Inside the Villains
Tuesday, July 31st, 2018
Here’s a quick peek inside the tall, interactive picture book import Inside the Villains (Gecko), coming to shelves this September from French author-illustrator Clotilde Perrin. Here, readers meet classic fairy-tale villains, up close and personal — the Wolf, the Giant, and the Witch. Each villain is profiled on a large flap that opens left (strengths, weaknesses, “Things I Hate,” etc.), and a classic folk or fairy tale featuring the villain is included — a version of the Grimm Brothers’ “The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats”; the English fairy tale “Jack and the Beanstalk”; and “Alyoshka and Baba Yaga.” (These portions of text are also illustrated.)
And the large portrait of each villain on the right side of each spread? They include flaps, levers, tabs, and even strings so that readers can open coats, peek inside minds (and even hearts), and see what’s in pockets and/or boots. Lift the wolf’s shadowy exterior, for instance, to see Grandma’s nightgown — and if you open that, there lies a spiral-shaped tab you can lift with a string that reveals the various fairy tale characters who make up the Wolf’s favorite snacks, all snug in his belly.