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Brenda is a Sheep
Tale that turns the "wolf in sheep's clothing" story right on its head, and shows kids that things are not always as they seem.
Brenda is exactly like all the other sheep. Well, except for the sharp teeth, gray fur, sharp claws, and orange sweater. All the sheep think that Brenda is just the best! Despite Brenda's best efforts to enjoy the ultimate sheep feast, Brenda realizes that she is, after all, a sheep. A funny reminder that what you look like doesn't dictate who you are.
Brenda is exactly like all the other sheep. Well, except for the sharp teeth, gray fur, sharp claws, and orange sweater. All the sheep think that Brenda is just the best! Despite Brenda's best efforts to enjoy the ultimate sheep feast, Brenda realizes that she is, after all, a sheep. A funny reminder that what you look like doesn't dictate who you are.
32 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 17, 2020
About the author
Morag Hood
50 books34 followers"I'm an award-winning children's book author and illustrator from Edinburgh. I love making up stories, print-making and cutting and sticking. My favourite things to draw are eyebrows.
I have an MA in Children's Book Illustration from Cambridge School of Art and a BA in Costume Design from Wimbledon College of Art. I used to work in theatre, but now spend my days in my Edinburgh studio with views of the hills.
One day I will manage to write a book about my very favourite animal - the duck.
I am represented by Paul Moreton at Bell Lomax Moreton."
I have an MA in Children's Book Illustration from Cambridge School of Art and a BA in Costume Design from Wimbledon College of Art. I used to work in theatre, but now spend my days in my Edinburgh studio with views of the hills.
One day I will manage to write a book about my very favourite animal - the duck.
I am represented by Paul Moreton at Bell Lomax Moreton."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews
November 9, 2020
A wolf is drawn and called a sheep.
As in literally: A wolf is drawn, kids know and understand this, and underneath it says “this is also a sheep”
A carnivorous/cannibalistic “sheep” that plans to eat sheep: prepares a mint sauce, waits for the sheep to fall asleep, calls the sheep “yummy” etc but the beginning and end of the book declare Brenda is a sheep, so what’s the message?
This is not done as irony as we’re meant to empathise with Brenda who is sad in the beginning because her predatory behaviour (rightly) scares the sheep.
And the sheep should let Brenda in on her saying so? Which they do only for the now happy Brenda to plan to eat them.
We’re also told that the sheep come to realise Brenda is the best sheep! One reason being its pointy teeth! Why would sheep get excited about predatory behaviour and physique?
How do you square the cognitive dissonance? Why would you confuse children? What is the message here?
So many red flags here, none of them subtle, outright red flags.
Imagine all the fairy tales inverted, just at the end, pretending the wolf didn’t eat Red Riding Hood etc, but they became best friends.
There is a reason this is not done, bc it doesn’t square with real life, and while adults can enjoy dark inversions this is a book for kids.
If the wolf would have winked at the end we could have put right the cognitive dissonance, but we are left to understand the gaslighting is really the message.
As in literally: A wolf is drawn, kids know and understand this, and underneath it says “this is also a sheep”
A carnivorous/cannibalistic “sheep” that plans to eat sheep: prepares a mint sauce, waits for the sheep to fall asleep, calls the sheep “yummy” etc but the beginning and end of the book declare Brenda is a sheep, so what’s the message?
This is not done as irony as we’re meant to empathise with Brenda who is sad in the beginning because her predatory behaviour (rightly) scares the sheep.
And the sheep should let Brenda in on her saying so? Which they do only for the now happy Brenda to plan to eat them.
We’re also told that the sheep come to realise Brenda is the best sheep! One reason being its pointy teeth! Why would sheep get excited about predatory behaviour and physique?
How do you square the cognitive dissonance? Why would you confuse children? What is the message here?
So many red flags here, none of them subtle, outright red flags.
Imagine all the fairy tales inverted, just at the end, pretending the wolf didn’t eat Red Riding Hood etc, but they became best friends.
There is a reason this is not done, bc it doesn’t square with real life, and while adults can enjoy dark inversions this is a book for kids.
If the wolf would have winked at the end we could have put right the cognitive dissonance, but we are left to understand the gaslighting is really the message.
