Little Red Riding Hood and the Dragon

In Little Red Riding Hood and the Dragon, award-winning author Ying Chang Compestine reimagines the classic fairy tale from a Chinese perspective, filled with action and humor—with stunning color illustrations by Joy Ang. By now, you have probably heard the old folk tale about a girl in a red cape. The truth is that the story took place here in China, there wasn’t a woodsman, and I, the gentle wolf, certainly was not the one who ate them. Here is the real story. This is not the story you think you know. In this version of the classic fairy tale, Little Red lives in a village near the Great Wall and trains in kung fu. When she ventures to her grandmother’s to deliver rice cakes and herbal medicine, she encounters something much more fearsome than a wolf—a mighty dragon. With her wits and a sword in hand, Little Red must valiantly defend herself and her grandmother in this vibrant retelling. An author’s note discusses how this reimagining is influenced by Chinese mythology, symbolism, traditional medicine, and other elements of Compestine’s heritage.