Rub-a-dub-dub: Three Men and a Pancake. (Tadpoles: Fairytales Twists). Katie Dale. Illustrated by Steve Stone. St. Catherines, ON: Crabtree, 2016. 32 pp., pbk., hc. & html, $8.95 (pbk.), $25.95 (List RLB), $20.76 (School RLB). ISBN 978-0-7787-2566-4 (pbk.), ISBN 978-0-7787-2463-6 (hc.), ISBN 978-1-4271-7722-3 (html). Kindergarten-grade 2 / Ages 5-7. Review by Willow Moonbeam. **½ /4

excerpt:

Once upon a Tuesday, a baker decided to cook his biggest and best
pancake ever. It was ENORMOUS.

He tossed it once, then twice, and then—WHOOPS!—the pancake flew right
out the kitchen window!

Rub-a-dub-dub: Three Men and a Pancake is part of Crabtree's "Tadpoles: Fairytale Twists" series. Each story starts with a traditional fairy tale and changes it in some strange and unusual way. This one is based on a lesser known story, "The Big Pancake", mixed with "Rub-a-dub-dub Three Men in a Tub". There is also a giant, a river, and a town full of hungry people willing to help.

      That each page has only a few lines of text and bright illustrations makes this a good read for an early fluent reader or as a read aloud book for a younger child.

      Rub-a-dub-dub: Three Men and a Pancake is a sweet story that is engaging and evocative of other stories, nursery rhymes and fables. Although not as familiar as some of the other fairytale twists in the series, this book is a fun read and would be a fine addition to a collection of odd and interesting tales.

Recommended.

Willow Moonbeam is a librarian living in Toronto, ON, and searching for the best reading material while practising knitting and astrology.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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