The Birthday Cake

PreS-Gr 3—When children open this book, they find themselves at Pettson's charming farm, complete with a red barn, an outhouse, a woodstove, a gramophone, a chicken coop, a neighbor's contrary bull, and a talking cat named Findus. Pettson is determined to make a birthday cake out of pancakes for the feline—one of three cakes he makes yearly for his impatient, opinionated, and sometimes lazy cat. The project is immediately derailed when the farmer realizes that he has no flour. Next, he is frustrated to discover that his bike has a flat tire, preventing him from riding to the store to buy some. The key to the shed, which contains the items needed to repair the bike, is at the bottom of the well, and the ladder to climb in through the shed skylight is being used by a mercurial bull as a pillow. Pettson's and Findus's antics to repair the bike are old-fashioned fun for kids, but downright mystifying for Pettson's neighbors, who think he is crazy. The wholesome story and quirky characters make this a great read-aloud. The illustrations may even be better than the story; Nordqvist uses saturated colors, clean lines, and a million tiny details to bring the story to life. This story was published earlier in the United States under the name Pancakes for Findus (Hawthorn, 2008).—Sally James, South Hillsborough Elementary School, Hillsborough, CA