A Piece of Cake

The Large Family #3

by Jill Murphy

This is a modern picture-book classic - there's never a dull moment with the Large family! When Mrs Large decides she is too fat, she puts the whole family on a diet. Biscuits and crisps are out; healthy meals and healthy jogs are in. But for hungry elephants, dieting is definitely not a piece of cake! "The Large Family" series has sold nearly four million copies worldwide.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Family, Food, Fiction, Humor

28 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 1989

About the author

Jill Murphy was a London-born English children's author, best known for The Worst Witch series and the Large Family picture books. She has been described as "one of the most engaging writers and illustrators for children in the land."

Jill Murphy was born in London and attended the Ursuline Convent in Wimbledon which, together with the boarding school stories she enjoyed reading, provided much of the material and inspiration Miss Cackle's Academy in the The Worst Witch, which she started when she was 15. She put the book on hold as she attended both Chelsea and Croydon Art Schools, but continued to write it whilst living in a village in Togo, West Africa for a year and then whilst working as a nanny back at home. The book was published when Jill turned 24 and proved an instant success. However, Jill continued working as a nanny until the publication of The Worst Witch Strikes Again prompted her to devote herself to full-time writing. The Worst Witch stories have become some of the most outstandingly successful titles on the Young Puffin paperback list and have sold more than 3 million copies. They were also made into a major ITV series. She was also well known for her picture books and was commended in the 1980 Kate Greenaway Medal for Peace at Last. A Quiet Night In was shortlisted for the same medal in 1994. She was perhaps best known for the very popular Mr and Mrs Large picture books, which detail the domestic chaos of an elephant family. Five Minute's Peace won the 1987 Parents Magazine Best Books for Babies Award, as well as being shortlisted for the 1986 Children's Book Award. All in One Piece was highly commended for the 1987 Kate Greenaway Award and shortlisted for the 1987 Children's Book Award. The Last Noo-noo won the 0-5 category of the 1995 Smarties Book Prize and in the same year was shortlisted for the English 4-11 Outstanding Children's Book of the Year, going on to win the 1996 Sheffield Children's Book Award. It won the 1996 Gateshead Gold Award. In the same year it was adapted as a play and performed at the Polka Theatre, London.

Reviews

[Emily May]

It's so weird to read this as an adult. I loved the Large Family books as a kid and remember chuckling along to this one... but it really sends a terrible message. From the opening when Mrs Large declares "I'm fat" and puts her children on a strict diet to the later pages where the conclusion seems to be that eating healthily is terrible and we should all just go back to eating cake and being happy. Nothing about moderation, balance, or enjoying healthy food and exercise alongside the occasional treat. What was the thought process behind this?

[Melki · Rating 1 out of 5]

A mother elephant decides she's too pudgy, so she starves her entire family in an attempt to lose a few. Pointless, and cruel. Avoid this one at all costs.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Remember my Mum Reading me this Story when I was little, It's Quite a Funny Story.

[Jack Kirby and the X-man · Rating 1 out of 5]

Another Large Family book by Jill Murphy - and it will be my last!

My criticism of the whole series have been that they are written from the parents perspective, rather than the kids. This continues with this book.

This book introduces such fantastic ideas to you child as:
* Being fat is bad
* Exercise is terrible
* Eating healthily is a chore
* Cakes are something to be craved and then binged on

So if you want your child to grow up with body dysmorphic disorder and an eating disorder then regular reading of this book while they are young could put you well on the road.

[Capn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Teaches that hypocrisy exists in parents. XD
But wow. Mrs. Large unhappily judges herself to be too fat, so, as a corollary, she puts the whole family on a diet and exercise regime as well as herself. Projection of anger...
Then she gets caught sneaking cake. And says they're all equally bad, because the children and father did too. (Nope. She's worse, because she chose to diet, and forced them all to take part. She's worse).
Also teaches that mothers can be selfish and false. XD
2 stars, and its because the knee-high said, "Huh. I don't like that one." And this in spite of already being a fan of the Large Family in "Five Minute's Peace".
(Mrs. Large is always just a little too realistic and flawed! Ha ha. Ah well. Crap moms need representation too, right?!). XD

[Esther · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Large Family series of books are just such a delight, I've grown up with this, and always enjoy rereading them. They are such a true reflection of family life, (well of my family life anyway!) and so I can relate to them. This particular story is about thinking you need to be thinner, which can trouble many people, but the humour in this is a more lighthearted way of addressing this. Each Large Family story subtly conveys values of acceptance, working together and also, consequences. This book could link to healthy eating, looking after ourselves and exercise, in PE and Science in KS1.

