My daughter (10) and I read and reviewed this book for Mother Daughter Book Reviews. We both give this book 5 stars. Here are our thoughts:
DAUGHTER SAYS:
This book is about a girl named Red. She wants to be an actor but she has stage fright. The Grimmtastic Girls go off on an adventure into the Neverwood Forest to follow a clue from the mapestry that takes them to Grandmother Enchantress’ cottage. But, another boy from school, Wolfgang, pretends to be the grandmother and steals Red’s basket. I liked how the book really plays along with the real story about the wolf taking the grandmother’s place in the cottage and asking questions. It was funny how he was asking questions about himself to see if Red liked him. I learned how to deal with stage fright, like breathing and writing down the things that you are scared of. I thought this book was grimmazingly grimmtastic! I liked the second book better than the first one and I would read the next one and the next one and the next one (etc.) if there were that many. I think girls aged 8 to 14 would like this book.
MOM SAYS:
My Thoughts: Red Riding Hood Gets Lost picks up where Cinderella Stays Late leaves off. In the first book of the Grimmtastic Girls, we are introduced to Cinda as she starts out at Grimm Academy. The story is told from her perspective. In the second book, the story is told from the perspective of “Red” (i.e., Little Red Riding Hood), who is auditioning for the lead role in the school play, Red Robin Hood (a role she is clearly destined for given her name!) But things go awry when she faints during her audition, and the handsome but recluse Wolfgang comes to her rescue.
As Red doubts her acting abilities, she and her friends continue to try to solve the mystery with the resurgence of the E.V.I.L. Society. The girls follow the clues that appear on the “mapestry” and lead the Grimmtastic Girls to the dangerous Neverwood forest to find the enchantress. The girls get separated and Red sets off to find the enchantress on her own. As with the story Little Red Riding Hood, Red encounters the strange shape-shifting Wolfgang, leaving her to wonder who she can trust and who she cannot. I love how the intrigue builds from Book 1 and how Book 2 helps to identify at least one character who is likely a member of the E.V.I.L. Society. I definitely want to keep reading more as this sub-plot develops.
I did feel that the main story was better developed in Book 2, compared to Book 1; but, this is totally understandable as the authors do need to establish the setting and introduce the main characters. There are definitely many laugh out loud moments as well as great intrigue as the mystery of the E.V.I.L. Society grows. There are so many quirky and clever elements to the story such as the roaming library, the birds who clean up after meals, and the “mapestry” (a tapestry which shows an ever-changing map). Each book focuses on one character as the story is told from their perspective. This is an absolutely fantastic new book series for tweens by the dynamic writing duo of Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams. More please!
* This book was provided to us by the author free-of-charge in exchange for our honest reviews. All opinions expressed are our own. *