November 9, 2020
"Gas-lighting" book pretends that sheep should deny the evidence of their own eyes: Brenda is dangerous to sheep.
There is nothing "thrilling" or "hilarious" about Brenda, the Wolf. Yes, this is a real, big, bad WOLF, and he has conned the sheep and... God forbid....the parents and the children reading this book.
Wake UP!
There is no such thing as a "wolf who is really a sheep". There are wolves and there are sheep and they don't live with each other because the first preys on the second: this wolf nearly killed and cooked the sheep in mint sauce, but then "changed his mind". NO. I don't buy it: Wolves behave like wolves. They don't change.
Moral SHOULD be (but isn't): some people are NOT who they say they are. Don't let your guard down. That wolf is dangerous and sheep should stay well away.
There is nothing "thrilling" or "hilarious" about Brenda, the Wolf. Yes, this is a real, big, bad WOLF, and he has conned the sheep and... God forbid....the parents and the children reading this book.
Wake UP!
There is no such thing as a "wolf who is really a sheep". There are wolves and there are sheep and they don't live with each other because the first preys on the second: this wolf nearly killed and cooked the sheep in mint sauce, but then "changed his mind". NO. I don't buy it: Wolves behave like wolves. They don't change.
Moral SHOULD be (but isn't): some people are NOT who they say they are. Don't let your guard down. That wolf is dangerous and sheep should stay well away.
November 15, 2020
Brenda is NOT a sheep.
Brenda is a wolf who has successfully convinced the sheep that she is also a sheep. The sheep go along with it, like erm, sheep. Unsurprisingly Brenda's wolf instincts remain despite her glorious transition to sheep hood via a nice jumper and she plans to kill and eat the sheep. Luckily for the sheep they are nice to her, so she doesn't kill them... today. Those sheep better keep thinking she's a stunning and brave sheep, the best sheep, or Brenda will eat them up soon as look at them. Because... Brenda is a Wolf.
This could be a really good "wolf in sheeps clothing" cautionary tale, to explain that just because someone says they are someone or something doesn't make it true and it's okay to raise the alarm and ask questions. Rather than tie it in with Child Safeguarding they instead encourage kids to second guess their instincts and believe a wolf in sheep's clothing is actually a sheep.
Read this book to children if you want to undermine every safeguarding message they've ever received.
Brenda is a wolf who has successfully convinced the sheep that she is also a sheep. The sheep go along with it, like erm, sheep. Unsurprisingly Brenda's wolf instincts remain despite her glorious transition to sheep hood via a nice jumper and she plans to kill and eat the sheep. Luckily for the sheep they are nice to her, so she doesn't kill them... today. Those sheep better keep thinking she's a stunning and brave sheep, the best sheep, or Brenda will eat them up soon as look at them. Because... Brenda is a Wolf.
This could be a really good "wolf in sheeps clothing" cautionary tale, to explain that just because someone says they are someone or something doesn't make it true and it's okay to raise the alarm and ask questions. Rather than tie it in with Child Safeguarding they instead encourage kids to second guess their instincts and believe a wolf in sheep's clothing is actually a sheep.
Read this book to children if you want to undermine every safeguarding message they've ever received.
November 13, 2020
zero stars
'kids, don't trust your eyes/instinct and if you go out of your way to accommodate the wolf, if you're just kind and extra nice, the wolf might not harm/eat you' - is a lesson you definitely DON'T want to teach your children. better go and read them the fable about the scorpion and the frog, there are some useful life lessons in that one.
and no, wolves are not better sheep, wolves are no sheep at all, wolves are sheep's natural predators.
is this book a part of a science/fact/reality denying series? are there going to be books telling us that the Earth is flat, vaccines are poison, global warming/climate change is fake news..? because 'Brenda is a sheep' would be on par with those.
'kids, don't trust your eyes/instinct and if you go out of your way to accommodate the wolf, if you're just kind and extra nice, the wolf might not harm/eat you' - is a lesson you definitely DON'T want to teach your children. better go and read them the fable about the scorpion and the frog, there are some useful life lessons in that one.
and no, wolves are not better sheep, wolves are no sheep at all, wolves are sheep's natural predators.
is this book a part of a science/fact/reality denying series? are there going to be books telling us that the Earth is flat, vaccines are poison, global warming/climate change is fake news..? because 'Brenda is a sheep' would be on par with those.
