Review: Red by Liesl Shurtliff
SYNOPSIS:
Can’t get enough of the new fairy-tale-retelling trend? Don’t miss Liesl Shurtliff’s new dark, humorous stand-alone middle grade novel RED: THE TRUE STORY OF RED RIDING HOOD (on sale April 12, 2016)!
Liesl Shurtliff spins a spellbinding tale, shining the spotlight on one of the most beloved characters from her award-winning debut, Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin. This isn’t the Little Red Riding Hood from the canonical children’s tale. Shurtliff’s Red is strong, independent, brazen, and not afraid of anything . . . except magic. But when Red’s granny falls ill, it seems that only magic can save her, and fearless Red is forced to confront her weakness. Readers will gobble up this bewitching fantasy as they join Red on her journey of discovery through the sinister dangers of the enchanted dark forest.
Liesl Shurtliff’s first book, Rump, won over kids and critics alike, earning an IRA Award, a Texas Bluebonnet nomination, a Whitney nomination, and a starred review from Kirkus, proclaiming it “as good as gold.”
In RED, Liesl Shurtliff is at her best. New York Times bestselling author of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Chris Grabenstein raves that “Liesl Shurtliff has truly out-magicked herself. Red is the most wonder-filled fairy tale of them all.” RED will capture the hearts of readers who like it Grimm, as well as followers of ABC’s TV show Once Upon a Time.
Oh, reader, what big teeth you have! The better to devour RED: THE TRUE STORY OF RED RIDING HOOD.
LINKS:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Goodreads
REVIEW:
*Book Received in Exchange for Honest Opinion/Review*
This book was an ideal, adventure filled middle grade tale of Red Riding Hood…with plenty of twists. We have all heard the classic tale of Red Riding Hood and Liesl has no problem turning the classic tale into an whimsical journey of life-lessons and life-long friendships. The story was a quick, light read that left me looking forward to what Liesl has up her sleeves next.
Red and Goldie are on a journey to save Red’s Grandmother. These two lead characters contrast each other perfectly and their friendship/banter had me smiling. Where Red is strict, Goldie is a free spirit and together they challenge anything that gets in their path. Goldie, I found at times to be annoying with her irrational decision making and constant babble about mummy; however, it didn’t take away too much from the story itself.
The story is complete unique, with components of the classic scattered throughout. I love, love, love what Liesl did with the wolf in this book. In the end Red was fearing death itself and it teaches a valuable lesson that people do die and its okay, and that we all have to accept that. You can’t let the fear consume you as it did Red. You have to face your fears, sometimes head on, to learn that life is worth living and in the end I think that is a lesson we can all benefit from.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Liesl Shurtliff was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, with the mountains for her playground. Just like Rump, Liesl was shy about her name, growing up. Not only did it rhyme with weasel, she could never find it on any of those personalized key chains in gift shops. But over the years she’s grown to love having an unusual name—and today she wouldn’t change it for the world!Before she became a writer, Liesl graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in music, dance, and theater. She now lives in Chicago with her husband and three young children, where she still dreams of the mountains. Rump is her first novel.
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