My feed
Premium

Please
or
to access all these features

Feminism: Sex & gender discussions

Daughter's book...

127 replies

EachDubh · 07/11/2020 22:05

I know I am reading to much into this and perhaps missing the celebrating difference and diversity here but.... I don't think I can read this book with the eyes of innocence anymore. 😂😂

Dd got her p1 bookbag (5 year old gifts of books etc in Scottish schools). The books ares elected, written especially for the book bag scheme and are lovely. But this book got me thinking.

Brenda is a sheep!
Page 1- these are sheep, pic of sheep.
Page 2- this is also a sheep, this sheep is called Brenda. Brenda has a nice wooly jumper, pic of wolf in wooly jumper.
Page 3- Brenda does all the things sheep do... Next page -.. Because Brenda is a sheep. Obviously lots of repetative languagebto help with reading.
It goes on to say the other aheep think Brenda is the best sheep, Brenda is planning to eat the sheep but they plan a special feast and Brenda doesn't eat them because they are her friends and kind.

My mind is telling the sheep to run away and stay safe, kindness won't always keep you safe, be kind but also be aware.

Am I mad?

Daughter's book...
OP posts:
Report
BlackWaveComing · 07/11/2020 22:09

Sounds like that ridiculous crayon book, which I read once to my niece and then hid at the back of the bookshelf. No, red crayons are not blue (can't remember the actual colours).

Wolves in wooly jumpers are not sheep. What a bizarre book. What a waste of an opportunity to share literature with children.

Report
EachDubh · 07/11/2020 22:11

The other 2 books are lovely and historically the books have been great, this one just makes me think too much 🙄🤔

OP posts:
Report
ThinkWittyThoughts · 07/11/2020 22:16

Bloody hell. This is LITERALLY a tale of a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Use it. Great opportunity to teach your child to assess evidence & draw her own conclusions.

Brenda is NOT a fucking sheep and anyone who thinks she is, is a bloody fool.

Report
Whatsnewpussyhat · 07/11/2020 22:22

Brenda is NOT a fucking sheep and anyone who thinks she is, is a bloody fool

Yep. Just another bullshit way of teaching girls to be kind.

Report
DisappearingGirl · 07/11/2020 22:22

Bloody hell. This is LITERALLY a tale of a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Hahaha. Anyone think the author was being a bit subversive? Or is that wishful thinking?

Report
gardenbird48 · 07/11/2020 22:25

What a bizarre book - I can’t see what useful message this carries for children and seems to be of the standard of pop n olly or similar (confusing and low on safeguarding considerations).

Report
HecatesCats · 07/11/2020 22:34

WTAF? Fox in the hen house. I really hope this is subversive because if not the people commissioning this stuff are completely lost.

Report
DidoLamenting · 07/11/2020 22:38

Brenda is planning to eat the sheep but they plan a special feast and Brenda doesn't eat them because they are her friends and kind

Which animal did the sheep slaughter for the special feast for Brenda the carnivorous sheep?

Report
ErrolTheDragon · 07/11/2020 22:40
Report
EachDubh · 07/11/2020 22:45

They had a grass feast, grass replaced the meat.
The author seems genuine enough and has won awards etc.

OP posts:
Report
GeorgiaMcGraw · 07/11/2020 22:47

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

DidoLamenting · 07/11/2020 22:48

@HecatesCats

WTAF? Fox in the hen house. I really hope this is subversive because if not the people commissioning this stuff are completely lost.

If this is being promoted by the Scottish Government, I very much doubt it is meant to be subversive.
Report
ThatIsNotMyUsername · 07/11/2020 22:49

Dear god - have they also rewritten little red riding good where the wolf doesn’t eat Grammy and yet to eat little red riding hood (and doesn’t have his head mobbed off?).

The Grimm (?) fairy tales may have been... well, grim... but they were better than that airy farty wokey nonsense.

Report
CountFosco · 07/11/2020 22:50

Brenda wants to eat the sheep? The author knows exactly what she is saying and more fool the Scottish government for not realising.

Report
EachDubh · 07/11/2020 22:54

Sorry the book is Brenda is a sheep by Scottish author Morag Hood

OP posts:
Report
HecatesCats · 07/11/2020 23:06

[quote ErrolTheDragon]By way of a corrective ....

www.poemhunter.com/poem/little-red-riding-hood-and-the-wolf/[/quote]
OMG this is eldest DC's fave film - she pulled a pistol from her knickers!

Report
EmpressJKRowlingSpartacus · 07/11/2020 23:07

I remember much annoyance in certain circles about a newspaper cartoon featuring a crocodile that demanded entrance to the newts’ pond because it claimed to be one of them.

Crocodiles & newts, wolves & sheep....

Report
HecatesCats · 07/11/2020 23:09

I mean obviously we read the poem to her first, she's not in front of the telly 24/7 Wink

Report
littlbrowndog · 07/11/2020 23:19

Love it. The subversive of it

Report
YourWinter · 07/11/2020 23:31

Does the wolf embrace a veggie diet and eat grass with the sheep??

Report
EachDubh · 07/11/2020 23:32

At the end of the book he is joining in, but how long until hunger/desire overrides feeling of friendhip 😂

OP posts:
Report
JellySlice · 08/11/2020 08:29

Up to you exactly how you read it, and what points you choose to bring up when discussing it.

Report

Don’t want to miss threads like this?

Weekly

Sign up to our weekly round up and get all the best threads sent straight to your inbox!

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

GeorgiaMcGraw · 08/11/2020 10:08

I wasn't sure if I was overreacting to this, but I told DH about it and the look on his face was priceless. His response: "So at what point did we stop teaching Stranger Danger, and that some people will lie in order to hurt you?"

Report
JellySlice · 08/11/2020 10:14

That's a good point. More women and children are harmed by people they are familiar with, precisely because the wolf in sheep's clothing has insinuated himself into their lives and been accepted by them.

Report
YetAnotherSpartacus · 08/11/2020 10:22

The author is a well known 'queer' author (I looked her up).

I'm not sure that the message of that book is quite what she intended though.

I quite like the alternative ending where the sheep have roast wolf with mint sauce - why else would they be sharpening their teeth?

Report
Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.