Oh Look, a Cake! by J. C. McKee (review)
Buy Issue for $25 at JHUP- Oh Look, a Cake! by J. C. McKee
Trade ed. ISBN 9780358380306 $18.99
E-book ed. ISBN 9780358379614 $13.99
Reviewed from digital galleys R 4-7 yrs
When Sloth and Lemur come across a beautifully frosted pink cake, they suggest having a party, but then they thoughtfully dismiss many potential party guests with whom they might have to share: Elephant would eat it all himself, Tiger would eat it and then them, Peacock “won’t eat anything prettier than he is, ” and so on. Having exhausted their options, Sloth and Lemur devour the cake themselves, only for Tiger to appear and inform them that this was the cake she baked for her own birthday. “Don’t worry . . . I can still get it back, ” she says, with the next page [End Page 343] showing the empty plate, no Sloth or Lemur, and Tiger’s belly decidedly fuller. The digital art is sly but simple, with few background details and full focus on the animals and the cake against pastel-colored negative space. Sloth’s words are in serif font and Lemur’s in sans-serif, which could allow for an amped up readaloud experience in alternating voices. Kids are sure to get a laugh out of the mischievous Sloth and Lemur finding outlandish rationalization for a cake they have no intention of sharing, and fans of Klassen’s This Is Not My Hat (BCCB 11/12) will snicker at the darkly funny ending.
