Daughter's book...

[EachDubh]

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?

[PlanDeRaccordement]

That book would go straight on a bonfire. And I was against book burning until just now. Everything about that book is harmful messaging:

A wolf can be a sheep.
A wolf can be better at being a sheep compared to the actual sheep.
That the sheep by being nice and appeasing the wolf with a party can avoid being eaten by the wolf.

That’s dangerous to be teaching a child. They grow up and think, oh look we should release the violent sex offender wolves from prison and let them mingle freely with their type of victim (women or children) and so long as the women and children are nice and say they are gods gift to them and appease them with gifts, they will magnanimously decide to not harm them. Rubbish.

[ErrolTheDragon]

I'd write a version which had, in addition to the cool Brenda, a Big Ugly Sheep. This social outcast would turn out to be brave but herbivorous Llama, who would see off Brenda when her true (and unchanged) nature was revealed to the kindly but deluded flock.

(I don't think llamas are ugly, btw - nor are cygnets)

[ErrolTheDragon]

I assume everyone knows llamas are sometimes kept with sheep for their guarding abilities - I don't know how they'd fare with a wolf but apparently they're effective against foxes.

Be more llama and less sheep.

[Beamur]

@GeorgiaMcGraw

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?"

This in spades.
The message in this book is dangerous.

[Beamur]

Be more llama!

[YetAnotherSpartacus]

There's a T-Shirt in the making there...

[RealityNotEssentialism]

Wow. I assumed it was someone taking the piss. You could explain that actually, the sheep are taking a big risk here. Imagine if Brenda stopped being their friend for some reason - they would be at huge risk and they’ve let their guard down just one someone’s say-so. And as the kids can see, that’s blatantly a wolf. Animals can’t talk so we can never know what they’re thinking but we’d never let a wolf run about with sheep, would we? Why not? Because it doesn’t really matter what the wolf thinks about itself- it’s still a danger to the sheep.

What an own goal writing that though.

[Imnobody4]

There are actually quite a lot of picture books that play on the tension of will the wolf eat the other animals for supper, only for them to turn out to be friendly? They're generally funny, tongue in cheek.
Just had a look on line and from what I can see it is this vein. The trouble with subverting an Aesop Fable is that most children don't know the original. The stranger danger reference is spot on. I think this can easily be twisted from what is a fantasy into a parable for trans rights and don't judge, exclude others. I can see it being read by Drag Queens.
Her latest is 'Aalfred and Aalbert, a love story' about 2 aardvarks. Again I think this is also an eye of the beholder book. It's what 'message' an adult want to see in it.
Decades ago (ex children's librarian, here) we had a pic bk 'Knickerless Nicola'. it was a charming funny well observed story of a young girl who hated wearing knickers and her mother's battle to get her to keep them on. It went on one of our recommended lists till social workers approached us with concerns that paedophiles could use the book to exploit little girls.

[YetAnotherSpartacus]

It says on Wikipedia that she lives with her husband but then again in woke-land, queer has come to mean heterosexual-but-believes-they’re-special so I guess that fits

I phrased that very badly - I meant she is a well-known author of 'queer' literature and her books are plugged all over the queer-net.

Sorry for the confusion!

[Mrsjayy]

0h I volunteer at a community thing and we have books donated and I noticed Brenda is a sheep on the kids area

[StuntNun]

I want to know where Brenda got her woolly jumper from. Actually maybe I don't!

[InvisibleDragon]

An alternative with a better message (although tbh Jazzy D is terrifying):

Daley B's life is full of questions. What is he? Where should he live? What should he eat? But the question he finds most perplexing of all is why his feet are so big. Jazzy D, the weasel, pays him a visit and puts him straight as to his identity, before pouncing for the kill. Quick as a flash Daley B turns his back and kicks the weasel up in the air and back to where he came from.

I am not at all keen on teaching children to ignore real feelings of unease and anxiety in order to placate a potentially dangerous individual who insists on being part of their group. Women and girls are encouraged to do this a lot. It's gaslighting and it leaves us open to abuse and manipulation.

