The Little Red Elf

by Barbara Barbieri McGrath, Rosalinde Bonnet (Illustrator)

This clever retelling of "The Little Red Hen" features a little red elf and her lazy the hare, the penguin, and the reindeer. When the cheerful elf can't get help planting the pinecones or decorating the Christmas treat, she knows just how to reward her friends.

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Childrens, Holiday, Fiction, Storytime, Fantasy

32 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2009

Reviews

[Gwen the Librarian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay, I was paging along in this Christmas-y version of The Little Red Hen and I LOVED it when the little red elf says (in essence) "You didn't help, now I get to open all the presents myself!" Perfect! This perfectly translates for modern children. AND THEN you turn the page and the animals are all crying because they want to open the presents and the little red elf says, "I'm sorry. Of course you can open the presents." The END. Okay. What is the lesson we've now learned from this formerly instructive tale? All you have to do is cry and you get your own way. The animals didn't say they were sorry, didn't say they would help next time. Granted, all they got were stuffed little red hens, but the kids won't get the message of that. They're going to take away the other message. Grrrrr.... Adorable illustrations and promising premise with a huge let-down at the end.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Barbara Barbieri McGrath, whose The Little Green Witch was a Halloween retelling of the traditional tale of The Little Red Hen, turns once again to that story with this Christmas title. Here, we have a little red elf and her lazy roommates - an indifferent reindeer, a playful penguin, and a perpetually snoozing hare - who all refuse to lend a hand, when the elf finds a pinecone, and decides to plant it. Naturally, the three layabouts also refuse to water the tree, when it starts to grow; to help to uproot it and bring it into the house, when it is time to decorate it; or to put out milk and cookies (presumably for Santa Claus), in the hopes that presents will be left underneath it. They are not, however, averse to helping to open the presents, come Christmas morning! But will the little red elf let them...?

As with her earlier revisionist retelling of this tale, I found McGrath's narrative - with each character's flippant responses to the elf's pleas for help - quite amusing. Unlike that earlier telling, I also enjoyed the illustrations, done in pen and acrylic by French artist Rosalinde Bonnet. They have a cute "artsy-crafty" feeling to them, with lots of quirky little details - I loved all the tiny creatures who appear in the outdoor scenes (and peeking in at the window, in one indoor scene!) - that add to the appeal. I did feel a little ambivalent about the ending, and agree with those reviewers who object to the fact that the elf's animal companions haven't really learned their lesson, but somehow, the overall charm of this one carried me along. Recommended to readers looking for a fun, lighthearted holiday read, or to those interested in adaptations of this tale type.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 STARS

I was so charmed by the illustrations in this story, I think it boosted my enjoyment of the overall telling which I may not have enjoyed so much if not for such cute accompaniment, though it is still fun. Basically, this is a retelling of "The Little Red Hen" where the little red elf is the one busy making all the Christmas preparations magical and beautiful while her little animal friends laze away the days. Of course, they ultimately want to participate in the Christmas fun (when all the work is done!)

Now, I wondered how things would be pulled off for the "lesson" to come through without getting, well, a bit bah-humbug. I mean, it's a Christmas story after all so it wouldn't have seemed quite right for the Little Red Elf to just shrug her shoulders and smugly enjoy her Christmas all to herself leaving her selfish friends with a lump of coal. I thought the resolution was a decent compromise--still keeping a bit of Christmas spirit while teaching the lesson. I agree with what other reviewers said that the animal friends could have been a bit more apologetic or made it a bit more clear, but I think it was implied and certainly could lead to a discussion after the book is closed.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

So...this one felt a little odd, as evidenced by the variety of reviews, I think. Basically, The Little Red Elf is a retelling of the classic Little Red Hen. But then at the end, McGrath takes a turn, and the elf apologizes and lets her friends open the gifts. They receive only little red hen...plush toys, I think? And the elf says something about that being appropriate for them. My son did get the message in the story, but I'm not sure how much I liked the final message. And I'll be honest, I really wanted all the little mice and forest animals to become the elf's new friends and help her. Or for her friends to feel the Christmas spirit and help with dinner or something at the end. Probably stick with the original tale for this message, but the illustrations were cute!

[Red · Rating 1 out of 5]

Whimsical illustrations - 5 ⭐'s
Lousy pointless passive aggressive ending - 1 ⭐

The story was typical play on "The Little Red Hen" up until the Little Red Elf (LRE) caved to the crying of her lazy roommates and let them open all the presents-- and then the gift from Santa was a pile of Little Red Hens? What are the Roommates (and the young readers) supposed to take from that?

So I went back through the story and pointed to the pile of presents, asking my kids, "who do you think will have to clean everything up?" My Autistic son pointed immediately to the LRE-- and with the ending of this story? He's 100% correct. The roommates, having learned nothing, will end up leaving behind all the boxes and wrapping paper and a pile of useless Little Red Hens, and poor LRE will have to pick it all up.

I desperately wish that the ending went something more like: LRE says you can't open the presents, the roommates cry, the LRE invites the little friends who accompanied her throughout her work (illustrations that the author might not have known about) to open the presents with her. The roommates have a realization that they have been lousy team members who turned down EVERY opportunity to participate with the LRE in the Holiday preparations. They feel bad, realize they haven't been helping at all anywhere, and they apologize and offer OF THEIR OWN WILL, to clean up. The room is now clean and the LRE asks if they'd like to play together with her other friends who were too tiny to help with holiday tasks but kept LRE company nevertheless. Last page is an illustration of all the Roommates helping around the workshop doing tasks that they had been ignoring up until now.

Editors, you dropped the ball on this one.

[Christie Kaaland]

Christmas friends ~ a reindeer, a penguin, a hare and an elf ~ lived together in a cozy home where the little red elf worked hard to get things set for Christmas. As the Little Red Elf works to get the pine tree ready for Christmas, she finds none of her housemates will help her get ready. In the story format of "the little red hen" , the Little Red Elf decorates the tree after bringing it inside and setting out cookies for Santa with again no help. The next morning when there are presents under the tree, of course, everyone wants to join in the frey. The results of the gift unopening show the lesson learned from the little red hen theme.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, some ppl don't get the ending. So, read a traditional version of the little red hen first.

Then just laugh. I mean, I'm not into vengeance or revenge, but seriously, this elf does do a vicious two-part whammy on the lazy critters, and they deserve it. Even though penguins don't live in the north, and even though the pictures are too twee for words, I still love this version of one of my favorite stories.

If you don't, sorry.
Maybe try the author's Little Green Witch next; I recall really liking that even though the ending is quite so intense.

[Ashley Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Barbara Barbieri McGrath domese a great job of recreating the story of the Little Red Hen in this fun Christmas story. The Little Red Elf works hard to create a beautiful Christmas workshop, and every time she asks for help, her friends are too lazy. When it comes time for presents, all of a sudden, they have all the energy in the world. However, when they open the presents, what is inside isn't what they expected. This would be a great book to read to students to help them learn the value of working hard and the consequences of being lazy.

[Abby Nall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute Christmassy take on the classic Little Red Hen tale. Adorable artwork, and the Elf has a really great attitude, but her ne'er-do-well friends do get minor comeuppance in the end. The comeuppance only makes sense if you already know the story of the Little Red Hen, so minus one star because I think the moral will be a little confusing to kids.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book, because at the end, she says, "you can take all the presents," but most of the book she says, "I'll do it all myself." And at the end, she says, "I'll unwrap all the presents myself." All the friends, "Waaaah!"

[Valleri · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only complaint is the ending where, despite having done none of the work, the "friends" open all the gifts. Then there is the confusion of what the gifts actually mean...Why a red hen??? Other than those two things, the story went quickly and kept my child's attention.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute story similar to the Little Red Hen, but this is the Little Red Elf who had to do everything herself. Her friends who wouldn't help her learn a lesson in a funny way.

[Terry]

Read our review at the Reading Tub.

[kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

i get what's happening here, but i don't think it resolved well enough and rubs me the wrong way

[Thomas Bell · Rating 2 out of 5]

In case you didn't realize this was "The Little Red Hen," the author throws it in your face at the end. Very dumb.

