I Really Want the Cake

by Simon Philip, Lucia Gaggiotti (Illustrator)

Overview

For fans of laugh-out-loud, mischievous storytime favorites like Pig the Pug, No, David!, and Dragons Love Tacos comes a deliciously funny story about trying to resist one of life's biggest temptations... CAKE!

Everyone knows the feeling.First you smell it, then you see it...CAKE!It's on the table standing there, you cannot help but stop and stare.The icing looks like such a treat, it smells so chocolatey and sweet!And before long...YOU REALLY WANT THE CAKE.This deliciously funny story chronicles the battle of one little girl who tries, with all her might, to resist her greatest temptation: cake. Readers join our spunky, mischievous, and charming heroine and her devoted side-kick pup as the temptation mounts, and a little lick becomes a bite. With bouncing rhyming text from Simon Philip and bold, expressive illustrations from Lucia Gaggiotti, this story playfully tackles all-important themes of impulse control, truth-telling, and making amends (or at least trying to), with humor, authenticity, and heart. Including a recipe at the end of the story, I Really Want the Cake offers readers a universally relatable and tasty tale.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338633528
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	05/05/2020
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
File size:	60 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

Simon Philip is a primary school teacher and picture book author. He lives in Chichester, England. You can find him online at simon-philip.com.
Lucia Gaggiotti is a graphic designer and artist and the illustrator of How Did That Get in My Lunchbox? and Where Did My Clothes Come From?, both written by Chris Butterworth. Lucia Gaggiotti lives in London. You can find her online at luciagaggiotti.com.

Editorial Reviews

04/06/2020

“It’s on the table sitting there./ I cannot help but stop and stare,” says Philip’s (Be More Bernard) protagonist as she gazes at an impressively decorated chocolate cake. She imagines herself and her canine comrade-in-arms as Wild West outlaws in a stand-off, eating utensils in double holsters. But the child’s mother has posted a sign that leaves no wiggle room (“YOU MUST NOT EAT THE CAKE”), and so the duo endeavors to practice self-control. Graphic designer Gaggiotti’s boisterous, crayonlike drawings show the girl and dog grumpily going through the motions, playing badminton and reading poetry. But it’s no use—once they sneak a few licks, the whole cake disappears in rapid order. Maybe Mom will forgive her if she makes a replacement—how hard could it be? This diva of cake snatching commands every page, with her proclamations of entitlement (rendered in sprawling handwritten type), her extensive repertoire of operatic expressions, and a hairstyle that seems to have a life of its own—especially after she’s laid waste to the kitchen. In more ways than one, she really does take the cake. Ages 3–5. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for I Really Want the Cake:"This diva of cake snatching commands every page, with her proclamations of entitlement (rendered in sprawling handwritten type), her extensive repertoire of operatic expressions, and a hairstyle that seems to have a life of its own-especially after she's laid waste to the kitchen. In more ways than one, she really does take the cake." — Publishers Weekly"A child and a dog fight a losing battle to resist a tempting-but forbidden-chocolate cake. Each step in this hilarious struggle is narrated by the child in a three-line rhyme that culminates in an increasingly emotional refrain (in fun type to match) as the battle for self-control escalates... This humorous struggle for self-control also models apology and restitution." — Kirkus Reviews"Cake lust wins out over parental command, as it all too often does. Faced with a huge, luscious, forbidden chocolate cake, a child struggles to stay away but ultimately caves as one lick becomes a feeding frenzy that leaves only crumbs. Well . . . how hard can it be to make another? Rhyming verse accompanies a winning young gourmand with wild black hair and a big personality, and Gaggiotti proves a dab hand at depicting fantastically smeary disaster areas around the cake plate and in the kitchen. Nonetheless, the extravagantly decorated jumble she dishes up at the end has a stylish flair that hints at a bright future as a pastry chef." — Booklist

From the Publisher

2020-01-26
A child and a dog fight a losing battle to resist a tempting—but forbidden—chocolate cake.

Each step in this hilarious struggle is narrated by the child in a three-line rhyme that culminates in an increasingly emotional refrain (in fun type to match) as the battle for self-control escalates. “I think I want the cake” leads to “You must not eat the cake” and “I must… / … forget the cake” until “I’m going BACK for cake.” Undone, the child licks the cake, then takes a bite—and then dog and child annihilate the cake. “I know I’ve not been very wise. / And what I’ve done I can’t disguise. / I might have to apologize… / …because I ate the cake.” To make amends, the child, who’s never baked, decides to replace the cake. “It’s EASY making cake!” until things go wrong. Eggs smash on the table, batter splatters, and a predictable mess engulfs the kitchen, child, and dog. Despite stress and mess, the child is at last able to say, “but hey, I’ve made you cake!” And it’s a delightfully decorated cake at that. Multipanel spreads with exuberantly scribbly cartoon illustrations keep the action moving, and close-ups of the pale-skinned, black-haired child’s face capture the emotional turmoil that ensues.

This humorous struggle for self-control also models apology and restitution. (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews