"Impossible!" cried Papa Wolf. "We are
Big Bad Wolves and you are good?
A Little Good Wolf? You will never fill
my big bad shoes!"
"But, Papa, you don't wear shoes,"
replied Little Good Wolf.
"I mean, you'll never be like me!"
yelled Papa Wolf.
Many parents might jump at the chance to have a well-behaved, kind, and caring little one. Apparently, goodness has no standing in a family that prides itself on being both big and bad. Little Good Wolf comes nowhere close to what his parents want him to be. As a last resort, they determine that he will need some lessons at the Big Bad School.
He is welcomed (sort of) by Prince A. Bull who complains that he is late, and mentions Giant is waiting to teach his first lesson in Basic Badness. Giant is mean and green; Little Good Wolf is not fazed by his roaring and threatening. Whomping a ball with his club instead of the tiny wolf makes Giant very happy. Prince A. Bull is not pleased. On to a lesson in bad attitude with the wicked stepmother, teaching assistants, and the wicked stepsisters. Little Wolf turns the tables by teaching the dueling sisters to tidy up their mess; that way, they can always find what they are missing.
So it goes: a lesson in bad manners with Troll, in bad behavior with Dragon, and finally expulsion! He has done his best to help at every turn to create a better place and bring happiness and cheer. Poor Little Good Wolf ... he wanders shamefully into the deep, dark forest, afraid to go home. An Old Hag offers a solution. If he eats the apple she offers, one bite will turn good to bad, or bad to good. She is persuasive; Little Good Wolf fears the result of succumbing to temptation. He runs off.
To the delight of young readers, Mama and Papa are searching for him as he wanders alone in the woods. Turns out they have missed their little wolf so much, they turned to doing good for themselves and others. Quite the turnaround!
Every fully illustrated spread is filled with wonderfully expressive images and absurdity. Listeners will get a kick out of the lengths the school uses to train Little Good Wolf while he is happily oblivious to the bad lessons being taught. This is great fun!
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