The two folklore books that I read this week are Saint George and the Dragon, retold by Margaret Hodges and illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears, retold and illustrated by JamesMarshall.

 Saint George is a Hero Tale that follows an unnamed knight, known as the Red Cross Knight, as he travels to defeat the evil dragon who has been terrorizing the nearby kingdom. The picture book is based on Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queene, but removes much of the blatant allegory and religious nature, focusing instead on the epic journey and battle with the dragon. The knight risks his life (and come within a hair of death multiple times) to defeat the dragon, staying true and brave and maintaining the virtues of a true knight. The Illustrations help add to the majestic and epic nature of the tale and it is no surprise that the detailed look led the book to win the Caldecott in 1985. The artist styled the pages in a way that invokes the feeling of an illustrated manuscript, having a full page of text boxed in the center of the page and surrounded by a border of flowers, vines, symbols, and more.

Goldilocks is the classic folktale about the golden-haired child who made herself home in a strangers house. I believe the book falls into the folktale story due to it being a talking animal story that derives from a well known oral tradition. This telling of the old favorite doesn't stray far from the traditional telling but does add a few new highlights. The author makes it known from the start that Goldilocks is a bit of a nuisance, both by describing her as a naughty little girl and by including this dialogue to open the story ""what a sweet child," said someone new in town. "that's what you think," said a neighbor." The author also sets up the difference between the mischievous goldilocks and the good-natured bear family by depicting the human child with small beady eyes and a flat grin, and showing the 3 bears as a colorful, expressive, and formally dressed group.