LITTLE RED

Ferguson, the Duchess of York, is famous for her red tresses, a trait shared by the main character in this offering, a doll-like child named Little Red. She lives in a cottage in the English countryside with her friends: a boy named Little Blue, Rony the pony, Gino the dog, and Squirrel. During a picnic in the woods, the group hears a series of loud, scary noises, inexplicably caused by a heron and some frogs trying to rescue a rabbit stuck in a pond, a situation remedied by Little Red and her friends. This oversized, overly sweet tale tries too hard to be jolly, with an overabundance of enthusiastic dialogue and exclamation points. Several plot points are not quite logical, such as the origin of the scary noises and Little Red happening to have a sturdy rope in her “magic sack of smiles.” The cheery cover and detailed watercolor illustrations add considerable, genuine charm to the effort. (Picture book. 3-5)