Red and the City by Marie Voigt

Red sets off with her dog Woody to take a cake to grandmother. Her mother tells Red to 

"Follow the heart flowers; take care with crossing the road; stay on the path; and don't talk to strangers."

If you know the original story of Little Red Riding Hood you will anticipate that things will go wrong but this is a modern retelling with mobile phones and a city to cross not a forest but of course the big bad wolf is hovering over every scene.

As with all good fairy tales there is a happy ending but it is very different from the one you will remember from the traditional tale.

This would be a fabulous book to share with a group of older children because you could discuss consumerism. If you collect fractured fairy tales this book is a must add to your collection. The graphic black and white illustrations with spots of red are very appealing. This debut picture book was first published in 2018 and was short listed for the Klaus Flugge Prize in 2019. Here is the web site for Marie Voigt.

The colour palette of greys, black and white is so dystopian and the effect is stunning. It isn’t scary, but like a fairy-tale, there is a hint of darkness at the edges. Little Red, in her bright coat, is in danger of being lost to the enormity of the city.  Book Murmuration