WW II in Germany)? And to jump the wolf means to pop the cherry. And if you don't know what that means, ask mom and stop reading this review. No, I don't buy that bit about the cork; it's a bit much.
Despite the labeling of a child's story, LRRH has been adapted by many writers who bring the sex more to the forefront and drop the codin. Writers such as [a:Angela Carter|27500|Angela Carter|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1241164068p2/27500.jpg], [a:Tanith Lee|8694|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1218895130p2/8694.jpg], and [a:John Connolly|38951|John Connolly|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1201288913p2/38951.jpg]have all dealth with the story and the questions it raises about sex. LRRH has even made her way into adult Halloween Costumes, the would be sex predator is no longer the wolf.
Kastensmidt and Hines tackle Red Riding Hood from a largely adult prespective. In thier book, they present two sides of the same story: the Wolf's (Lobo) and Red's. Like many modern authors, the pair inverts the tale. As anyone can tell by looking at the cover, Lobo might not be the true predator. This might be one of those wolf woman who uses the poor smuck tales.
Except, and here's the genius, the reader ends up liking Red much better than the Wolf. Perhaps because her story is longer, perhaps because she is smarter, perhaps because she is more honest.
Either way, this isn't your momma's Red Riding Hood.
Or your child's for that matter.
There's bears.
There's grannies who are witches adicted to pixie dust (you know, the kind in the straws. I knew something fishy was going on there).
There's the mob.
While I enjoyed Red's Tale better, Lobo's Tale isn't bad. Kastensmidt does seem to do a good job of capturing the voice of an over the hill wolf who has a colon and lover handles, yet who is chasing down a younger woman who is waaay out of his league. Strangely, this sounds like a few men who have been in the news. Also there are some very funny lines in Lobo's tale.
Hines' story is longer and well it is not as laugh out loud funny, it is funny and much in line with his Princess novels (see [b:The Stepsister Scheme|3598195|The Stepsister Scheme (Princess Novels, #1)|Jim C. Hines|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1277696343s/3598195.jpg|3640889]) where the women don't need saving. Hines makes a smart grifter extremely likable because she is completely honest.
What is less clear is if Lobo is being completely honest.
The inversion of roles also makes this book more modern. The predatory woman who uses her sexual wiles to control men has appeared in thousands of stories,yet she usually gets her just punishment. Hines pays with this idea, and Red is not your average woman. Make her the predator in a tale where the predator is male is also interesting. They are playing around with the original idea and meaning behind the tale (see [b:The Great Cat Massacre: And Other Episodes in French Cultural History|1085381|The Great Cat Massacre And Other Episodes in French Cultural History|Robert Darnton|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1180862832s/1085381.jpg|336932]). Lobo, too, might be more of a predator than he seems, coming on to a young woman. Stalking her. Hmmm, maybe there is a totally second level to this story.
The packaging of the book is well done. The stories are told back to back, but you have to reverse the book to read the second story. This allows for two different covers and stops the urge to peak ahead. It also allows for a pause, like in a trial when calling for the next witness.
I tend to belong in the last camp. Why else is the wolf always male? Why else would Hilter use it in his anti-Jewish propganda (the Grimms were banned for a while after WW II in Germany)? And to jump the wolf means to pop the cherry. And if you don't know what that means, ask mom and stop reading this review. No, I don't buy that bit about the cork; it's a bit much.
Despite the labeling of a child's story, LRRH has been adapted by many writers who bring the sex more to the forefront and drop the codin. Writers such as [a:Angela Carter|27500|Angela Carter|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1241164068p2/27500.jpg], [a:Tanith Lee|8694|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1218895130p2/8694.jpg], and [a:John Connolly|38951|John Connolly|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1201288913p2/38951.jpg]have all dealth with the story and the questions it raises about sex. LRRH has even made her way into adult Halloween Costumes, the would be sex predator is no longer the wolf.
Kastensmidt and Hines tackle Red Riding Hood from a largely adult prespective. In thier book, they present two sides of the same story: the Wolf's (Lobo) and Red's. Like many modern authors, the pair inverts the tale. As anyone can tell by looking at the cover, Lobo might not be the true predator. This might be one of those wolf woman who uses the poor smuck tales.
Except, and here's the genius, the reader ends up liking Red much better than the Wolf. Perhaps because her story is longer, perhaps because she is smarter, perhaps because she is more honest.
Either way, this isn't your momma's Red Riding Hood.
Or your child's for that matter.
There's bears.
There's grannies who are witches adicted to pixie dust (you know, the kind in the straws. I knew something fishy was going on there).
There's the mob.
While I enjoyed Red's Tale better, Lobo's Tale isn't bad. Kastensmidt does seem to do a good job of capturing the voice of an over the hill wolf who has a colon and lover handles, yet who is chasing down a younger woman who is waaay out of his league. Strangely, this sounds like a few men who have been in the news. Also there are some very funny lines in Lobo's tale.
Hines' story is longer and well it is not as laugh out loud funny, it is funny and much in line with his Princess novels (see [b:The Stepsister Scheme|3598195|The Stepsister Scheme (Princess Novels, #1)|Jim C. Hines|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1277696343s/3598195.jpg|3640889]) where the women don't need saving. Hines makes a smart grifter extremely likable because she is completely honest.
What is less clear is if Lobo is being completely honest.
The inversion of roles also makes this book more modern. The predatory woman who uses her sexual wiles to control men has appeared in thousands of stories,yet she usually gets her just punishment. Hines pays with this idea, and Red is not your average woman. Make her the predator in a tale where the predator is male is also interesting. They are playing around with the original idea and meaning behind the tale (see [b:The Great Cat Massacre: And Other Episodes in French Cultural History|1085381|The Great Cat Massacre And Other Episodes in French Cultural History|Robert Darnton|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1180862832s/1085381.jpg|336932]). Lobo, too, might be more of a predator than he seems, coming on to a young woman. Stalking her. Hmmm, maybe there is a totally second level to this story.
The packaging of the book is well done. The stories are told back to back, but you have to reverse the book to read the second story. This allows for two different covers and stops the urge to peak ahead. It also allows for a pause, like in a trial when calling for the next witness.
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