"The better to hear you with, my dear"

If Joseph Campbell is the guru of the comparative mythology game then I want to play that part in the kiddie version.

Joe's scholarly investigations into world mythology helped shed light on the great mysteries of existence. In order to understand the collective modern 'we' he uncovered the commonalities of what it has always meant to be human, that struggle to make sense of our world and our place in it.

These life lessons and rites of passage propelled mankind forward through storytelling. Fairy tales are also tools for understanding larger concepts. They contain digestible chunks of wisdom and serve as cautionary tales for developing minds. Like the great myths and legends they attempt to sooth our fears, help focus our attention and separate good from bad.

Joseph Campbell looked for common threads across cultures, times and civilizations. Shifts in understanding or circumstance directly influenced the mythology. This can also be said for adaptions made in the retelling of classic fairy tales or more specifically in the story of Little Red Riding Hood.

Illustrator Trinia Schart Hyman based her work on the original tale by the Brothers Grimm (Jacob Ludwig, Carl Grimm & Wilheim Grimm).

Her love of the character shines through in this award winning retelling of the traditional story. Grandma and Little Red get eaten alive by the wolf and are subsequently rescued by an intrepid woodsman.

Little Red Riding Hood learns her lessons - to keep her promises, to stay on the path, to mind her manners and to avoid talking to strangers (especially big bad wolves).

Author and illustrator Ed Young created a Caldecott Medal winner with Lon Po Po: A Red Riding Hood Story From China in 1990.

This is a haunting rendition of the classic tale containing exquisitely drawn Chinese panel pictures . It follows the adventures of a determined and terrifying wolf as he tries to get the best of young Shang, Tao and Paotze.

However these three crafty, enterprising girls have a trick or two up their sleeves and in the end the wolf proves no match for them.

Flossie and the Fox written by Patricia McKissack and illustrated by Rachel Isadora is an African American tale about a wily fox, notorious for stealing eggs, and a bold little girl.

In this adaptation the fox gets outfoxed by Flossie when he meets her in the woods. She insists upon proof that he is a fox before she will allow herself to become frightened. She taunts him stating "you a rabbit" or "you a rat trying to pass yo'self off as a fox".

All of his attempts to prove that he is indeed a fox fail miserably. The frustrated creature is finally outdone by Flossie and a fierce dog.

There are many, many, many variations on the Little Red Riding Hood story. It is interesting to read and compare these - and other fairy tales -with children to not only teach them about things like diversity and perspective (cultural, individual) but to get their take on them as well.

I will leave you with a short video that I made with Lauren entitled Fairy Tales. If you are at all interested in American Sign Language (ASL) watching Lauren is like a master class.