Cake Girl

by David Lucas

In this bedazzling picture book for all seasons, a Witch is once again alone on her birthday. So she uses her powers to bake a Cake Girl to act as her servant for the day. She tells Cake Girl to sing and dance—and do all the housework! “And then,” says the Witch, “I’ll eat you.” But Cake Girl proves to be too clever a confection for such a fate, and she soon turns the tables on her maker, with happy results for them both. Cheery and cheeky themes abound in this deliciously illustrated story about the magic of laughter and play and new companions.

Genres: Picture Books, Halloween, Childrens, Witches, Storytime, Friendship, Magic

32 pages, Hardcover

First published August 4, 2009

About the author

David Lucas has written and illustrated several books for children and was named a Booktrust Best New Illustrator. He lives in London.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was totally "bewitched" by this book ;-p It's so cute!!! The message is pretty obvious, but somehow it didn't bug me. It's so sweet how the lonely witch comes to realize that she has brought her friendless state upon herself by being so bossy and selfish--the Cake Girl first shows her what friendship can be and then gently helps her on the path to becoming a friendly witch. The illustrations are adorable and full of all the details I would have loved as a young girl--the sweetly-witchy Halloween decorations, etc. I think this would be a real "treat" for Halloween or any time of year :-)

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My kind of Halloween book: sweet and a bit funny, but not really scary.

This would make a great birthday gift, because in the story, it is the witch’s birthday.

This would make a great book to discuss bullying, or friendship, because the witch is a bully, and friendless, until she learns a bit of a lesson about what it means to be a worthy friend.

This is good for cat lovers because of the last page.

And, of course, this makes a perfect Halloween read.

The illustrations are magical; they’re just wonderful. They’re intricate and there are so many fun details to pour over. The 2 (different) end paper color on black pictures are just as terrific as all the other illustrations in the book. They’re all great fun!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh gosh. The inside is much better than the cover led me to expect. The illustrations are funny, the theme is important but told with grace, and there's plenty of humor. I think it could qualify for "intergenerational friendship," too.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

British picture-book author/artist David Lucas - whose previous forays in the genre include Halibut Jackson and The Robot and the Bluebird - delivers a sweetly satisfying witchy confection in Cake Girl, the story of a lonely witch who creates a girl out of cake, in order to find some solace on her birthday. Ordering her new creation to sing and dance, and then to clean house, before finally threatening her with being eaten, the witch instead learns an important lesson about how to make real and lasting friends from the Cake Girl, who is herself transformed by the witch's sharing of her magic...

The story here might, in another book, have been a little too sweet for my taste, but Lucas' light touch, and winsome illustrations - done in pen and watercolor - really work well together, and I came away with the sensation of having consumed a satisfyingly fluffy piece of pastry - not too sweet, not too heavy, but just right! I particularly liked the "starry" effect of Lucas' illustrations, and the homey feeling that the entire production gave me. I make Halloween sugar-cookies every year, and Cake Girl reminded me, in many ways, of the fun I have in doing so! Recommended to all young Halloween lovers looking for sweet tales!

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like this book because the lesson is this book is "always be nice," and also "help others," or something like that. I don't know, but probably there was only one lesson. Probably the lesson was making friends or probably the lesson was "be nice to others." I have a whole thing about that: respect your school, respect others, respect yourself.
The End.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cake Girl by David Lucas is a story about a friendless, lonely witch that creates a birthday treat servant to work for her and then be devoured.

Once again alone on her birthday in her clutterd house, a witch uses her powers to bake a Cake Girl to act as her servant for the day. She tells Cake Girl to sing and dance, smile and make her laugh, and do all the housework! “And then,” says the Witch, “I’ll eat you.” Clever Cake Girl asks the witch about a birthday party. After the witch admits that she doesn't know how to be nice, Cake Girl promises to like her if the witch is nice to her. Witch does all the housework using magic, promises not to eat Cake Girl, sings a song and dances for her. Witch makes Cake Girl laugh and does magic tricks for her. Witch turns cake girl into a princess, a firework and a bird. Witch shows cake girl how to work magic herself. They share a magical birthday, with the possibilities of many more spent together.

Lucas has a deft light touch, keeping the story from being overly didactic or overly sweet, yet letting the morals about kindness and friendship shine through.

The magical, original illustrations help raise this story to a higher level. I enjoyed the many starry backgounds, including the very near-perfect endpapers. The many fantastic images are delightful. I loved the contrast between the sad jack-o-lantern faced decorations in the beginning with the fantastic decorations at the end. The spinning witch's hat was a great touch. My favorite images include the witch snapping her fingers to complete the housework in a flash, Witch and Girl as princess and queen, fireworks, and birds, and the witch as armchair and girl as cat with panels all around them showing their magical adventures.

Cake Girl would work well as a read-aloud, though it may work best when shared one-on-one so that all the details can be studied and appreciated. I recommend this for school and public library collections.

For ages 3 to 6, witches, birthdays, friendship, bullies, food, fun, and magic, and fans of David Lucas.

[Randie D. Camp, M.S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A witch is alone on her birthday so she uses her magic to create Cake Girl. Cake Girl is the witch’s servant—cleaning, singing, dancing, and doing tricks on demand. Cake Girl helps the witch to learn that if you want others to like you and spend time with you, you have to be nice to them. After the witch learns this valuable lesson, her and Cake Girl have tons of fun and the witch’s birthday turns out to be the best birthday ever.

I appreciate the growth and change that Lucas planned for the witch’s character. Children can relate to the theme friendship and Lucas’ approach is not preachy but readers will definitely receive his message. Despite the connection to Halloween, the illustrations are cheerful, warm, and full of spark. Great book to share with kiddos in celebration of October and Halloween.

