posted on 19 Apr 2024

Snack, please! by Georgie Birkett

There must be so many adults – parents, grandparents, teachers, carers – who are familiar with a child’s almost constant demand and insatiable appetite for snacks. 

Little Gertie will gobble down almost anything she’s given – fruit, vegetables and almost anything her daddy would make for her. And it didn’t seem to matter if it was edible or not – grandma’s glasses, grass, a slug in the garden(yuk!).

But then came the fateful day when Gertie discovered the thing she most loved to eat – ever. It was SNACKS! Crackers in the bath, toast in bed, rice cakes in the paddling pool. 

But, inevitably, the constant demand for snacks had its consequences because ‘Gertie was always too full up to eat her meals!’ Wherever she went with her Daddy there was only ever one demand – ‘Snack please!’.

So, clearly action was needed:

“… he decided to take Gerties to visit Grandma at the community garden, where everyone was helping pick fruit and veg.”

Helping out in the garden amongst all that lovely fresh produce works a sort of magic on Gertie. What can she do with all the lovely things she has picked – maybe this could be dinner rather than snacks?

Back home and working in the kitchen Gertie makes a beautiful tomatoey bean surprise that’s big enough to feed all her friends. It was so lovely and filling that she says the unthinkable:

“You know, Daddy, I think I might be too full for snacks!”

And now she’d rather have more dinners and just the occasional snack. 

But there’s just one possible snag – Gertie has discovered a new love:

“Pudding, please!”

This is story that will resonate with young readers and parents everywhere – either because their child doesn’t want to eat or eats the ‘wrong’ things at the wrong time. The book will remind everyone that eating is about finding the right balance between the lure of the delicious snack and the value of a well-balanced meal. 

Mind you, I’m a fine one to talk because I’m still looking for that balance and I’m ancient.

Published by Walker Books, you’ll be able to get a copy from your local independent bookshop – who will, of course, be happy to order it for you if they don’t have it on their shelves.

 

Terry Potter

April 2024