Fat Cat: A Danish Folktale <small>by Margaret Read MacDonald</small>

Folktales, either in their original form, or retold in a slightly different mode, often make the best of children's literature. This little read is no exception. Margaret Reed MacDonald has given us her version of a very old Danish folktale.

Now I have heard this same story told differently over the years and the theme seems to be somewhat universal. That does not make it any the worse for wear. (Suggest Types of the Folktale by Anntti Aarne or The Storyteller's Sourcebook by Margaret Read MacDonald.)

It this story we have a very fat and greedy cat who was always, and I mean always, hungry. We also meet the little mouse who kept house for this frightfully fat feline.

The story starts as one day Mouse baked 35 pies! "But...SLIP, SLOP, SLUUURP!" the greedy fat fur ball swallowed them all!

Mouse looked at Cat in alarm.
"MY Cat! You sure are FAT!"

"I may be FAT.
but I', still am a HUNGRY CAT!"

"Oh, I'm meow, meow FAT!
`Cause I'm a HUNGRY,
HUNGRY,
CAT!"

And so he was; so hungry in fact that he proceeds to eat the local wash lady and her laundry, a troop of the King's soldiers, the King and as a matter of fact, the elephant he was riding and to top it all off...gasp, he returned and ate Mouse!

Do not despair though as we are talking about a wise and tricky mouse who happened to have her sewing and snipping gear with her when she was eaten. Well, to make a longer story shorter, the practical little mouse saves all who were eaten; including the washer woman's wash, and the Fat Cat is much slimmer in the end and becomes quite FANCY and FABULOUS and FANTASTIC!

This is a very fun read for children and as you read to a group and they get into the spirit of the book, the refrain of SLIP SLOP SLUUURP....BURP, will roll right off their tongues at the proper time.

The illustrations are absolutely delightful throughout; very colorful with bold clothing and cat face expressions that tell wonderful tales within themselves.

I hardly think you could find a better group read than this one as there is a bit for everyone to identify with and it is sure to draw a lot of giggles from the wee ones. Top this off with giving them a hidden lesson in the telling of folk tales, and you have a complete winner here.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks