Here are 100 books that Tango Red Riding Hood fans have personally recommended if you like
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As a Latina living in the US, I encounter stereotypes about me and my culture. I am sure I have my own blind spots around other cultures and people. So, I like stories that break traditional tropes. Initially, fairytales were dark and used as moral teaching tools full of warnings and fear. I prefer retellings that spread joy and challenge assumptions. Lastly, I love to discover new—real or imaginary—places through the illustrations and the artist’s point of view, especially if it influences the twist.
Of the many retells I have read, this version turns the classic tale on its head the most. With my own reclusive artist tendencies, I found Ra Pu Zel’s wish for alone time to pursue her interests very alluring. I am always curious about new foods and I will set out to find stinky tofu in town, do I follow the smell? The art transports us to a setting with cultural and culinary delights.
A playful, feminist retelling of Rapunzel with a Chinese-cuisine twist
The story of Rapunzel where she’s being locked in a tower by a witch is a good one—but it’s not totally the truth.
The real story is about a young princess in China named Ra Pu Zel who doesn’t want to talk to princes or look proper. What Pu Zel wants is to cook and eat in peace, her long hair neatly braided to keep it out of her food. And when she gets tired of everyone telling her what to do, she locks herself in a tower with her…
As a Latina living in the US, I encounter stereotypes about me and my culture. I am sure I have my own blind spots around other cultures and people. So, I like stories that break traditional tropes. Initially, fairytales were dark and used as moral teaching tools full of warnings and fear. I prefer retellings that spread joy and challenge assumptions. Lastly, I love to discover new—real or imaginary—places through the illustrations and the artist’s point of view, especially if it influences the twist.
I chuckled with this book because the wolf I imagined was not at all the wolf in the story. I thought it was clever to have him use his big teeth, big claws and big eyes to be crafty, creative and to help others. The illustrator does a great job of contrasting the black lines of the wolf with the colorful yarns to get the right mood across.
What do you see when you imagine a wolf? Sharp, pointy teeth? Big, hungry eyes? A soft sweater and a friendly smile?
Wait a minute!
The wolf in this story would rather knit than huff, puff, or blow anyone's house down. But that doesn't stop the townsfolk from crying wolf anyway. What's a kind-hearted wolf to do when everyone keeps running and screaming at "Hello?" It's time to show the world that this wolf is the furthest thing from Big and Bad.
As a Latina living in the US, I encounter stereotypes about me and my culture. I am sure I have my own blind spots around other cultures and people. So, I like stories that break traditional tropes. Initially, fairytales were dark and used as moral teaching tools full of warnings and fear. I prefer retellings that spread joy and challenge assumptions. Lastly, I love to discover new—real or imaginary—places through the illustrations and the artist’s point of view, especially if it influences the twist.
I enjoyed how the characters in this story did not want to be confined to stereotypes, preferring to explore beyond their gender and princely station. They want to explore all their interests, from sewing to pulley building, in their own unique way. I found it hilarious that the “problem” to fix consisted of alligators out of their moat. The illustrations are super fun, with alligators hiding in the silliest places.
The castle is crawling with wayward alligators, and the clueless king doesn't know how to fix it. Lila, Margaret, and Harriet have lots of ideas, but their father won't listen! According to him, the Princesses should be focusing on proper pursuits like drawing, jewelry, and music. When the three girls start falling asleep during the day, the King sends the Prince to investigate .
What he discovers is that the three princesses are gathering at night to use their knowledge of the six simple machines to invent an ingenious alligator removal contraption in their secret workshop.
As a Latina living in the US, I encounter stereotypes about me and my culture. I am sure I have my own blind spots around other cultures and people. So, I like stories that break traditional tropes. Initially, fairytales were dark and used as moral teaching tools full of warnings and fear. I prefer retellings that spread joy and challenge assumptions. Lastly, I love to discover new—real or imaginary—places through the illustrations and the artist’s point of view, especially if it influences the twist.
Even though the title hints at the storyline, I still enjoyed the main character’s discovery as she navigates her preconceived ideas about stepmoms to reach the conclusion that maybe they aren’t so evil after all. I would love to give this book to a couple of friends who are stepmoms, but it would be great for any blended family. The art matches the warm tone of the story with just enough hints of possible wickedness.
From acclaimed author and three-time Emmy-nominated writer Samantha Berger and rising star illustrator Neha Rawat comes a hilarious and heartwarming story that follows a young girl as she learns that her new stepmother might not be as evil or wicked as she originally seems. Perfect for newly blended families and a celebration of stepmothers and stepchildren everywhere!
When I first met my stepmother, I was a little suspicious. All stepmothers are supposed to be wicked! Evil! Downright B-A-D BAD! Or at least, that's what the stories say. So I thought I knew just what to expect from mine.
