About the Holiday
Sitting down to a nice, hot breakfast is a luxury most of us may not indulge in very often. February, with its cooler temperatures, beckons to us, though, to take the time and enjoy the comfort and camaraderie of a leisurely morning meal of eggs and bacon, pancakes, French toast, or—as a certain woodpecker prefers—waffles. So pick a day and gather all the ingredients for a yummy hot breakfast or visit your favorite breakfast restaurant!
Woodpecker Wants a Waffle
By Steve Breen
One morning Benny the woodpecker wakes to a most “tummy-rumbling smell” so he follows the yummy aroma to Moe’s Diner. Through the window Benny takes in the delicious scene and decides that he too must have waffles. He taps on the door, but it must be a “no woodpeckers” kind of place because the waitress gives him an unceremonious boot. He tries to sneak in, but the waitress is ready for him with her broom. He even tries wearing different disguises to gain entry, but that only gets him tossed out like trash.
Image and text copyright Steve Breen, courtesy of TurnRow Book Company
Back in the woods the animals laugh when they hear Benny is wishing for waffles, and one by one they offer an alliterative feast of reasons why Benny’s desire is so ridiculous. “Raccoons don’t eat ravioli,” Raccoon yells from the back of the crowd. “Turtles don’t eat turnovers,” Turtle explains. “Chipmunks don’t eat cheeseburgers,” Chipmunk adds to the chorus. “And woodpeckers don’t eat waffles!” Bunny exclaims.
Image and text copyright Steve Breen, courtesy of TurnRow Book Company
“‘Well, why not?’” Benny counters. The animals are stumped! They ponder and ruminate, ruminate and ponder until finally Bunny says, “‘Because I said so!’” Benny feels he’s just wasting time listening to all this nonsense—time that can be better used devising a new plan to get waffles. In no time he’s back with a sure-fire scheme that involves being shot from a canon, the moon walk, a comedy act, and fireworks along with a few other entertaining bits.
Image copyright Steve Breen, courtesy of TurnRow Book Company
As the speechless animals turn away Benny hears snickering, but he sprightly invites them back the next morning to watch his spectacle. In the morning the animals gather in a field across from the diner, but where’s Benny? The animals wait patiently, while inside the diner the waitress and customers notice something too. They all go outside to look at the animals. And while the animals are staring at the people and the people are staring at the animals, Benny makes his move through that forbidden door. “‘Sweet’” says Benny.
Image and text copyright Steve Breen, courtesy of TurnRow Book Company
Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Steve Breen’s tale of Benny, the unconventional woodpecker, follows in the best traditions of comic storytelling. Breen’s setup, from Benny’s first glimpse of his obsession to the development of his clever ruse to his ultimately outwitting his opponent, will keep kids rooting for Benny from page to page. Benny’s confidence in the face of the friendly needling of the forest animals demonstrates that if you stick up for yourself and keep plugging, you can achieve your desires.
Benny’s high, spiky featherdo will endear him to kids as will his perseverance in the face of mistreatment at the hands and feet of the waitress. Breen’s softly colored illustrations are full of comical details, and kids will love Benny’s contraption-style master plan that spans two pages with arrows to point out the trajectory.
Woodpecker Wants a Waffle is a wonderful choice for fun, funny story times and, like the best jokes, will want to be heard again and again.
Ages 4 – 8
HarperCollins, 2016 |ISBN 978-0062342577
National Hot Breakfast Month Activity
Waffle Tic-Tac-Toe
The grid of a waffle makes a perfect tic-tac-toe board! With this special breakfast-inspired tic-tac-toe set you can cook up some sweet fun! With all the choices of squares in a waffle to fill, you can play 3-by-3, 4-by-4, 5-by-5, even 6-by-6 games!
Supplies
- Printable Waffle Tic Tac Toe Board
- Printable Butter and Syrup Tokens
- Poster board or stiff paper
- Glue
Directions
- Play 3-by-3 games as you always do
- For the other options each player tries to build rows of 4 pieces down, across, and diagonally
- The player with the most completed rows wins!
You can find Woodpecker Wants a Waffle at these booksellers
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million
To support your local independent bookstore, order from
Picture Book Review
celebratepicturebooks.com 