I love Christmas. It's my favorite time of the year for many reasons,
and one of the aspects that I enjoy the most is coming up with presents
for certain people. It's always fun but also time-consuming, especially
when I decide to make gifts. And sometimes things go wrong and what
looked like a lovely ornament in my head is a gluey, jagged mess in real
life and I have to start over. This is the sort of trouble Mr. Putter
faces in Mr. Putter and Tabby Bake the Cake.
The book,
third in the easy-reader series written by Cynthia Rylant and
illustrated by Arthur Howard, is broken into four short sections: A Good Cake, No Pans, Mary Sue and Something Airy.
If I were reading this series in order, it would be only my second
encounter with Mrs. Teaberry, his cheery neighbor, and Zeke, her little
bulldog. Zeke doesn't come into the story much, but the events of the
book occur because Mr. Putter wants to give his dear friend Mrs.
Teaberry a Christmas present that is truly special. After a great deal
of deliberation, he settles upon the idea of giving her a light, fluffy
Christmas cake so she will have something better to eat than those
fruitcakes she is inexplicably fond of, which carry the risk of bodily
injury if dropped.
There are just a few problems with this
plan. Mr. Putter has no pans. Mr. Putter has no ingredients. Mr. Putter
has no cookbook. And Mr. Putter has no prior experience in making cakes.
Realizing all the strikes against him, he's tempted to give up.
Instead, he seeks advice from a local cake-making expert, who sells him a
hundred dollars' worth of supplies, none of which are ingredients. When
he finally does get started on his sweet surprise (on Christmas Eve),
his lack of expertise leads to several failed attempts. Will he have to
settle for a cup of tea and a consolation card, or can he mange to give
Mrs. Teaberry a treat that's good enough to eat?
It's fun to
see Howard apply his skills to traditional Christmas images. We see the
bustling sweetshop all decked out in holly and wreaths and surrounded by
customers all bundled up to protect themselves against the powdery
snow. There's Mrs. Teaberry's oddity of a fruitcake, indented with a
strange assortment of implements including several very prominent
cherries. There's the Christmas tree-shaped pan Mr. Putter buys from
Mary Sue, the cake lady. And then there's my favorite, the card he
imagines himself giving to Mrs. Teaberry, the front of which bears the
words "It's the thought that counts" and features a perplexed-looking
Santa.
I also like the little details in the book that give us
greater insight into the personalities of these two people. We learn
that Mrs. Teaberry is especially eccentric, embracing kitschy
knick-knacks like monkey heads made of coconuts and wind-up salt
shakers. We learn that as much as Mr. Putter loves a good story, his
bookshelves also feature a wide assortment of volumes of non-fiction on
topics ranging from seaweed to Chinese trees. And we learn that Tabby
and Zeke are unusually patient, since they are willing to subject
themselves uncomplainingly to festive attire with no apparent attempts
at removing the items - a sweater for Zeke to match his mistress's
wardrobe and a Santa hat for Tabby to match Mr. Putter's headgear, which
is larger but otherwise identical.
This book reminds me of two later books in the series. Like Mr. Putter and Tabby Paint the Porch,
it shows that Mr. Putter is a man with stick-to-it-ivity. He doesn't
abandon a project just because the going gets tough. Like Mr. Putter and Tabby Spin the Yarn,
it involves an attempt by Mr. Putter to do something extra-nice for his
neighbor. Not everything goes as planned, but Mrs. Teaberry is
certainly appreciative. Unlike both of those tales, this is a Christmas
story, which makes it ideal December reading. Those who open it because
of the holiday theme will find themselves drawn into a wonderful series
that is 15 volumes strong, with hopefully many more to come.
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