[An Abundance of Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Featured at An Abundance of Books

This book is so stinkin' CUTE! I can't believe it, it's adorable. Now, it's not like the world needs yet another version of the Little Red Hen, but this is a sweet Christmas version of the story and definitely worth the read. McGrath has integrated the holiday them nicely into her version of the tale. The little red elf is a really hard worker and she has some of the laziest friends in the North Pole.

Once upon a time, there was a reindeer, a penguin, a hare, and a little red elf. They all lived together in a comfy, cozy workshop.
The reindeer liked to snooze in the straw.
The penguin liked to relax in the bathtub.
The hare liked to hibernate by the hearth.
That left the little red elf to get all the workshop work done.

She was filling some bird feeders, by herself, when she found a pinecone. Since none of her friends would help her plant it, she decided to do the job herself. When the time came to water it or bring it in to the workshop once it had grown, she was on her own.

By the time she had strung the lights, decorated the tree, and baked cookies for Santa without any help, she had gotten a bit frustrated but tried to keep her holiday cheer. Of course, when she needed help to open all of those presents her friends came running.

"I will!" said the reindeer.
"I will!" yelled the penguin.
"I want the big one!" screamed the hare.

This is the point where the little red elf loses it and yells that she is going to open the presents by herself. Of course her friends are shocked and begin to cry. The little red elf feels terrible, apologizes, and lets the open the gifts. Boy did they dive right in. Inside every box from Santa was a Little Red Hen doll. The reindeer, penguin, and hare are confused (as are some younger readers) but the little red elf understands and thinks they've gotten the perfect gifts.

It's a cute story but I had two tiny issues. I wish there had been a bit more discussion regarding the reindeer, penguin, and hare's horrible and selfish behavior. Even my younger kids were aghast; we just talk about it a bit in class, so it's not really a big deal. (If you're looking for a version where the animal's realize how rude they've been, pick up Philemon Sturges's The Little Red Hen (Makes a pizza). ) My other issue is the ending - younger kids don't get it. I think the ending's humor is a little bit too sophisticated for the little ones.

The real star of this book, the entire reason you want to check it out and pour over it with your kid (or by yourself), is Bonnet's absolutely scrumptious and adorable illustrations. She uses a style of drawing that I tend to associate with Japan (but it's not manga or chibi style) and she throws in fantastically funny little details. I just want to hug this book.

Verdict:
I will say it again, this book is so stinkin' cute!! Bonnet's illustrations are just wonderful and really make this Christmas version of The Little Red Hen worth the read. The Little Red Elf is a sweet holiday book that you should pick up from the library.

Read full review HERE

[Nielson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following the same story line as the Little Red Hen, this little red elf works the hardest of all at Santa's workshop, in fact she does it all! One day she finds a pine cone and asks who will help her plant it...and I'm sure you can guess the response! She does all of the work of planting, watering, cutting, and decorating the pine tree but when she asks who will help her unwrap all of the presents that are under the tree on Christmas morning, all her friends jump to help! If the reader hadn't heard the story of the Little Red Hen, this story might not make much sense to them, especially the end when the lazy ones only get little red hens for Christmas! This is a cute Christmas story with cute illustrations.

[Bridget R. Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Little Red Elf works hard. She keeps the workshop in order while her roommates (Reindeer, Penguin, and Hare) laze about sleeping and playing games. This behaviour goes on until Little Red Elf has enough. She's tired of doing all the work. Why should Reindeer, Penguin, and Hare get any gifts? She does relent and their gifts are very appropriate--they gets lots and lots of stuffed little red hens.

What I thought: A Christmas version of the Little Red Hen--how wonderful! This is a story I'd never considered the possibility of adaptation. It worked well. The illustrations are great. They are so detailed. I (and any child) could spend hours pouring over them. I suppose the prefect word to describe the illustrations is charming.