Deciding not to eat your friends is not the magnanimous gesture it seems. It's like the abuser who insists that "I don't hit you" or "I don't burn you with cigarettes". Well that's just fine then. All hunky dory, no problem at all?

No.

[ErrolTheDragon]

@StuntNun

I want to know where Brenda got her woolly jumper from. Actually maybe I don't!

Yes, the sheep should have pondered that - though at least this was a jumper merely requiring sheep's 'labour' rather than sheepskin of the traditional wolf in sheep's clothing tales.

[LostAcre]

That’s disturbing.

Are we supposed to believe the wolf is actually nice because it’s changed its mind about eating the sheep?

[NewlyGranny]

I'm with JellySlice - it all depends on the discussion the adult and child/ren have about it. I would think long and hard before using this with 5yo though, as they are just at an age where they've become fully aware of their sex but are plastic enough to be moulded by messages about the possibility of changing it if you want to.

And that's on top of the horrific undermining of what used to be called the "stranger danger" message which changed when people realised it was the apparently friendly and familiar wolves men who had the best opportunity to harm children.

I was expecting the book to end with a massacre and barbecue!

[RealityNotEssentialism]

@InvisibleDragon

An ]] with a better message (although tbh Jazzy D is terrifying):

Daley B's life is full of questions. What is he? Where should he live? What should he eat? But the question he finds most perplexing of all is why his feet are so big. Jazzy D, the weasel, pays him a visit and puts him straight as to his identity, before pouncing for the kill. Quick as a flash Daley B turns his back and kicks the weasel up in the air and back to where he came from.

I am not at all keen on teaching children to ignore real feelings of unease and anxiety in order to placate a potentially dangerous individual who insists on being part of their group. Women and girls are encouraged to do this a lot. It's gaslighting and it leaves us open to abuse and manipulation.

Deciding not to eat your friends is not the magnanimous gesture it seems. It's like the abuser who insists that "I don't hit you" or "I don't burn you with cigarettes". Well that's just fine then. All hunky dory, no problem at all?

No.

And that maybe where a predator does eat its victim, it’s because the victim deserved it because they weren’t nice or friendly enough. Sounds familiar.

[YetAnotherSpartacus]

Yes, the sheep should have pondered that - though at least this was a jumper merely requiring sheep's 'labour' rather than sheepskin of the traditional wolf in sheep's clothing tales

To be fair, it was probably one of the tourist shops on the Royal Mile or from EWM.

[TheIncredibleBookEatingManchot]

perhaps missing the celebrating difference and diversity here but....

If Brenda has to pretend to be a sheep and act exactly like the real sheep in order to be accepted is that really celebrating difference and diversity?

Not read the book so I'm probably missing something, but Brenda believes she's a sheep but wants to eat sheep? And instead of getting rid of her they give her a nice meal of grass and say she's better at sheeping than they are? I'm not sure what message young children would take away from that. I'm not even sure what message I'm taking from that.

Wouldn't a better animal story about diversity be something along the lines of cats and dogs do a lot of things differently but they can still be friends?

[YetAnotherSpartacus]

I have just realised that I have been completely missing the fact that Brenda is a 'she'. I've been thinking 'he' even though it's clear this is not the case.

[2Olives1Onion]

I want a sequel in which one of the sheep discovers that she herself is actually a woolly wolf and toddles off to join the wolf pack. Will they welcome her with braised tofu and a fur coat?

[BaseDrops]

Wolf Brenda doesn’t follow through on her plan to eat her sheep friends because they are sufficiently nice to her.

What a toxic message to give to children.

[BaseDrops]

They could at least have included Aesop’s The Scorpion and the Frog for balance.

[RavensByNight]

Here's a read-along. I can't say it gets the most ecstatic reactions from the kids - I'm with the little boy on the right who seems to roll his eyes when dad finishes reading :)