I am an ex-lawyer, ex-army officer, and ex-Hollywood film editor who loves stories about females in danger who dig deep to solve problems and survive. I can’t claim to be an expert, but I marvel at the breadth of female styles–from delicate, feminine, and sweet to brave, adventuresome, and tough. I have edited films about various women characters, from Charlize Theron’s killer in Monster to Cate Blanchett’s spiritual medium in The Gift and Diane Lane’s brave romantic survivor in Under the Tuscan Sun. I have three successful step granddaughters: an accountant, a lawyer, and one getting a PhD in computer studies. Smart, talented, and interesting women people in my life.
I loved eight-year-old Viva’s struggle to connect with her entrancing but erratic mother, Charlotte. Viva is desperate to get away, partly because she’s afraid of becoming her mother. I was entranced with their endless, joyful, though stress-filled, hours together. I was delighted to see Viva find herself in her talent for dance.
And I was heartsick that Viva’s success paralleled Charlotte’s descent into drink as she faced the reality of her own failures as an artist. I rooted desperately for Viva to avoid her mother’s mistakes and take control of her life.
Winner, Independent Publisher Book Awards, Silver Medal - Literary Fiction
Featured on PBS NewsHour
Named by Good Morning America, New York Post, and Los Angeles Daily News as one of the Best Books of Spring 2023
A deeply moving debut novel from the award-winning author of Yes, Yes, Cherries ("Funny, brave, and amazing"-Lorrie Moore) that explores the relationship complexities between mothers and daughters, the desire to escape, and the longing to connect. Viva has always found ways to manage her mother's impulsive, eccentric and addictive personality. She's had to-for her entire life,…
I've been studying capoeira in the UK since 2002. I've been welcomed into classes by teachers all over the UK. I have watched over 1,000. I have never practiced it myself but have worked with Neil Stephens, who learnt it seriously for seven years, and Mestre Claudio Campos who has taught capoeira here since 2003. I worked at Cardiff University from 1976 until I retired. I have also done a much smaller study of French kickboxing (Savate) for contrast. I was the first woman President of the British Educational Research Association in 1984, given the John Nisbet (Lifetime) Award of BERA in 2015 and the equivalent from the BSA (British Sociological Association) in 2013.
Barbara Browning is a professor of dance, and a capoeirista. She learnt capoeira in New York and took classes with two of the first Brazilians to teach there in the 1970s.
This is a book about Samba (the Brazilian national dance) with one long chapter about capoeira. As a female dancer Browning came to capoeira, when women learners were rare in Brazil and in the USA, with a relevant skill.
Many women capoeira learners came from dance backgrounds whereas most male learners in the UK and USA find the dance side harder than the more martial element. Browning sets capoeira into its original Brazilian embodiment and against a North American embodiment.
"Browning's ability to write ethnography, to locate the subject in terms of, and against, such African-Diaspora questions as 'continuities' and 'acculturation', and to fashion a personal and lyrical narrative, opens up many possibilities." - David H. Brown. Barbara Browning combines a lyrical, personal narrative with incisive and theoretically sophisticated accounts of a number of Brazilian dance cultures, suggesting that often the dancing body articulates a political resistance that cannot be voiced in words. She presents a social history of the development of samba, the 'Brazilian national dance'; candombl , a syncretic, danced religion; capoeira, an acrobatic martial art; and a…
I write to spread joy and truth. As a proud Black mother living in a country with school districts that see Black stories as threats worth banning, amplifying these stories is crucial to the fight to help humanize us and retain the privilege of celebration and joy. When I wrote The Juneteenth Story, it was rooted in a conscious effort to balance my own joyous summertime memories of celebrating the holiday with the hard truths that established and evolved this holiday. This list includes a small sample of books about some of the many ways Black folks celebrate - enjoy.
I don’t know if this book necessarily takes place in summer, but it’s centered around one of my favorite ‘African-American Joy Rituals’ - the Electric Slide! Kai agonizes over his failure to get a dance nickname from his very cool grandfather because of his two left feet. When his aunt gets married, he’s determined to conquer the Electric Slide at her reception.
Who doesn’t love a good, all-inclusive line dance? I still remember learning the Electric Slide when I was 6– to this day if I’m at a party and it’s playing, you’ll know where to find me (the dance floor!). Fun book.
Kai is the only member of his family who can't get the dance steps to the Electric Slide right. But Kai is determined to bust a move in this fun and sweet celebration of Black families.