[Rosa Cline · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a charming Christmas story written in the format of the classic "The Little Red Hen"... a reindeer, penguin, and rabbit all lounge around and be lazy and doesn't help the Little Red Elf with all the work she has to do do get ready for the Christmas holiday. Each step along the way she asks for help and of course they all say no. At the end there is huge amounts of present and she asks who will help open these gifts and of course they all say "I will" but she stops them and explains they didn't help with anything and made her do it all but after they all cry and are upset so says they can open then and they did and all the gifts were the same RED HENS! Illustrations are sweet and easy for my 2 year old granddaughter to follow as I read to her.

[Amber Fisher · Rating 2 out of 5]

This fiction book tells a story of a Little Red Elf getting ready for christmas. She asks her friends to help in varies task but her friends couldn't be bothered to help and decide to play all day instead. The Little Red Elf doesn't mind at first and continues to do all the projects herself, however, when it came time to open presents and all her friends wanted to help, the Little Red Elf lost her temper. The readers could relate to this story by how they might act if they were asked to do something. The Little Red Elf" reminds me of a mom figure, doing all the work, while her friends act like children that don't want to help out. You could use this story to teach a lesson on helping others and the outcomes that come with and without helping.

[Shayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a little red elf who is like the little red hen, but with a Christmas twist. She is always asking for help and everyone always is telling her no. But when it comes time to open the presents everyone wants to do it, and she has to get after them.
I really like this book. The pictures are very cute, some of the creatures look like they have been sewn together, and that makes them even cuter. The text is great! And it teaches children the old lesson of helping people out.
I would use this book with my children because they would love the artwork, they would learn a great life long lesson, and they would go to bed with sweet dreams in their heads.

[Nell Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute Christmas book. A teacher can certainly use this around Christmas time to teach that a lot of hard work goes into Christmas and that they should help their parents with getting the tree ready and all the food. The illustrations are cute and detailed and attractive. They draw the readers eye to them and helps the reader imagine more about the book. The book is about a little red elf who lives with a reindeer, a penguin, and a hare. No one wants to help the little red elf so she does everything on her own. Once she finishes everything and it is Christmas, the reindeer, penguin, and the hare all dive in to open their presents. The little red elf gave them all little red hens.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

A retelling of The Little Red Hen but with the Little Red Elf doing all the Christmas preparations. I wondered where the story would go since the lesson at the end of LRHen doesn't fit nicely with the spirit of Christmas. And it didn't work in this book either. First the LRElf says "No you can't open presents!" but then when the others cry she gives in and lets them. True there is a twist to their gifts, but it would take an astute picture book reader to make the connection to the lesson. But the illustrations are sweet.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christmas adaptation of The Little Red Hen. The illustrations were adorable, and it ended with a brilliant twist different from the original story. Definitely good to for discussion, just in case the children miss the intricacies of the ending. I disagree with many other reviews... I don't think it teaches children that crying makes you get your way; the lazy animals didn't get presents they wanted, they got a moral handed to them- similar to if they would have gotten coal.

[Connie Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a perfect example of a fractured fable based on a classic, well-known story designed to be humorous by changing the story in an unexpected way. Some question the ending. However, due to the fact that this is a 'Christmas' version, the ending is perfect, adding a little sarcasm. The past few years, as an elementary librarian, I have used this story with the classic The Little Red Hen to do a compare and contrast activity using a Venn diagram.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

A story about generosity and giving, but I don't think the animals really learn their lesson in the end, if the little red elf gives in and gives them the presents anyway. Maybe there could have been a comment from the animals about how sorry they were about not helping and they will be helpful next time.

[Cara Reads Kids · Rating 3 out of 5]

We were totally with these super cute illustrations and upbeat little elf, especially when she lost her shit on her lazy friends, until the last few pages. I see we're not the only ones to feel like we lost the way and/or missed something. We've never red The Little Red Hen, so maybe that's our issue.

[Ashley Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great folklore which I would read around Christmas time. I would use it to talk about all the hard work the elf did to get ready to christmas. Following this book I would read The Little Red Hen book to compare and contrast.

[Sunako · Rating 5 out of 5]

A GREAT book!!!! The story is really funny and the illustrations are so LOVELY !!!

[Yara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute take-off on The Little Red Hen.