Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast in The Great Caper Caper - a review 11.16.22

Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast:

The Great Caper Caper

written by Josh Funk

illustrated by Brendan Kearney

published by Union Square Kids

There is a mystery in the refrigerator again, but this time our heroes, Sir French Toast and Lady Pancake, are in the dark!  No, literally, they are!  The Great Light above is missing, yet, there seems to be just one area that's all aglow.  As our heroes arrive at the one shining light in the fridge, they find a large, and familiar-to-readers sign welcoming them to "Las Veggies"!  It's here in this large tower that all of the light is to be found, yet the owner of the area, Count Caper, is not about to back down!  While Count Caper admits to nothing, he relies on his "food popularity" to make everyone doubt the probability that he actually took the light.  And here's where the caper takes off.  Sir French Toast and Lady Pancake gather their allies and in Ocean's 11 style, come up with a heist to solve the problem!  And just like in the movies, there are twists and turns that will shock the readers :)  Or at least make it very entertaining!  

Filled with new characters and a new plot line, this addition remains true to the series yet gives us many new reasons to come back to it!  I loved the addition of the Animal Crackers characters - those are still some of my favorite snacks (sorry, Animal Crackers).  I had a feeling many young readers would not know what a caper is so before reading the book to readers I would suggest doing an image search and give readers a little background about the delicacy.  Young readers will be able to infer about them, but this gives youngsters a little heads up!  And of course I can't talk about the ending, but *the ending*!!  I really loved it and think kids will carry the message in their hearts!

Earlier this year, our reading team introduced the Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast series to our kindergarten classes.  They loved the mysteries and the characters.  I enjoy reading the rolling rhymes to young readers - there's something about the rhythm that keeps readers following along!  After sharing the newest installment, I asked the kindergartners some questions:

* What is your favorite part about the series? *

• "Friends solving the mystery with friends!"
• "When they figure out the villain in the books."
• "Baron von Waffle!  I love everything about him!"
• "I like that the mysteries are in the refrigerator"!

* Why should teachers and librarians read these books to kids? *

• "The mysteries are so exciting!"
• "Because these books are funny-awesome!"
• "Because kids like them and they are funny."

* What should happen in the next Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast book? *

• "Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast find something in the refrigerator that doesn't belong, like a toy!"
• "They celebrate holidays in the refrigerator!"
• "Sir French Toast has gone missing and they have to go out of the fridge to find him." 

Love these answers!  Mr. Funk, in case you have any writer's block, these kids have you covered!  And you heard it from the kids, these books are "funny-awesome", so if you don't have every copy of this series, go find them!

Of course, if the advice of 5 and 6 year-olds isn't enough, this book was also selected as an Indies Kids Next Pick!  Here's what the reviewer says:

“The fifth installment in the Lady Pancake series features a madcap caper that kids will love. Parents can look forward to some humor that is, undoubtedly, aimed at them. Definitely a book the whole family will want to read over and over!” — Audrey Beatty, River Bend Bookshop, Glastonbury, CT

Celebrating its book birthday this week, be sure and find a copy of The Great Caper Caper for your library!