November 25, 2020
In the 1980s, there was a moral panic concerning the roleplaying game Dungeons and Dragons, and associated franchises. People were afraid that their children were being sucked into some sort of bizarre cult. It was nonsense, of course, but some good people fell for it.
The same thing is happening with this book. A moral panic has been stirred up, probably by transphopic keyboard warriors - which actually has little to do with this book. The argument goes that the sheep have a predator in their midsts, and that by encouraging children to accept the wolf as a sheep, it encourages children to "ignore their instincts" regarding human predators. This is every bit as barmy as it sounds.
Like all art, it is open to interpretation. When it comes to children's picture books, though, we are so used to being spoon-fed an unambiguous moral that it is easy for adults to become confused. Rest assured that children experience no such difficulty. The biological wolf who identifies as a sheep could well be a trans-allegory; but it could just as easily be about someone who is culturally, but not medically deaf. Or a Cardassian war-orphan who was raised by Bajorans. We're not told anything about Brenda's circumstances. Has she dressed as a sheep to sneak into their flock and eat them? Or was she orphaned and raised by sheep? Or does she just see herself more as a sheep? We're not told, and nor should we be. Some unanswered questions in a story is a GOOD thing.
Nonetheless, Brenda clearly is tempted to eat the sheep. She eventually chooses not to. Why? For me this is about bullying - we all, at some point, come under social pressure to bully someone who has done us no harm. To behave like a wolf. How do we deal with that pressure? Do we give in to it? Do we resist it? This is Brenda's internal struggle, of which the sheep she hangs out with know nothing. It doesn't force-feed us the answers, and that's a GOOD thing!
Younger children will enjoy this as a funny story about a wolf dressing as a sheep - and they will come to no harm through reading it. Older children can revisit it, and start asking questions - that's when it becomes a valuable conversation-starter, about many things. This is that rarest of treasures - a picture book that encourages readers to think!
Please ignore the moral panic.
The same thing is happening with this book. A moral panic has been stirred up, probably by transphopic keyboard warriors - which actually has little to do with this book. The argument goes that the sheep have a predator in their midsts, and that by encouraging children to accept the wolf as a sheep, it encourages children to "ignore their instincts" regarding human predators. This is every bit as barmy as it sounds.
Like all art, it is open to interpretation. When it comes to children's picture books, though, we are so used to being spoon-fed an unambiguous moral that it is easy for adults to become confused. Rest assured that children experience no such difficulty. The biological wolf who identifies as a sheep could well be a trans-allegory; but it could just as easily be about someone who is culturally, but not medically deaf. Or a Cardassian war-orphan who was raised by Bajorans. We're not told anything about Brenda's circumstances. Has she dressed as a sheep to sneak into their flock and eat them? Or was she orphaned and raised by sheep? Or does she just see herself more as a sheep? We're not told, and nor should we be. Some unanswered questions in a story is a GOOD thing.
Nonetheless, Brenda clearly is tempted to eat the sheep. She eventually chooses not to. Why? For me this is about bullying - we all, at some point, come under social pressure to bully someone who has done us no harm. To behave like a wolf. How do we deal with that pressure? Do we give in to it? Do we resist it? This is Brenda's internal struggle, of which the sheep she hangs out with know nothing. It doesn't force-feed us the answers, and that's a GOOD thing!
Younger children will enjoy this as a funny story about a wolf dressing as a sheep - and they will come to no harm through reading it. Older children can revisit it, and start asking questions - that's when it becomes a valuable conversation-starter, about many things. This is that rarest of treasures - a picture book that encourages readers to think!
Please ignore the moral panic.
November 19, 2020
Brenda is a Sheep is book pushing a harmful narrative about sheep accepting a predator, liar, and manipulator in their sheep space. It’s about a predator named Brenda: a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Brenda claims sheep identity but is never going to be a sheep. Brenda’s nature is that of a wolf and that will never change no matter how many times the lie "Brenda is a sheep" is repeated. Brenda intends to kill and eat the sheep, but then changes his wolf mind when the sheep make all kinds of nice grassy treats. So for the time being, the sheep are not eaten with the mint sauce. The book ends on the repeated lie: the title of the book.