Kai's aunt is getting married, and everyone in the Donovan family is excited about the wedding ... except Kai. The highlight of every Donovan occasion is dancing the electric slide--a groovy line dance with footwork that Kai can't quite figure out. More than anything, he wants to prove that he can boogie with the rest of his family and earn…
The most important words of advice my incisive editor at Knopf, Victoria Wilson, gave me while I was laboring upon my biography of Martha Graham – coming out in October, you can pre-order it now – was to say that “she was not a goddess, and you don’t want to worship her.” Yes, I had the nerve to take on this formidable and forbidding figure as a result of bearing witness to her anti-War masterwork, Chronicle, on a winter evening fourteen years ago. Yes, I believed that modern dance was the missing link in my long exploration of American modernism. And yes, I believe that I have proven my point, painting Martha Graham’s portrait as a person – rather than an icon.
I am sure many of you already know this visionary philosopher from his ground-breaking The Hero With a Thousand Faces. You may not be aware that Campbell was married to Jean Erdman, one of Martha Graham’s principal dancers in the ‘30s and ‘40s. Campbell’s initiations to modern dance came at Sarah Lawrence College when witnessing Erdman as Graham’s student; and then at Bennington, where Erdman performed with Graham’s company. His own learned background in the archetypal ethos of C.G. Jung made Campbell a prime candidate for Graham’s deeply-digging, Nietzschean/ecstatic archaic/abstract movement vocabulary. The choreographer and the professor spoke the same kinaesthetic language, Erdman remembered. There were many late nights when “Martha would call Joe on the phone” with some arcane question about her mythographic pieces in progress – Night Journey and Errand into the Maze. Many of Campbell’s essays in this book were first published in Dance Observer…
Joseph Campbell’s collected writings on dance and art, edited and introduced by Nancy Allison, CMA, the founder of Jean Erdman Dance, and including Campbell’s unpublished manuscript “Mythology and Form in the Performing and Visual Arts,” the book he was working on when he died.
Dance was one of mythologist Joseph Campbell’s wide-ranging passions. His wife, Jean Erdman, was a leading figure in modern dance who worked with Martha Graham and had Merce Cunningham in her first company. When Campbell retired from teaching in 1972, he and Erdman formed the Theater of the Open Eye, where for nearly fifteen years they…
I’ve been drawing and writing ever since I could hold a pencil, and a big inspiration for me to start my lifelong creative journey were graphic novels. So even as an adult, I love to read work from a wide range of genres and age ranges to see what my fellow authors and artists are up to. Especially making my own middle grade graphic novel series, I look up to so many of the authors and artists on this list and chances are you and your kids will too if you pick one of these up!
Gale Galligan is another artist I’ve followed for a while now and it seems like everything they make just overflows with creativity and charm.
I love how Freestyle combines both dance and yo-yoing, two things I’d never think to put together, and makes it work so seamlessly. The book is just pure, vibrant, fun, and even as an adult I found myself going back and admiring the artwork and movement Gale portrays on every page. This is the kind of book that will have readers coming back again and again just to get wrapped up in its beautiful, vivid world.
From bestselling author, Gale Galligan, comes a fun, high-energy Graphic Novel about friendship, family, and school!
Cory's dance crew is getting ready for a major competition before they leave year nine. The crew captain gets increasingly intense about nailing the routine. And Cory's parents ground him for not taking his marks seriously.
He ends up with a new tutor, Sunna, who he dismisses as a boring nerd. until he catches her secretly practicing cool yo-yo tricks. As his friendship with Sunna grows, he ends up missing practice and bailing on his crew.
Stories help us understand ourselves, another culture, or a new student sitting alone at a nearby desk. While teaching, working side by side, and living on the Navajo Nation for nearly twenty years, I wanted to share some of the special and surprising aspects of their culture—especially the kindness, wisdom, and the laughter Navajo people shared with me. Laughter is a holy gift for the Navajo people. First Laugh shows the reader why this is true.
My books have been given a variety of national and international awards but the best reward is when a child looks up while reading one of my books, quietly grins, and then proudly says, “I am in this book.”
Josie wants to dance at next summer’s powwow. But she needs nearly everyone in her family to help make this possible. As Josie’s story unfolds we are introduced to the special people in her family. We learn of their love, their kindness, and their special talents. We are also introduced to the beautiful connections to many parts of our natural world.
Josie dreams of dancing at next summer's powwow. But first she needs many special things: a dress, a shawl, a cape, leggings, moccasins, and, perhaps most important of all, her spirit name. To gather all these essential pieces, she calls on her mom, her aunty, her kookum, and Grandma Greatwalker. They have the skills to prepare Josie for her powwow debut.
As the months go by, Josie practices her dance steps while Mom stitches, Aunty and Kookum bead, and Grandma Greatwalker dreams Josie's spirit name. Josie is nervous about her performance in the arena and about all the pieces falling…
