The Cotton Candy Catastrophe at the Texas State Fair

by Dotti Enderle, Chuck Galey (Illustrator)

At last! It's time for the annualTexas State Fair, and young Jake knows exactly what he wants to do first. He passes up all the other booths to buy his favorite treat--a cone of sweet and puffy cotton candy. Little does Jake know that his choice of sugary snack--and an unfortunate mechanical failure--will wreak havoc on the nation's biggest state fair. As Jake wanders through the exhibits and attractions, he trails a sticky tail of cotton candy in his wake. Soon the candy has swaddled the livestock, tripped up the fair queen, and even festooned Big Tex with a pink tutu! It truly is a cotton candy catastrophe--until Jake has a brilliant idea to save the day. Young readers will enjoy Jake's comic misadventure, set among landmarks like the Cotton Bowl and the Texas Star, Americais tallest Ferris wheel.

Genres: Picture Books

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

I'm the author of literally (get it) dozens of books for children.

Born in Killeen, Texas on a cold January day in 1954. My family moved around a lot, allowing me to, over the years, live on a farm, in an historic home and always near rivers or bayous. My playthings were hula-hoops, old typewriters and a wooden leg named Charlie. (Yep, you read that right.) If you want a true glimpse of my childhood dreams, read my novel, Man in the Moon. The character Janine allows you inside my young mixed-up mind.

I’ve lived most of my life in Houston and still live there today. You’ll find me here reading, writing and smiling.

Reviews

[Donnisha Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book to prepare for our trip to the Texas State Fair

[Desi Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful!!!

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book was a little weird, but my 4 year old daughter thought it was hilarious and wanted me to read it to her all the time till we took it back to the library. At least she learned a little about the landmarks of another state!

[Terry]

This is a cute story, with enough subtletly and adult humor to make the repeated readings fun for parents, too. It was have an beyond-the-ordinary story and some clever problem solving.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good funny read

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little "wordy" but still a lot of fun -- a skilled performer can pull this off in a library story time.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

after reading we did an experiment with cotton candy and the kids loved seeing it melt with the water.