WHAT A MIND GAME! The story reminds me of narcissistic coercive manipulation. It also reminds me of the sole survivor of serial killer/rapist, Bobby Joe Long (after he stopped being the classified ads rapist and began killing). Lisa McVey feigned empathy and he didn't kill her. She's a deputy now who attended his execution.
WHAT A MIND GAME! The story reminds me of narcissistic coercive manipulation. It also reminds me of the sole survivor of serial killer/rapist, Bobby Joe Long (after he stopped being the classified ads rapist and began killing). Lisa McVey feigned empathy and he didn't kill her. She's a deputy now who attended his execution.
November 15, 2020
Grandson enjoys Morag Hood books. loves the I am Bat and the Steves and the Penguin. Glad I had a look through this before I bought it. (I didn't). It's an appalling story of a wolf dressed as a sheep and accepted into the "fold". The wolf is quite honest about being a predator. So, kids, your eyes and senses might tell you this creature is dangerous, but it will all work out in the end....
The supposed happy ending is that everyone eats grass together. But we know that wolves don't eat grass - they are carnivorous animals who will prey on sheep.
Awful subliminal message to be giving to preschool children. I cannot believe it's up for an award - and in fact, I'm wondering who is behind pushing the book for an award. Should be taken off the shelves.
The supposed happy ending is that everyone eats grass together. But we know that wolves don't eat grass - they are carnivorous animals who will prey on sheep.
Awful subliminal message to be giving to preschool children. I cannot believe it's up for an award - and in fact, I'm wondering who is behind pushing the book for an award. Should be taken off the shelves.
November 20, 2020
This rather trite book is trying to claim that Brenda is a sheep, and all the pictures inside show her trying to actively harm and eat the real sheep. This is not a cute story about acceptance of differences in others, it is a direct attempt to try and tell children to ignore what they see with their senses in order to allow a predator free reign amongst a vulnerable population. This book is suitable for NO ONE, least of all young children.
November 21, 2020
What an absolutely awful book. It may we clever and obvious what’s happening to older children but this should absolutely not be out in front in young children. Asking them to put aside their instincts about stranger danger and just accept people are who they say they are. No way. This book should be removed from bookshops.
March 30, 2021
Not bad, but it suffers in comparison to the other wolf-in-sheep's-clothing picture I read earlier this month, the excellent and hilarious Sheepish.
p.s., It is sort of fun to read all the one-star reviews this book has garnered here on Goodreads. A lot of people took offense at the gaslighting, fake news, and scientific aspects. It really touched a lot of nerves in a rough year.
p.s., It is sort of fun to read all the one-star reviews this book has garnered here on Goodreads. A lot of people took offense at the gaslighting, fake news, and scientific aspects. It really touched a lot of nerves in a rough year.
December 23, 2020
There is a lot of harsh criticism about this book but I think some people are taking it way too seriously. I thought it was fun and clever. I didn't feel like I was damaging my kid by reading this one to her-- we both found it to be hilarious. Will my daughter grow up to be a subservient adult unable to trust her instincts and subject to being gaslit? Not if I can help it, and definitely not because she read "Brenda is a Sheep" when she was 4.
November 19, 2020
A book about how a literal wolf in sheep's 'clothing' gives up eating all the actual sheep who consider her superior to them.... Because the sheep are nice to her.
The book, however, never refers to Brenda as a wolf - she's always referred to as a sheep, albeit completely different from all the others.
The sheep in the book repeatedly ignore all evidence of how dangerous Brenda is, and how she's basically preparing to eat them, and put Brenda on a pedestal as 'the best sheep ever', despite the fact she is an OBVIOUS wolf. But she says she's a sheep, and they just believe her and accept her as one of them. They adore her.
Brenda sharpens her teeth to eat the sheep.
She 'playfully' chases after them.
She has a recipe book on how to cook sheep.
While the sheep sleep, she calls them 'yummy'.
By the end of the book, Brenda decides not to eat the sheep... At that moment. But we don't know how she's gonna feel about that, idk, a day later.
Brenda is a PREDATOR, but the sheep not only ignore all the obvious signs of that, but actually declare her an even better sheep than themselves.
How is any of this about 'acceptance'?
And what is this book supposed to teach children?
