Digital Red: A Modern Fairy-Tale Series written by Kimberly Delude, illustrated by Jan Dolby and reviewed by Klaudia Janek

Summary: Digital Red is the third book in the Modern Fairy-Tale series, offering a clever, contemporary twist on the classic Little Red Riding Hood story. Instead of a red cloak, Digital Red is obsessed with her red phone, constantly texting, taking selfies, and posting on social media. When Fairy Godmother asks her to deliver healing soup to Granny's house, Digital Red can't resist sharing her plans online. A mysterious new "friend," @TBBW (The Big Bad Wolf), begins messaging her with seemingly helpful suggestions about where to go. However, this online interaction takes a dangerous turn when Red realizes she's shared too much personal information. Through witty dialogue and vibrant illustrations, this fractured fairy tale teaches an important lesson about online safety and the risks of communicating with strangers on the internet. 

Straight Talk for Librarians: Digital Red is an excellent addition to school libraries, offering both entertainment and educational value. The story addresses the critical topic of digital citizenship in an age-appropriate, engaging format that resonates with young readers. The book includes discussion questions that spark meaningful conversations about internet safety, critical thinking, and decision-making. Teachers and librarians can use this resource to facilitate lessons on online safety, stranger danger in digital spaces, and responsible technology use. The snappy dialogue and vibrant illustrations make it engaging for read-alouds, while the important messaging makes it suitable for both classroom instruction and independent reading. If you happen to be in an IB PYP library you can easily connect this to the Learner Profile, particularly the attributes of being "principled" and "knowledgeable." The story encourages students to think critically about digital citizenship, make ethical choices online, and understand the consequences of sharing personal information. Through this fractured fairy tale, students develop awareness of global issues in our technology-driven world.

Curriculum on author's website!

Little Red and the Cat Who Loved Cake written by Barbara Lehman, reviewed by Terry Wahrman

Summary:  Little Red and Big Red bake a cake for Grandma.  Wolfie, the cat, thinks he’ll be getting cake until it’s boxed up and put in a basket.  Sneaky Wolfie, follows Little Red all through town and through the park hiding behind things for the right opportunity to grab the cake.  Little Red greets several people, but the timing is off for Wolfie.  Wolfie gets into Grandma’s house, puts on her clothes, and gets in bed, but Wolfie does not know that Little Red and Grandma have a surprise for him.

Straight Talk for Librarians:  This fractured fairytale of Little Red Riding Hood is told through pictures.  It is wordless, but not worthless.  The colorful pages tell a strong story and incorporate other fairytale figures along the way.  There is a find me section in the back pages of the book to find certain items or characters. Having the students look for items is a precursor toward learning to be observant and detail-gathering for later comprehensive reading.  Great for teaching fractured fairy tales or rewriting a story too.  Goes to show, you don’t need words to tell a story.  Highly recommended. 

 

Wolf Hour, written by Sara Lewis Holmes, reviewed by Kalie Mehaffy

Summary: Magia is a young girl who lives with her family at the edge of a dangerous, magical forest called the Puszcza. Everyone in town is afraid of this forest, for it sucks people in and traps them in Stories - fairy tale stories that they cannot escape, no matter how hard they try - that drives them mad, everyone, that is, except for Magia and her Tata (father). Tata is a woodcutter who travels into the forest every day, kept safe by his red cap, to cut wood to sell to the townspeople. Magia is his youngest daughter, and she desperately wants to be a woodcutter just like her Tata, although her mother wants her to be a famous singer in the city. Inside the forest lives a wolf named Martin, who wants to be left alone and left out of the Stories, although that may not be as easy as it seems. Magia travels to the city with her brother and sister to take singing lessons to appease her mother, and ends up encountering a witch, and getting thrown into a story she desperately wants to change in order to save her family - and perhaps add a new member to her little family.

Straight Talk for Librarians: The Wolf Hour by Sara Lewis Holmes is a delightful twist on Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs. As someone who enjoys twisted fairy tales, this book absolutely checked off that twisted fairy tale box. The story was extremely compelling in the way that the characters interacted, and I absolutely agree with the review when it says that this story is a meditation of fate and expectations. I do think that at times, the Polish terms could be a bit challenging, although I did love the tone it added to the book. I think it could be used in classrooms as a literature circle book that could be used to discuss major themes, vocabulary, and character analysis. I love the story and fresh take on two classic tales that Holmes delivers, although this book will only resonate with students who enjoy twisted fairy tales.

Disenchanted: Trials of Cinderella, written by Megan Morrison, reviewed by Kalie Mehaffy

Summary: Return to the land of Tyme to follow the story of Elegant (Ella) Coach as she struggles to find her place in her fancy new school - which she can only attend because her father married a wealthy businesswoman. As Ella struggles to find her place and tries to figure out how to implement reforms in the factories that killed her mother, Prince Dash Charming has to learn how to live now that the Charming curse has been broken. He learns that the people he calls friends are bullies and that perhaps the Kingdom of Blue is not as perfect as he thought. Ella and Dash end up paired together on a business project for school, where they fall in love, uncover a major conspiracy, and begin implementing reforms in factories - all with the help of Serge and Jasper, Ella's fairy godparents.

Straight Talk for Librarians: Disenchanted: The Trials of Cinderella by Megan Morrison does an amazing job of highlighting serious issues in a way that is digestible for students. This novel is classified as being for grades 4 to 6, however, there is a decently graphic description of a factory fire where children and workers are locked into rooms (it called to mind images of the Triangle Factory Fire), and I think there would need to be a discussion first, as some students might not be able to handle the imagery, but it is something that I would put into a middle school library. It could be used in a classroom in a lesson about alternating points of view, which this novel does extremely well, or it could be used in a lesson about societal reform. I do agree with the School Library Journal review overall, I just think this book would be more at home in a middle school library than it would be in an elementary school library.

Stepsister, written by Jennifer Donnelly, reviewed by Kalie Mehaffy

Summary: Jennifer Donnelly asks "what happens after the happily ever after" and "is it pretty and gentle, or dark and harsh" in her novel Stepsister. This novel follows Isabelle, one of the ugly stepsisters. after (Cinder)Ella gets her happily ever after. Isabelle learns not only what it is like to be truly ostracized, but also how to overcome societal ideals to follow her heart's true desire.

Straight Talk for Librarians: I absolutely adored Stepsister. Twisted fairy tales have always been in my reader wheelhouse, but Jennifer Donnelly used such amazing language and organization that elevated this novel into my top ten favorite novels. I think the decision to look at the stepsister's life after Cinderella was a fascinating one, and I think it provided the story with many teaching opportunities. Isabelle subverts societal expectations and learns how to be happy with who she truly is, and as Isabelle learns, we learn with her. In addition to an abundance of amazing themes, there is also amazing organization in this novel. Every time Isabelle makes a decision that changes her life map, the story zooms out and a third person narrator says a few sentences that are filled with wisdom. There are so many amazing things you could do with this novel in a classroom. You could pair it with another text, or you could include it as a lit circle choice. Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly can be used to teach themes, adaptations, predictions, points of view, and plot lines. This novel will absolutely find its home in my classroom!