Lon Po Po

Lon Po Po: A Red Riding Hood Story from China

LC Class

PZ8.1.Y84 Lo 1989

Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China is a children's picture book translated and illustrated by Ed Young. It was published by Philomel (Penguin Young Readers Group) in 1989 and won the 1990 Caldecott Medal for distinguished American illustrated books for children.

Description

The story is a Chinese version of the popular children's fable "Little Red Riding Hood" as retold by Young. Contrary to the original fable, in which there is only one child (Little Red Riding Hood) who interacts with the nemesis of the story (the wolf), Lon Po Po (Mandarin for "wolf [maternal] grandmother") has three children, and the story is told from their perspective. The majority of the illustrations are divided into three pictures for each two-page spread (with a few exceptions). Young uses dark colors for the illustrations to set the tone of the story.

Synopsis

The story is set in

nuts that grow on the tree outside their home. The children go out and climb the tree where she tells the other two who Po Po really is, while the wolf follows. They tell the wolf to get a rope and a basket so they can pull him up the tree to get the nuts, all the while planning on dropping the wolf once in the basket. When they drop the basket, the wolf bumps his head. On the third time as the wolf reaches for the nuts, the kids let go of the rope, sending the wolf plummeting once more, killing him. After the third and final fall, the wolf not only bumped his head, but he also broke into pieces. They check to see (and ask him) if he is OK. But they hear no answer (as he is now dead). That night, the girls look at the wolf's dead body. Finally, they go inside the house to bed. After the mother's return, the next day they tell her what happened.

Audiobook

Young's version was made into a critically acclaimed

.

Critical response

Lon Po Po has been critically acclaimed. Barbara Auerbach of the School Library Journal wrote "The shadows and cautious, frightened faces coupled with the narrator's expressive storytelling will leave viewers on the edge of their seats"^[1] Heather McNeil (Horn Book Magazine): "This production brings new life to an old favorite."^[2]

The text possess that matter of fact veracity that characterizes the best fairy tales... The water color and pastel pictures are remarkable...Overall, this is an outstanding achievement that will be pored over again and again....

—John Philbrook, San Francisco Pub. Lib. (School Library Journal)^[3]

References

Awards
Preceded by Song and Dance Man	Caldecott Medal recipient 1990	Succeeded by Black and White