Are we teaching them to ignore clear signs of danger and obvious lies, and just embrace dangerous predators despite everything ponting to the fact thar this is a bad idea?
Are we supposed to teach children that, if they're super nice to someone who's planning to hurt them, then possibly, maybe, that person will give up their evil plans and become their friend?
Are we teaching children that wolves stop being wolves if they introduce themselves as sheep?
And that they are actually a lot better than real sheep?
What's the point here?
Anyway...
I'd never give this book to a child.
The book, however, never refers to Brenda as a wolf - she's always referred to as a sheep, albeit completely different from all the others.
The sheep in the book repeatedly ignore all evidence of how dangerous Brenda is, and how she's basically preparing to eat them, and put Brenda on a pedestal as 'the best sheep ever', despite the fact she is an OBVIOUS wolf. But she says she's a sheep, and they just believe her and accept her as one of them. They adore her.
Brenda sharpens her teeth to eat the sheep.
She 'playfully' chases after them.
She has a recipe book on how to cook sheep.
While the sheep sleep, she calls them 'yummy'.
By the end of the book, Brenda decides not to eat the sheep... At that moment. But we don't know how she's gonna feel about that, idk, a day later.
Brenda is a PREDATOR, but the sheep not only ignore all the obvious signs of that, but actually declare her an even better sheep than themselves.
How is any of this about 'acceptance'?
And what is this book supposed to teach children?
Are we teaching them to ignore clear signs of danger and obvious lies, and just embrace dangerous predators despite everything ponting to the fact thar this is a bad idea?
Are we supposed to teach children that, if they're super nice to someone who's planning to hurt them, then possibly, maybe, that person will give up their evil plans and become their friend?
Are we teaching children that wolves stop being wolves if they introduce themselves as sheep?
And that they are actually a lot better than real sheep?
What's the point here?
Anyway...
I'd never give this book to a child.
June 17, 2021
I loved the art here, but the story made me really uncomfortable. Why are the sheep not getting away from Brenda? Why are they not making safe choices? I just think befriending a predator is not the way to go. The ending was totally abrupt and maybe something there could have been said to resolve the whole thing.
July 31, 2019
Brenda is totally a sheep. Totally convincing. Don't know why anyone would doubt it. She's friends with all these other sheep for starters.
December 15, 2020
Um, maybe it's funny...to someone...? But it just seems like a massive effort to celebrate gaslighting.
July 1, 2021
I needed to read this book to find out why it's getting so much grief... and now I understand. Let me start with my praise - I love the illustrations and the sheep are cute as buttons. The color scheme is definitely eye-catching too.
Now on to the issues... Here's my fix for the ENTIRE book. Ready? If it had ended with an ellipses and the word "Right?" instead of that dang old final period - no problemo! It's quite unfortunate that this book is pretty much a victim of Poe's Law. Now while Poe's Law is specific to internet/social media/memes, by the author not making her desired intent clear enough (which is evident by the different understandings of this work) she has forced this book into the situation it's currently in.
Personally, I don't like it for the blase way it introduces concepts that are adult oriented in our current political/societal climate. The age group that this is geared towards are starting to understand concepts and don't need their learning undermined.
If it's satire, make it evident with a little wink to the reader. If Brenda decided the sheep are friends and doesn't want to eat them - make that apparent. Either way we go, Brenda isn't a sheep and that's all that this author seems to want to impart on readers in the end.
Now on to the issues... Here's my fix for the ENTIRE book. Ready? If it had ended with an ellipses and the word "Right?" instead of that dang old final period - no problemo! It's quite unfortunate that this book is pretty much a victim of Poe's Law. Now while Poe's Law is specific to internet/social media/memes, by the author not making her desired intent clear enough (which is evident by the different understandings of this work) she has forced this book into the situation it's currently in.
Personally, I don't like it for the blase way it introduces concepts that are adult oriented in our current political/societal climate. The age group that this is geared towards are starting to understand concepts and don't need their learning undermined.
If it's satire, make it evident with a little wink to the reader. If Brenda decided the sheep are friends and doesn't want to eat them - make that apparent. Either way we go, Brenda isn't a sheep and that's all that this author seems to want to impart on readers in the end.
