This is the second in a series of Little Red Riding Hood variations that feature dialect. This gem is one I found in the book The Trials and Tribulations of Little Red Riding Hood edited by Jack Zipes. It is written by American cartoonist and animator Milt Gross who was famous for his Yiddish inflected writing. This story entitled Sturry from Rad Ridink Hoot was published in the book Nize Baby in 1926. That same year, he also published Hiawatta Witt No Odder Poems, a 40-page Yiddish parody of Longfellow's The Song of Hiawatha.
This poems reminds me so much of a favourite short story (later expanded into a book) from my childhood entitled The Education of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N by Leo Rosten (published under the pseudonym Leonard Q Ross) about a night class to learn English in New York during the 1930's. The extroverted Hyman Kaplan is an immigrant from Kiev and speaks in a broad Yiddish accent and his interactions with his long suffering teacher Mr Parkhill are delightful. It is well worth finding this if you can.
There is not much I can say about this piece except that I love it. I love the very conversational tone of the tale as she feeds the baby wheatinna (which I presume to be a form of Cream of Wheat).
Like last week, it will help to read this story aloud to help with the tricky language.
Sturry from Rad Ridink Hoot
Whoo! Nize baby!!! Itt opp all de wheatinna--so momma'll gonna tell from "Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot!" Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot was going wid a weesit to de grenmodder wot she leeved in de woots! So it came along a beeg beeg wolf und he sad, "Goot monnink, Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot--to where do you going?" So she sad, "I'm going to mine grenmodder wid a beeg beeg Strubbery-Shut Cake!!" So de doidy wolf he snicked in de house and he ate opp de grenmodder--(Nize baby, take annoder spoon wheatinna). So in de min time dot doidy wolf he put in on de grenmodder's nightgown und he laid down in de bad. So Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot reng de bell, so de wolf sad, "Come in dollink." So Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot sad, " Grenmodder, wot a horse woice you got!!" So de wolf sad--"Hm--don't esk! A whole night long I was cuffing and snizzing--I tink wott I'm getting de greep!!!" So Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot sad, "Bot Grenmodder--Sotch a beeg harms wot you gott!" "Hm--de batter I should hog you weet dollink." "Bot Grenmodder --Sotch a beeg mout wot you gott!!!" --"De batter I should itt you opp."--So he jomped out from de bad do doidy wolf--itt opp Leedle Rad Ridink Hoot. So it came in a honter wid a bow und harrow und he keeled de wolf. (Hm! Sotch a dollink baby--ate opp all de wheatinna!!)
Stay tuned next week for a story written in Anguish Language.
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