Book Description
for Good Enough to Eat by Brock Cole
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
A penniless, homeless girl sells paper birds and stale buns in the village. The townsfolk call her Scraps-and-Smells, or Skin-and-Bones, and some even call her Sweets-and-Treats for the wares she peddles. Considered a pest and a beggar, the girl is disliked by all. A giant hungry ogre comes to town and demands a delicious bride. Volunteers are short in supply so the mayor holds a vote and the town elects to sacrifice the girl. Glad to be rid of two problems, the townsfolk leave the girl in a sack outside the gate to be taken by the ogre. With the clever use of her unfortunate names, the girl manages to escape the ogre and outwit the townsfolk. In the process, she also gains dignity and a proper identity in Brock Cole’s humorous picture book that delivers a delicious dose of comeuppance in the girl’s triumph over those who dismiss her, or never really see her at all. (Ages 5–8)
CCBC Choices 2008. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2008. Used with permission.