March 8, 2021
Well. I came here to talk about how delightful this book is and then I started reading the one-star reviews about gaslighting. And, well, yeah. I see that. But when my friend's kid shoved this book unprompted into my lap and made me read it, I got to the page that says "this is also a sheep" and I said, out loud, immediately, to this kid, "I don't think that's a sheep, do you?" So... there's obviously room for some editorializing and discussion.
I feel very much the same about I Just Ate My Friend -- these might be books that are more fun for the parents to read than the children.
I feel very much the same about I Just Ate My Friend -- these might be books that are more fun for the parents to read than the children.
March 4, 2021
pretty sure Brenda isn't a sheep
May 21, 2026
There were points in the book where I was starting to worry that Brenda might be hiding something, but luckily that wasn't the case. Brenda is a sheep.
January 17, 2023
Brenda is a wolf who claims to be a sheep as part of her plan to make a dinner of the unsuspecting sheep.
This picture book was clearly inspired by the idiom a wolf in sheep’s clothing although the wolf in this instance is only wearing a wool sweater. Brenda the wolf joins a flock of naive sheep who fail to recognize her as a predator and believe her when she says she is a sheep. They even admire her for her blatantly un-sheep-like qualities, such as her sharp teeth, as she quietly plans to eat them.
Fortunately for the sheep, the wolf accidentally falls asleep on the evening she is going to kill them and awakes to discover the sheep had made an entire grass feast to go with her special mint sauce, so she decides not to eat them after all ... at least not on that day.
I’m not sure what the moral is supposed to be. It looked like the sheep would finally realize their peril on the verge of being eaten and save themselves, but that is not what happened. Before the twist, the moral appeared to be if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a duck, or in this case, a wolf is no less a wolf because he’s dressed in sheepskin, which is a valuable lesson. But from the way the story ends, the moral seems to be that predators with ill intent can be guilted into not harming anyone by guileless niceness, which is absolutely untrue. In fact, this belief is dangerous.
The 1993 case in which a 13 year-old boy lured a 4 year-old to a secluded area of the local park and then brutally killed him has been back in the news because the murderer was recently paroled. I’m old enough to remember the murder from my childhood, and it was, and still is, terrifying (that poor child who died so horribly, his poor parents who never recovered from his death). As this case demonstrates, being overly trusting and failing to recognize someone as having malicious intent can lead to a person’s death.
On the morning of the Oxford High School shooting in November 2021, the shooter was asked by the school counselor if he were a threat to himself or others. He said no and was allowed to return to class without having his person or his belongings searched, which would have revealed the handgun as well as a diary outlining his plan to commit the shooting and would have prevented the deaths of four students. As this incident demonstrates, taking someone’s word for something despite evidence to the contrary can lead to people’s deaths.
Innocence protects no one, and predators doesn’t feel sympathy for their prey, which are two things that this book would have readers believe. It’s crucial for children to understand that others do not have their best interests at heart, to maintain healthy doses of skepticism, not to take things people say at face value, to be aware of ulterior motives, to watch for red flags, to trust their instincts, and to err on the side of caution – and of rudeness – when one’s safety is at stake. This story really undermines all of those things.
The author and publisher clearly intended the story to be funny — a wolf who does not even bother to wear sheep’s clothing pulls the wool over the sheep’s eyes, ha ha, but I can’t endorse it especially not for vulnerable young people. Compare this story to Mina by Matthew Forsythe in which Mina’s gullible father brings home cats claiming to be squirrels, but Mina is with it enough to smell a rat and, therefore, is able to avert disaster.
This picture book was clearly inspired by the idiom a wolf in sheep’s clothing although the wolf in this instance is only wearing a wool sweater. Brenda the wolf joins a flock of naive sheep who fail to recognize her as a predator and believe her when she says she is a sheep. They even admire her for her blatantly un-sheep-like qualities, such as her sharp teeth, as she quietly plans to eat them.
Fortunately for the sheep, the wolf accidentally falls asleep on the evening she is going to kill them and awakes to discover the sheep had made an entire grass feast to go with her special mint sauce, so she decides not to eat them after all ... at least not on that day.
