Tag Mario Ramos

I Am So Strong

jillrbennett Leave a comment

I Am So Strong
Mario Ramos
Gecko Press

Self-opinionated and a bully, wolf decides to go for a walk in the woods and while so doing find out what others think of him. His first encounter is with a tiny rabbit. In response to wolf’s question, “Tell me, who do you think is the strongest around here?” the rabbit answers that it’s certainly Mister Wolf. This boosts the lupine’s ego (not that it needs any boosting) and he continues on this way. Little Red Riding Hood, the three little pigs and the seven dwarves respond in similar fashion.

Wolf decides it’s his best ever day but then he meets ‘a little toad of some sort.’ Could wolf be about to get his comeuppance at last?

At each encounter it appears that the wolf is thinking of something else in addition to polishing his ego: he addresses the little rabbit as ‘sugar bun’, Red Riding Hood is told she looks sweet enough to eat and called my little strawberry and the three little pigs are ‘little bacon bits’: is he creating a mental menu?

A thoroughly nasty bully finding someone who stands up to them calmly is a really satisfying occurrence, be the bullying physical, verbal or psychological and in this instance the little toad’ s use of calm reasoning completely surprises the wolf, pulling the rug from under his feet.

With Ramos’ s bold bright illustrations, repetitive textual pattern and almost exclusively conversational style narrative, this is a great book for dramatic reading aloud. (Imagine yourself with wolf’s super-scary teeth as you share it) I wonder what that little red bird watching the action from the safety of a tree branch is thinking: why not try asking your listeners.

I Am So Clever

jillrbennett Leave a comment

I Am So Clever
Mario Ramos
Gecko Press

Oohh! If there’s one thing I do love it’s a new take on the Red Riding Hood story, after all this blog takes it’s name from a play on the story’s name.

The wolf in question herein has an enormous thirst for power, not to mention an insatiable hunger for meals of the human kind.

On this particular morning the lupine creature is in jovial mood as he converses with Little Red Riding Hood complimenting her on her appearance and warning her of the dangers of walking alone in the woods.

Now the little girl may be small of stature but she most definitely isn’t short of brains. She takes no time in demolishing the wolf’s “You could meet some ferocious creature … like a shark!” with an immediate riposte, “Oh, come on Mr Wolf, everyone knows there are no sharks in the woods,”.

Despite the put down, the wolf is already anticipating his feast as he rushes off ahead of Red Reading Hood to Grandma’s house.

Discovering in the bedroom only her nightie,

he hastily dons it as a disguise but then, rather than leaping into bed and hiding to await Red Riding Hood, he manages to shut himself the wrong side of the cottage door.

Now instead, it’s the woods he attempts to hide in. The disguise though works pretty well and he manages to dupe the hunter:“Gadzooks and dogs’ droppings!” said a voice. “Oh good morning Grandmother. Excuse the bad language but I’ve dropped my glasses. Would you please help me find them?”

And not just him: Baby Bear, the three little pigs, the seven dwarves, and one of the gentry searching for Sleeping Beauty are also hoodwinked.

There follows a desperate struggle on the wolf’s part to extricate himself from the nightie but he fails and finds himself face to face with his planned first course.

The girl’s reaction however throws the creature completely – quite literally.

“No iff not funny!” he whimpers. “I’ve broken all my teeff! And I’m twapped in diff terrible dweff!” Pride definitely came before a fall here.

The ending comes as something of a surprise: I won’t reveal what happens but Ramos’ final scene is one that might provoke some pathos on your audience’s part.

Thanks to deliciously droll illustrations throughout, an enormously satisfying story full of comic tension and wonderful dialogue, Ramos’ wolf goes ever on: I for one hope to see him again.