The Lion Storyteller Bedtime Book by Bob Hartman

Author:Bob Hartman [Hartman, Bob]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780745960944
Publisher: Lion Hudson
Published: 2009-10-15T04:00:00+00:00

The Clever Baker

Annie was a baker – the best in all Scotland. Shortbreads and buns and cakes – she made them all. And they were so delicious that no one ever left a crumb behind, on table or plate or floor.

Now this was fine for everyone but the fairies, who depended on those crumbs, and who had never had so much as a tiny taste of one of Annie’s famous cakes. So one bright morning, the Fairy King decided to do something about that. He hid himself among the wild flowers by the side of the road, and when Annie passed on her way to market, he sprinkled fairy dust in her eyes to make her fall fast asleep.

When Annie awoke, she was no longer on the road, but deep in fairyland, face to face with the Fairy King.

‘Annie!’ the King commanded. ‘Everyone has tasted your wonderful cakes. Everyone, but us! So from now on, you will stay here in fairyland and bake for us every day.’

‘Oh dear,’ thought Annie. But she didn’t show that she was worried, or even scared, for she was a clever woman. No, she set her mind, at once, to making a plan for her escape.

‘Very well,’ she said. ‘But if I am to bake you a cake, I will need ingredients – flour and milk, eggs and sugar and butter.’

‘Fetch them at once!’ commanded the Fairy King. So off the fairies flew, to Annie’s house. And back they flew, in a flash, with everything she needed.

‘Oh dear,’ Annie sighed, shaking her head (and still without a plan). ‘If I am to bake a cake, I will also need my tools – my pots and pans and pitchers and bowls and spoons.’

‘Fetch them, quickly!’ the Fairy King commanded again. But when the fairies returned, they were in such a hurry that they stumbled and sent the pots and pans crashing and clanking across the floor.

‘OOH! OWW!’ cried the Fairy King, jamming his hands against his ears. ‘You know very well that I cannot stand loud noises!’

And, at that moment, Annie had her plan.

She broke the eggs and poured the milk and mixed in the flour and butter. But when she stirred the batter, she made the spoon clatter – clackety, clackety, clack – against the side of the bowl.

The Fairy King winced at the noise, but Annie could see that it was not loud enough. And so she said, ‘Oh dear. I am used to having my little striped cat beside me when I bake. I cannot make my best cake unless he is here.’

So the Fairy King commanded, and the fairies went, and came back at once with the cat.

Annie put the cat under the table and, as she mixed the batter, she trod, ever so gently, on the cat’s tail.

And so the spoon went, ‘Clackety, clackety, clack!’

And the cat went, ‘Yow! Yow! Yow!’

And the Fairy King looked even more uncomfortable.

‘Oh dear,’ said Annie again. ‘It’s still not right. I’m also used to having my big brown dog beside me when I bake.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.