I’m not sure what the moral is supposed to be. It looked like the sheep would finally realize their peril on the verge of being eaten and save themselves, but that is not what happened. Before the twist, the moral appeared to be if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a duck, or in this case, a wolf is no less a wolf because he’s dressed in sheepskin, which is a valuable lesson. But from the way the story ends, the moral seems to be that predators with ill intent can be guilted into not harming anyone by guileless niceness, which is absolutely untrue. In fact, this belief is dangerous.
The 1993 case in which a 13 year-old boy lured a 4 year-old to a secluded area of the local park and then brutally killed him has been back in the news because the murderer was recently paroled. I’m old enough to remember the murder from my childhood, and it was, and still is, terrifying (that poor child who died so horribly, his poor parents who never recovered from his death). As this case demonstrates, being overly trusting and failing to recognize someone as having malicious intent can lead to a person’s death.
On the morning of the Oxford High School shooting in November 2021, the shooter was asked by the school counselor if he were a threat to himself or others. He said no and was allowed to return to class without having his person or his belongings searched, which would have revealed the handgun as well as a diary outlining his plan to commit the shooting and would have prevented the deaths of four students. As this incident demonstrates, taking someone’s word for something despite evidence to the contrary can lead to people’s deaths.
Innocence protects no one, and predators doesn’t feel sympathy for their prey, which are two things that this book would have readers believe. It’s crucial for children to understand that others do not have their best interests at heart, to maintain healthy doses of skepticism, not to take things people say at face value, to be aware of ulterior motives, to watch for red flags, to trust their instincts, and to err on the side of caution – and of rudeness – when one’s safety is at stake. This story really undermines all of those things.
The author and publisher clearly intended the story to be funny — a wolf who does not even bother to wear sheep’s clothing pulls the wool over the sheep’s eyes, ha ha, but I can’t endorse it especially not for vulnerable young people. Compare this story to Mina by Matthew Forsythe in which Mina’s gullible father brings home cats claiming to be squirrels, but Mina is with it enough to smell a rat and, therefore, is able to avert disaster.
April 30, 2022
I wish I was really good at hyping books up, because I do not understand why this book has so many one star ratings. I laughed when I saw the cover, thinking what kind of sharp toothed sheep is that & then wondering if Brenda identifies as a sheep.
Let's just say Brenda is sneaky and ended up getting won over. Brenda was trying to infiltrate the sheep so she could get an easy meal. Her shenanigans led to the sheep really liking her and wanting to be as cunning and active as she was.
Overall it turned into a great friendship. I also found the illustrations very entertaining, educational (there is counting), and adorable.
Let's just say Brenda is sneaky and ended up getting won over. Brenda was trying to infiltrate the sheep so she could get an easy meal. Her shenanigans led to the sheep really liking her and wanting to be as cunning and active as she was.
Overall it turned into a great friendship. I also found the illustrations very entertaining, educational (there is counting), and adorable.
September 28, 2019
Fun story with minimal text, brilliant colours. Could be good in a storytime but there is a lot that is unsaid so you have to explain to the kids that the wolf wants to eat the sheep. I am really careful with "this character that is visually x says they are y" stories (this one is literally a wolf in sheep's clothing) because they go counter to the important self-identification narratives just starting to come to picture books, but this one manages to work out well. I'm happy for Brenda.
Recommended for ages 3-7.
Recommended for ages 3-7.
January 11, 2021
The hullabaloo over this book is so highly entertaining that it makes me wonder where all this righteous indignation has been for other similar stories that have come out over the years ("Buddy and the Bunnies in: Don't Play With Your Food" by Bob Shea comes to mind).
August 13, 2020
This book is a masterpiece.
April 28, 2022
A wolf‘s dinner plans are foiled by the friendliness of a flock of sheep.
Then a group of hysterical bigots on Goodreads read it as pro-trans metaphor out to brainwash their children. It’s obviously not true; an author would scarcely use the metaphor of a predatory wolf amidst a flock of naive sheep if they were intending to promote trans acceptance.
What this book does do, very well, is playfully introduce children to the idea of an unreliable narrator. The text follows the sheep point of view; “Brenda is a sheep!”. The very funny pictures follow Brenda’s point of view; Brenda knows she is a sheep-in-wolf’s clothing. It was a great book for active reading - and a 3 year old can sensibly answer questions about what the different characters think, and who is right, and how do we know. My child loved knowing better than the sheep and arguing with the narrator, and it was a great book to practice some early critical thinking.
