Ron Koertge wants to do nothing but delight. Armed with his trademark
wit, he introduces readers to Little Red Riding Hood all grown up with a
fondness for salsa and chips, explores the thorny relationship of Jackie
Robinson and Pee Wee Reese, spies a Trojan pony and the children it
bamboozles, and offers an alternate reading to the Icarus story. He
meets Walt Whitman on the set of an X-rated movie, attends his
gardener's funeral, and goes to his beloved race track. Seminal figures
from pop mythology speak up in unexpected ways: The Beast, transformed
by Beauty, hints that his new life isn't exactly what he expected.
Gretel enrolls in night school, the ogre's wife from the beanstalk yarn
writes a heart-rending story on her cutting board, and a group of
fourth-graders on a field trip encounters Death. Occasionally setting
aside free verse, there are couplets about a Bette Davis movie, a
sestina about routine blood tests, a villanelle set in a topless bar,
and a set of haibun that chronicles an entire day. Reverend Ike and John
Lennon said, "Whatever gets you through the night." This book will do
just that and carry you right on in to the next day, guaranteed.
