This book is a spin off of Little Red Riding Hood. Betsy is supposed to be taking cupcakes to her grandmother. Because she is the shepherd, she must take her sheep with her. Although she is leery about it, she allows the other shepherd, the wolf, to come along. Throughout her journey she begins to doubt her decision to allow the wolf to come. When the wolf runs ahead, Betsy is worried for her grandmother's safety. Eventually Betsy gets to her grandmother's house where she finds her family, friends and the wolf throwing a surprise birthday party. You could use this book to compare and contrast with the traditional story of Little Red Riding Hood. Students could make a chart listing similarities and differences between the two. It was... an odd book. Cute, overall, but really kind of weird. The first half is a strange version of little red riding hood where Betsy is a shepherd, and the wolf is the other shepherd. The sheep go on a trip to grandma's and the wolf comes along. While everyone tells her the wolf will hurt grandma, Betsy maintains that he won't and the sheep have all manner of comments to make along the way. It has a cute moral about things not being as they seem and just because someone else did something doesn't mean everyone else will be like that person (ie, just cause the wolf once ate a grandma, doesn't mean this wolf will do the same). It's weird. But if you like weird twists on classic tales (like The TRUE Story of the Three Little Pigs) then you might like this.
What do You think about Betsy Red Hoodie (2010)?
An entertaining mix of Little Red Riding Hood and Little Bo Peep.
—upaka
The illustrations are as adorable as the story.
—Ashbash66
The format makes it hard to read aloud.
—Josephine
