cover image Treasured Classics

Treasured Classics

Michael Hague. Chronicle, $19.99 (136p) ISBN 978-0-8118-4904-3

Hague lends dynamic artwork to his traditional versions of 14 stories including “Sleeping Beauty” and “Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” bringing readers right into the drama. Highly expressive animals and humans often appear in motion, mouths open as though in mid-speech or howl. Forest branches curl menacingly toward Little Red Riding Hood, while Cinderella’s stepsisters’ facial expressions are lit up with cruelty. Hague’s retellings tend toward the gentle (the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood is merely chased away), but they get to the emotional core of each tale. All ages. (Nov.)