I love fairy tales, especially stories that take familiar tales and twist them into something new and surprising, and Wolf’s Belly absolutely did not disappoint.

At first glance, this graphic novel seems like a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, but it quickly becomes clear that the story is doing something much more creative. The main character, Lu, grows up in a remarkable family filled with famous adventurers, inventors, and talented siblings. Surrounded by people who all seem extraordinary, Lu feels painfully ordinary. She doesn’t even truly own the red cape she wears. It was passed down to her. Wanting desperately to be remembered, she decides she will accomplish something legendary: she will find and kill the terrible wolf everyone fears.

What follows is a clever and thoughtful exploration of pride, expectations, failure, and what it means to feel invisible in your own family. Lu carefully plans her hunt, gathers supplies, and sets off into the woods believing she will become the hero of the story.

One of the most imaginative aspects of Wolf’s Belly is the way it subtly weaves together threads from other familiar stories. As Lu moves through her journey, readers begin to notice echoes of other classic tales involving wolves. Figures and situations that recall “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” and “The Three Little Pigs” (or perhaps four pigs, depending on how precise you want to be with your folklore) quietly appear along the way. These moments give the sense that all of these stories might inhabit the same larger world, bound together by the myth and fear of the wolf itself. Attentive readers may even catch a brief nod to another well-known tale about a girl traveling a very famous road. An Easter egg that Wizards and Witches will particularly enjoy spotting.

The illustrations by Simón Estrada are stunning. The artwork is dark, atmospheric, and dramatic, perfectly capturing the eerie forests and mysterious dangers of the story. The bright red of Lu’s cape stands out against the darker backgrounds, visually reminding us of her desire to stand out and be noticed.

What makes Wolf’s Belly especially powerful, however, is the emotional truth that lies beneath the fairy-tale surface. Lu’s journey isn’t only about facing a monster in the woods; it reflects something deeply human. Many of us spend our lives chasing the one defining moment that will make us feel worthy or remembered. When we tie our identity too tightly to a dream, a goal, or the story we want to tell about ourselves, failure can feel consuming, as if we are devouring ourselves from the inside out. Wolf’s Belly quietly explores that tension, reminding readers that our value does not come from legendary accomplishments, but from the quieter qualities of courage, humility, and kindness.

For anyone who loves fairy tales, folklore, or graphic novels that play with classic stories in creative ways, Wolf’s Belly is a wonderful read. It honors the tradition of the original tales while weaving them together into something fresh, thoughtful, and visually beautiful.

As someone who loves fairy tales, I found this book to be a real delight, and I hope that the author and illustrator grace us with a sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group | Roaring Brook Press for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

 #WolfsBelly #NetGalley