[Rachel Pinkney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the Large family. Who doesn’t like a nice piece of cake?

[Ciara Greed · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. Despite there being potential links available for PSHE and the Science topic of healthy eating and different food groups, I feel the message being sent to the readers who would most likely be children or adults reading this story to them is all very negative. For example, on the first page of the story we are greeted by Mrs Large looking incredibly angry that she's "fat", then rather than explaining to her children the benefits of healthy living, she sets rules such as "No more cakes. No more biscuits. No more crisps. No more sitting around all day. From now on, it's healthy living". Not only does this tell the reader that being fat is a really bad thing, it also sends a message to children that healthy living is a very negative and boring aspect of life. I know when I was child, if I were to have been described healthy living as this, I don't think I would have wanted to take part!! Later on in the story the readers are told how "awful" it is being healthy and that "by the time evening came everyone felt terrible". Then when a homemade cake from Granny arrives, we see the whole family give up on their healthy living scheme and eat the cake that night! Overall despite the possible links to PSHE and Science, this story describes the negative aspects of healthy living and ends with the whole family giving up on it, which again puts healthy living in a negative light!

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Piece of Cake by Jill Murphy is an enjoyable read for children in Key Stage 1. The story is about a family of Elephants, Mrs Large, her husband and their three children. Mrs Large believes she is getting too fat and decided that the whole family should exercise more and eat more healthily. The text is quite short and humorous and there are a number of beautiful illustrations throughout that help to create the story. After a few weeks of a healthy regime, a parcel arrives from Granny, a homemade cake. The all crave the cake and enjoy it a slice of it together. It shows that healthy eating is not as easy as they were all expecting but that is is important to keep it up. This book can be linked with PSHE and science to show the benefits and importance of healthy eating and exercise and I think any Key Stage 1 child would enjoy this read.

[Dewi · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I'm fat," said Mrs. Large.
"No you're not," said Lester.
"You're our cuddly mommy," said Laura.
"You're just right," said Luke.

Cerita yang kocak tentang Ibu Besar, seekor gajah yang berniat diet. Mengingatkan saya akan bapak, "Ngapain diet biar kurus, gajah aja tetap gemuk walau makan rumput". :))

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought way different from the elephant from the large family. Still, it's just Okay. Maybe it's the human thinking mode of these elephants is too much.

[Martha Baylis · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book has caused me to have a lot of mixed feelings. I have fond childhood memories of the Large Family, and as an adult, I can find humour in the family-based themes the books have. However, A Piece of Cake sends a negative message to the young and adult readers in both the language used and the themes. From the first page, the first page Mrs. Large refers to herself as "fat" and sets rules such as "No more cakes. No more biscuits. No more crisps. No more sitting around all day. From now on, it's healthy living". Rather than addressing to her children the benefits of healthy living and eating in moderation, she completely bans all the things the children love, making healthy living to be seen as something negative.

As the story progresses, the readers are told that eating healthily and exercising is"awful" and "by the time evening came everyone felt terrible". Then when a cake arrives, we see the whole family give up on healthy living and sneak down to secretly eat the cake at night!

Despite there being potential links available for PSHE and the Science topic of healthy eating and different food groups, I cannot support this book as it shows healthy living in an extremely negative light and not only ends with the whole family giving up on it, but also doing so by deliberately breaking the rules and stealing food late at night.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve mixed feelings about this book because it does portray healthy eating and exercise in a negative light and as a chore.. but then again I often feel like that so it feels accurate! I’m still not sure I want to I still that mentality into my child though!
Mrs Large, the matriarch of a family of elephants, feels fat. No amount of praise for her curves from her children can persuade her otherwise and so she forces the entire family to eat ridiculously unappetising “healthy” food and go for lots of exercise. Alas, the pounds don’t shift and temptation is thrown in the way in the form of a cake gifted by a relative.
While the ending involves everyone giving in to the lure of the cake, it also ends in Mrs Large accepting that perhaps elephants are supposed to be big.
It’s this acceptance of her form at the end that redeemed this in my eyes and I suppose I can make it a teachable story when my daughter is a bit older - we can work out how to make the healthy food nicer!
Despite the concerns of perpetuating diet culture myths, this was still a fun book to read with lively illustrations and my daughter enjoyed having it read to her.

[Gemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

From an adults perspective it felt like a light-hearted way of acknowledging that not all diets carry on as intended from the start, and that that is ok.

However the other messages that could be linked from the story are potentially damaging to children and adults, especially those with literal thinking. The story immediately addresses that being fat is bad, and that it most change. Yes there is a line between 'safe' fat and medically dangerous fat, but with considering the damage to mental health that negative body image can have I feel this would need to be discussed especially if children started raising questions about it. If this occurred the medical background of 'fat' could be safely discussed.

