Young received a Caldecott Medal for this book’s watercolor and pastel picture sequences which are reminiscent of traditional Chinese decorative panels. The children’s frightened eyes, the wolf’s evil eyes, and the matter-of-fact text lend this ancient Chinese tale added drama. The canny wolf tricks the children into thinking he is their grandmother, but the eldest child successfully plots and then executes (with the help of her siblings) the wolf’s demise.