Mr. Wolf's Pancakes
by Jan Fearnley

Synopsis

"The tables are turned and the big bad wolf from traditional fairy tales is cast as a mild-mannered, aspiring cook in this hilarious topsy-turvy tale from Fearnley..."

Description

Mr. Wolf's Pancakes is a clever adaptation of style="font-style: italic;">The Little Red Hen.  Mr. Wolf wants to make pancakes but none of his neighbors will help--not Chicken Little, not Wee Willy Winkle, not the Gingerbread Man, not style="font-style: italic;"> Little Red Riding Hood, and not the Three Little Pigs. In this tale however, there is a surprise ending with Mr. Wolf getting his just desserts. The brightly-hued illustrations add to the fun of reading about this imaginary land where so many favorite nursery rhyme characters live.

Why I chose this book

It is nearly impossible to read this book quickly. Each delightful full-colored illustration has nursery rhyme character references cleverly inserted. For instance the wolf buys his pancake ingredients at >Old Mother Hubbard's General Store. Old Mother Hubbard's store sells Hickety Pickety black hen eggs, baa baa wool, cat and fiddle music lessons and Mary's cockle Shells and Silver Bells. Every page leads the reader on a treasure hunt of discovery.  How many nursery rhyme characters can you find? You and your 4-8 year old will enjoy reading the story again and again. One word of caution, the wolf does become the traditional 'villain' at the end of the story. The demise of the neighbors is done with much humor, however, and the wolf emerges as a satisfied wolf, eating the pancakes all by himself.