Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs, by Mo Willems, is a fun and silly retelling of the classic "Goldilocks" story, full of humor and wit that will appeal to the child inside us all.  Papa Dinosaur, Mama Dinosaur, and a visiting dinosaur from Norway decide to clean up their house, leave out some delicious food, and then leave to go...somewhere.  But they're definitely not laying a trap for tasty unsupervised children.  Then surprise!  Along comes a very unaware and unattended Goldilocks.  Will she realize what kind of trouble she may or may not be in before it's too late?

 

This is one of those delightful picture books where child and parent alike can laugh together at the clumsily sinister scheme of the dinosaurs as well as Goldilocks' heedless and spacey personality.  Mo Willems, being the author and illustrator, is able to perfectly sync his excellent artwork with the comedic timing of the story.  The result is an exquisitely hilarious retelling of a classic fable that speaks to all audiences.

If you're in the mood for some more creative retellings of classic tales, pick up Jon Scieszka's The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, and The Frog Prince, Continued.