A modern "Little Red Riding Hood" with a twist.Distracted by the device in her hand, Little Red heads down the dangerous fork to her grandmother's home. She wanders into the Wolf-Filled Woods, where wolves-of every "type, shape, and size"-hungrily lurk along the path. Eyes still glued to her smartphone, Red doesn't see a single one. That is, until the "biggest and baddest" wolf emerges from behind a tree. Red throws her phone. She trembles, shivers, and even plays dead until she gets the "bright, helpful thought" to stand up to the wolf instead. She warns the wolf of a nearby werewolf that will gobble him up. The wolf is skeptical, but he asks Red whether each wolf in the forest-from square (-shaped) wolf to barely there wolf-is the loup garou in question. Soon, the full moon is in sight and-surprise!-Red transforms into the werewolf. Hunt's colorful, eye-catching cartoon illustrations are filled with whimsical background details. The staging and facial expressions give the proceedings an animated-movie feel. Sullivan's clever concept effectively flips the script on the classic tale. While the memorable twist itself is up to par with the one in Mo Willems' That Is Not a Good Idea (2013), the preachy ending and often forced rhyming couplets cheapen the fun of this otherwise vibrant tale. Red and her grandmother have light-brown skin. (This book was reviewed digitally.)Good concept and visuals but not totally worth howling about. (Picture book. 5-8)

PreS-Gr 1 In this rhyming fractured fairy-tale retelling of "Little Red Riding Hood," a brown-skinned girl in an oversize red hoodie and huge sneakers heads into the woods, focused on her cell phone and oblivious to the wolves looming from behind the trees. When a wolf does jump out, Red has a bright idea (à la the mouse in Julia Donaldson's The Gruffalo): She warns the wolf that he's not the most dangerous creature in the woods. The wolf is skeptical: "Though werewolves are scary, they are very rare. So where's the werewolf that I should beware?" His suggestionsand the matching illustrations of the "barely there wolf," the "gothic glare wolf," and the "merry care wolf"grow increasingly, fantastically hilarious. In a twist, it's Red herself who's the dangerous one, and Grandma shows up with dog treats for the wolf to snack on instead of lost children. Although the red-eyed wolf is frightening, Red has the situation under control (much like the heroine of Bethan Woollvin's Little Red), and color-drenched illustrations provide plenty of humor. VERDICT Readers familiar with the original tale will appreciate this upending of traditional events; recommended for collections where Deborah Underwood's Reading Beauty and Interstellar Cinderella are popular.Jenny Arch, Lilly Lib., Florence, MA