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A Piece of CakeJill Murphy
A Piece of Cake
by Jill Murphy
Mrs Large decides the whole family is going on a diet, which lasts precisely as long as it takes for a cake to arrive.
A story about animals and families, funny and warm in tone. We would put it with children of 3–6, and at a reading age of about 5 for reading alone.
Nothing flagged
We have not flagged any content in this one that a parent would usually want warning about.
Our take on this book
Mrs Large the elephant decides the whole family is getting rather too round and puts everyone on a diet — carrot sticks, exercises, no treats — a resolution that lasts exactly until a cake arrives at the door. Jill Murphy, who understood family life better than almost any picture-book maker, builds the whole thing on a joke every parent and child recognises: the gap between good intentions and the moment temptation walks in. Her round, cosy elephant family in their crowded home are a pleasure to spend time with, and the humour is warm rather than pointed — nobody is shamed, the diet simply and comically collapses. There is nothing here to trouble a young child; it is gentle and funny throughout. For a three- to six-year-old it is a lovely read-aloud about willpower and its limits, part of the much-loved Large family series, and it treats a small domestic failure as something to laugh about fondly rather than fret over.
If they like this, try these
Chosen by matching age, reading age, tone and subject — not by what is selling.
Five Minutes' PeaceJill Murphy
Peace at LastJill Murphy
So MuchTrish Cooke
A Bear Called PaddingtonMichael Bond
Meerkat MailEmily Gravett
Mog the Forgetful CatJudith Kerr
Or let them write their own.
Nothing gets a child reading like a story they invented themselves. Your child plans the characters and the plot, and we write, illustrate and print it as a real book with their name on the cover as the author.
Find another book
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