Book of the Week: Petite Rouge

This is another book given to my children by my in-the-know friend Audrey.

Petite Rouge, a Cajun Red Riding Hood, was written by Mark Artell and illustrated by Jim Harris. Little Red is replaced by a duck, the forest is replaced by the swamp, and the wolf is replaced by an alligator named Claude.

It's a top notch read aloud — if you read the text as it stands, you'll sound like you have a perfect cajun accent. Most appealing to my 4 and older kids and best when they're wide awake, because listening children have to concentrate — the accent is thick and there a several unfamiliar words. (Luckily, there's a simple glossary at the back for those of us unaquainted with Cajun cuisine.)

The story is charming and the illustrations are terrific. Lots of humorous details: Mona Lisa as a duck, the enormous alligator in Grandma's tiny bed with her frilly night clothes on. Just a fun, fun book.



And while we're talking about Petite Rouge, I must tell you about a new-to-me website: Just One More Book. Basically, 2 friends get together three times a week at their favorite coffee shop and post podcasts discussing their favorite children's books — specifically, books that haven't received as much attention as they deserve.

One of their very first podcasts, featured Petite Rouge. It was episode 2 and now they're on episode 111. In addition to book discussions, they also feature conversations with Authors and Illustrators. You can find all their offerings by scrolling down their right margin. Expect each podcast to last 5-12 minutes and know that this site is "powered by passion" — no ads and no money to be made. What a cool site.

Put on a podcast while you fold some laundry or go through some mail and have fun getting to know some new books.


The book, like everything else in the world, is available here.