[Crystal Marcos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect book for a Halloween read or a birthday read. I read this one with my daughter and husband. The illustrations are colorful and Cake Girl was very cute.

A touching story about a lonely witch who magically creates Cake Girl so she wouldn't be alone on her birthday. Cake Girl is also very wise and she shows the witch a thing or two about being a true friend. A really fun little tale.

[RG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this illustrations in this one. Cozy, witch vibes.

[Theediscerning · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good picture book, not on a par with the author's Lying Carpet - but then, what is? A girl made of cake is tormented by a witch who could just as easily have done her housework by magic as order her to do it. I think I wanted more from the ending, either a twist or a better defined moral, but this tale of sharing and companionship is pleasant enough for the young. Certainly the design is top notch. Three and a half stars.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I could be wrong, but the moral of this story might be to not eat cake. I don't feel great about it. Ok, it might be about friendship, but I think that it could be translated to, "if you threaten to eat the girl that you created, she will trick you into believing that you're friends. Then you become a cat."

[Stacey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really Halloween-y.

[Beverly Mann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! Such a whimsical story.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was featured as one of the selections for the October 2011 Witches and Monsters-themed reads for the Picture-Book Club in the Children's Books Group here at Goodreads. It's a good example of a witch story that has a Halloweenish-theme (evidenced by the color scheme and the jack-o'-lanterns in the yard), but is not specifically about the holiday. In fact, it's about birthdays and making (literally!) a friend.

It's a strange tale, to be sure, but the illustrations are magical and the story is imaginative and fun. The narrative is simple enough and short enough for beginning readers, too. We really enjoyed reading this story together, and I'm glad it was selected as one of our books to discuss because I don't know if I would have discovered it otherwise.

[Asho · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here's another from the Cakes and Pies book bundle that also happens to be appropriate for this time of year as we are approaching Halloween. The book isn't specifically Halloween themed, although the drawings do feature jack-o-lanterns and the main character is a witch. The illustrations in this book are wild. They are brightly colored with tons of crazy patterns and something about the art makes it feel like everything is spinning. Perhaps the best way to describe it is "trippy." Honestly, I think I would have been a bit scared of the illustrations as a kid (although they're not actually scary at all, just strange--but I was a sensitive kid!). As an adult, I appreciate them and find their bizareness cool. I wish the story was as interesting as the illustrations, but I found it too simplistic and felt it didn't teach the friendship lesson particularly well.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Told with fantastic illustrations, a wicked green-faced witch bakes herself a girl made of cake to be a companion on her lonely birthday. The cake girl sings and dances at the witch's request. She makes the witch laugh and is ordered to clean her house. Things are going smoothly if not a bit melancholily until the witch tells her she intends to eat her once the cake girl is finished. But the cake girl cleverly outwits the wicked witch, the pair become friends, the cake girl is no longer made of cake, and the witch is no longer wicked. Cake Girl is a very sweet story.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Witch wants some company on her birthday, so she bakes a cake girl and begins ordering her around. The cake girl points out that if the witch were nicer to her, then they could be friends and have fun together and they would both be happier. (nice lesson...but not told in a preachy way!) Bright, fun illustrations. My kids loved when the witch turned them both into fireworks. I liked the ending and last illustration the best.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A witch is lonely on her birthday, so she makes a girl out of cake. Although she is very mean to the cake girl, she is surprised not to be liked by her. There follows a conversation about what it means to be nice to someone (maybe..don't eat me?), and a friendship develops.
My five year old loved this book. I could see using it as a lesson on social skills if your class can get past the main character being a witch who uses magic.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the kind of book many young readers like - the story is very simple (witch makes girl out of cake, learns that instead of eating her, they could be friends), the art is whimsical, and the ending is cozy. As a grown-up, the simplicity didn't pull me in, but I could see it being a favorite of some kids, and for those times when we need a book about how to be a friend, this works. Nice.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A witch, sad because she has no friends, bakes a girl out of cake to spend time with her. When the witch ends up being mean to Cake Girl and then informs her she will be eaten, Cake Girl tries to convince the witch as to what true friendship means. Lovely illustrations. Warning: the cake teaches Cake Girl magic. Gasp!

[Aileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a lonely witch makes a girl out of cake, she is confronted with herself. Cake girl takes risks and is rewarded with a good friend. A really sweet book, very thoughtful and fun to read to children. The illustrations are playful and original. Highly recommended.

[Gwen the Librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the kind of story I loved as a child: a small story about a bad witch changing her ways because of a princess make of cake, accompanied by beautiful illustrations. Not a particularly original or wonderful story, but I enjoyed it anyway and children will too.

[Greg Gormley · Rating 5 out of 5]

David Lucas manages to combine a straight forward writing style with a subtle and touching depth of feeling. All of his stories are classics; the decorative and poetic illustrations reflect his philosophy of life.

[Miri · Rating 5 out of 5]

An old witch is alone on her birthday and decides to magic up a cake girl for company and then eat her! The cake girl soon befriends the old witch, can she convince the witch to be a friend and not eat her?

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was digging this one until the witch threatened to eat cake girl. Then is just became bizzare.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

so cute - even with a witch and magic in it! Theme: witches, birthday, friends, food, fun.

[Anne]

bought for school
will be fun to go with fairy tale books and when we read versions of the gingerbread man

[Bookless00]

I know many adults who should read this story and learn from the lessons within.

[The Library Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

A (sorry) delicious little story about a not-so-scary witch, complete with a happy ending. Sweet, but it's made with sugar, not saccharine.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love the complex illustrations with lots of patterns and symbols, story ends suddenly leaving the "moral" unclear.