The twist in the tail is that Brenda gives up her plans because she is overwhelmed by the sheep’s overwhelming friendliness and enthusiasm; unrealistic of course, but so is the whole premise of a scheming hungry wolf literally dressed up as a sheep. I thought it was quite a sweet fantasy ending for young kids. Unfortunately the rabidly delusional commentators coming to attack this book see it as brainwashing children into accepting predatory trans women, but don’t worry, most young children have better reading comprehension than them.
Then a group of hysterical bigots on Goodreads read it as pro-trans metaphor out to brainwash their children. It’s obviously not true; an author would scarcely use the metaphor of a predatory wolf amidst a flock of naive sheep if they were intending to promote trans acceptance.
What this book does do, very well, is playfully introduce children to the idea of an unreliable narrator. The text follows the sheep point of view; “Brenda is a sheep!”. The very funny pictures follow Brenda’s point of view; Brenda knows she is a sheep-in-wolf’s clothing. It was a great book for active reading - and a 3 year old can sensibly answer questions about what the different characters think, and who is right, and how do we know. My child loved knowing better than the sheep and arguing with the narrator, and it was a great book to practice some early critical thinking.
The twist in the tail is that Brenda gives up her plans because she is overwhelmed by the sheep’s overwhelming friendliness and enthusiasm; unrealistic of course, but so is the whole premise of a scheming hungry wolf literally dressed up as a sheep. I thought it was quite a sweet fantasy ending for young kids. Unfortunately the rabidly delusional commentators coming to attack this book see it as brainwashing children into accepting predatory trans women, but don’t worry, most young children have better reading comprehension than them.
November 13, 2021
Oh. Good. Grief! You all need to get over yourselves! Do any of you actually WORK with children?! Do you not understand the powerful educational aspect of children's literature?
Moving on...
Brenda is a sheep. Or is she? She likes to eat grass, sort of. Brenda likes to play games with the sheep, like tag, for example. But she never seems to catch them.
Yes, Brenda is a wolf in sheep's clothing. This is not gas lighting. It is not cognitive dissonance. This is humor. Children LOVE to prove adults wrong and point out the obvious. I'm going to read this in storytime and I'm going to act like Brenda is a sheep. The kids are going to trip over themselves trying to correct me. I will ask leading questions that will encourage them to think critically about what they are seeing in the images. I will ask them "why do you think the wolf is chasing the sheep?" or "what do you think Brenda really wants to do with the sheep?". And of course sheep and wolves aren't friends! That's what makes it hilarious to kids!
Not everything is political these days. Again, get over yourselves.
Moving on...
Brenda is a sheep. Or is she? She likes to eat grass, sort of. Brenda likes to play games with the sheep, like tag, for example. But she never seems to catch them.
Yes, Brenda is a wolf in sheep's clothing. This is not gas lighting. It is not cognitive dissonance. This is humor. Children LOVE to prove adults wrong and point out the obvious. I'm going to read this in storytime and I'm going to act like Brenda is a sheep. The kids are going to trip over themselves trying to correct me. I will ask leading questions that will encourage them to think critically about what they are seeing in the images. I will ask them "why do you think the wolf is chasing the sheep?" or "what do you think Brenda really wants to do with the sheep?". And of course sheep and wolves aren't friends! That's what makes it hilarious to kids!
Not everything is political these days. Again, get over yourselves.
November 22, 2020
Wolf in a wool sweater plans for a lamb dinner.
January 5, 2021
Adorable! Funny tale with clever illustrations and a story that kids will delight in.
February 24, 2021
Brenda is a creep
April 25, 2022
Brenda is a funny-looking sheep, with her orange sweater, her long muzzle, sharp teeth, pointy ears and long gray tail. The other sheep welcome her into the flock, and they start wearing orange sweaters, too. Brenda makes mint sauce and tells the sheep she has a yummy surprise for them in the morning, but Brenda is the one who gets surprised.
I like this book because the sheep welcome and befriend Brenda. Even though she has dangerous intentions, the love the sheep show to her turns things around.
I like this book because the sheep welcome and befriend Brenda. Even though she has dangerous intentions, the love the sheep show to her turns things around.
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