The story also conveys exercise as a bad thing, and yes sometimes we do moan about exercise, but I feel it is important to show that exercise isn't all boring.

As a little story that isn't taken too seriously it is still good with lovely illustrations.

[FM Family · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was SO disappointed by this book. Our whole family loved the cute illustrations and themes of Five Minutes Peace, and this was the only other book available in the series in our library system. But oh damn, why? I know this book is a few decades old, but this kind of fatphobic shaming message served no purpose then and is downright offensive now. The mother elephant out of the blue thinks she's too fat and puts the whole family on a diet and exercise regimen they struggle through, and then they all go binge cake together in the middle of the night? Profoundly unhelpful and can't imagine the impact on kids who are just at a moment where they're starting to be aware of their weight.

I'd still like to check out the other books in the series, but will definitely be reviewing them before I read them with my kid!

[Judith Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love all of Jill Murphy's work. Some people find this not correct for our times, but I can only advise to engage sense of humour before reading!

There are such a lot of books in our local library which are on message but sadly lacking in the elements of a cracking good yarn, which surely must always have been a requirement down the ages...
I loved a good story when I was a child, and even then had a finely tuned nose for when I was being educated rather than entertained!

Having said that, of course a lot of older books for children have all kinds of undesirable elements like racism, colonialism etc but sometimes when children are a bit older than picture book stage they can be a good starting point for conversations about exactly what the problem is...

[Isobel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The large family decide they need to diet. They go for jogs around the park and eat health. A cake arrives from their granny, and everyone sneaks about at night and steals a slice until Mrs Large comes down and finishes the last slice and catches the rest of her family under the table.

This story is full of humour and it teaches children a lessons that they can eat un healthy foods but they do need to exercise and eat healthy foods too. This book could be used in a key stage one classroom to teach children about the importance of healthy eating.

The illustrations are simple and describe what is being read in the text.

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

My children and I loved the Large family books, and on re-reading this one I enjoyed it just as much - there are plenty of visual jokes here for adults as well as children.

The story is really a slight one - Mrs Large puts the whole family on a diet, they are all fed up, grandma sends a delicious-looking cake in the post, Mrs Large puts it away. Who will cave first? The fun is in the excellent illustrations, and also in the simple pleasure of recognising the little things that happen in every family, elephantine or not.

I think every family should have a set of these lovely books.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not my favorite of the Large family stories. Though all of them are more about the parents than the kids, this one is about an issue (weight) that is not generally of interest to preschool and early elementary audiences. While the message of the story is that elephants are supposed to be fat, and not that children need to go on diets, I would still feel weird about reading to my kids. Though I'd like to collect this series, I don't feel a need to buy this particular one.

[Tatiana Gomes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este livro fala-nos de adotar hábitos de vida saudável, dentro da natureza do nosso corpo. Apela portanto a um equilíbrio, reconhecendo as nossas características para não se entrar no exagero das restrições alimentares. Pode ser interessante para se trabalhar estas questões na prevenção de distúrbios alimentares.

[Elina Paatso · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm from the newer generation of kids, to whom this book was read as a child. This is one of the only children's book series I can remember from my childhood, and not because this was a good book. This book is horrible and spreads absolutely harmful ideas of weight and eating to children. No wonder I developed binge eating disorder at age 8.

[Emily Carter-Dunn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't think this book sends a good message to young children about food, their image and exercise. I'm not one for getting so negative about a book, but I would definitely have stopped reading this book to Baby A if she was older. At 4 months, she doesn't understand yet, thankfully.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘A Piece of Cake’ is a very relatable and light-hearted family story and was one of my favourites when I was young. The large family are trying to be healthy and struggling to stick to it; this culminates in them being sent a cake that they can’t resist. Maybe elephants are just supposed to be fat?

[Hannah Elsayed]

One of my favourite childhood books. This would be a great book to have in your classroom book corner along with the rest of the books by Jill Murphy.

[melusine7]

Library book for Marcus

[Poppy Thorpe · Rating 4 out of 5]

We do love a story about the Large family! This one was especially funny as we could see it happening in our house!

[Mr Allister Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun story that’s great for discussing how to keep fit and healthy.

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit odd actually. Five Minutes Peace is much better!

[merih · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horrified by this book! A ridiculously lame story about body shaming and imposing one's choices to others. What the actual f.

[Izabella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another part I love. What was funny in this book was how the mother elephant thought she was fat and at the very end she said that her son was right and that elephants are simply fat.