The Perfect Nest

by Catherine Friend, John Manders (Illustrator)

It' s the perfect read-aloud A flustered cat is on the verge of crying fowl in a farmyard story that will crack kids up. Jack the cat is building the perfect nest. It' s bound to attract the perfect chicken, who will lay the perfect egg, which will make the perfect omelet. And sure enough, a chicken shows up ( Caramba ), but so do a duck ( Sacre bleu ) and a goose ( Great balls of fire ). Feathers get ruffled -- and Jack gets much more than breakfast -- in a funny tale rich in detail with a sweet final twist.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Cats, Childrens, Storytime, Birds, Humor

40 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Catherine Friend had what she calls a "boring" childhood, but she says that boring was just fine -- because it gave her more time to read. She read so much her parents had to set a "no-reading-at-the dinner-table" rule. She was slightly shy as a child, but enjoyed playing Beauty Parlor with her sister, taking family trips, and watching STAR TREK and TIME TUNNEL.

She studied Economics, but because of her love for books and stories, she eventually found herself drawn to writing. Since then, the author has written six children's books, including THE PERFECT NEST, a hilarious read-aloud illustrated by John Manders; and two books in Candlewick’s Brand New Readers series. She is also the author of the acclaimed adult memoir, HIT BY A FARM: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BARN. When it comes to her writing, Catherine Friend likes to try new things and seek new challenges -- but she always likes to write stories that make her laugh.


Catherine Friend lives on a small farm in southeastern Minnesota -- which inspired both THE PERFECT NEST and HIT BY A FARM. There, she raises sheep, goats, and llamas, and has an energetic border collie named Robin.

Reviews

[Trace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Luke and I both agreed on the rating for this one - it was a 5-star read aloud. But ONLY if you read the characters in different animated voices. The chicken is Spanish (Icaramba!), the duck is French (Sacre bleu!) and the goose is American (Great Balls of Fire!)....

Even my husband laughed out loud when I was reading it out loud... that alone is worth a 5 star rating.....

Another reason I'm giving this a 5 star is because it has helped to restore my son's interest in picture books. He's all of 5 years old - but fancies himself a scientist and has lately decided that he only wants to read more mature science non-fiction titles. According to him, picture books are for babies... despite me telling him that a great book is a great book EVEN if its a picture book. I told him that I'm a HUGE fan of children's picture books and that some of my very favorite books in the world are picture books. He wasn't convinced, despite the fact that we've read some really,really good picture books lately (some that he said he loved!). I was almost in despair... but then we read this one - and I believe his faith in picture books has been restored. PHEW!! Big sigh of relief. And for this reason, if I could give this book a 6th star, I would.

Plus it was just too darn cute.

[raccoon reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

We used to have chickens and this book was read a lot in the Nuggets formative years. Cute easy read.

[smetchie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cat in overalls, a Mexican chicken, a French duck and a hillbilly goose. I don't know why. The cat builds a cozy nest with pillows and romantic lighting in the hopes of luring some poultry in there to lay an egg for his breakfast. I won't spoil it by saying more.

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

A hungry kitty creates the perfect nest in the hopes that a chicken will lay an egg for the cat to use in an omelet. The nest is SO tempting, that the puss ends up with much, MUCH more than he bargained for . . .

A cute story with a sweet (and vegan) ending.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read because I am trying to track down the author's memoir of farm life and want to know how hard to look. This is great fun, so I will look hard for all her other works. The illustrations are a perfect fit... I especially like it when Jack in a red riding hood, with the hound,cries "Wolf, wolf!"... and I would like to see more of Manders' work.

Sorry for spoilers ahead - but some ppl need to be warned of some things before they buy a book or share it with their children. I think all of you who are my friends won't mind reading or not reading the spoiler, but I am hiding some things for the sake of other GR members.

You do have to accept that it's pretty much ok to eat an unhatched egg, and totally not ok to eat a chick. And you have to accept that chicks come out of the nest speaking the three different languages... well, four, because apparently they know English, too, and just speak it with an accent...). And, yes, you have to not be ready to cry racism or xenophobia when I'm sure the author intended just the opposite, but playfully.... Well, I'm not saying any of this well.

*I* think the book is delightful. I hope you do too. But you might want to preview it first.

[Katie Burroughs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this to my kids recently and we were all laughing out loud together. This is such a cute book

[Shiloah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun book for dad to read aloud.

[Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Those like myself who enjoy coming up with a variety of different voices for the characters in books written to be read-aloud will appreciate the material Catherine Friend gives the reader to work with. Your rapt listening audience will be equally pleased.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun to re-read this as part of World Read Aloud Day 2015!

[Ariane · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my new favorite picture books - fun to read aloud with the different voices. Plus, Amelia loves chickens right now, after meeting the Beck chickens.

[Rece · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect nest
Rece smith 3-4-17


A lonely cat goes out to find food and builds a “perfect nest “ to attract birds to lay eggs in the nest . Although he gets what he wants at first , but towards the end he ends up getting something that he can never replace , love .

WARNING : Spoilers and Discussions of Essential plot elements follow .

Exposition : The cat , Jack , builds the “ perfect nest “ to draw the attention of a bird to lay an egg . Throughout the story three birds end up fighting over the nest and when they all leave jack is stuck with eggs that soon hatch into three little chicks .

Setting : The setting of the story is in a barn , where jack builds the “perfect nest “ .

Protagonists : The protagonist in this story is Jack the cat , as he’s trying to get eggs from birds to make himself breakfast .

Antagonists : The antagonists in this short story is the chicken , duck , and goose . As the stay in the nest and wouldn’t get budge for anything , therefore Jack couldn’t get his eggs for breakfast .

Conflict : The conflict in this story is that the chicken , duck , and goose won’t get out of the nest , and Jack the cat couldn't take the eggs to make breakfast .

Rising action : The rising action in this story is when jack finally gets his hands on the eggs but then suddenly they hatch and now three little chicks won’t stop following him around .

Climax : The climax in this story is when Jack gets the eggs to himself and then three little baby birds hatch out and follow him non stop .

Falling action : The falling action in the short story is towards the end where the three little chicks and Jack fall asleep together .

Resolution : The resolution in this short story is when Jack and the three little birds sleep together in the perfect nest .

Denouement : The denouement or the ending of this short story is when the cat ,Jack , and the baby chicken , duck , and goose feel asleep together .

Secondary characters : The secondary characters in this book are the chicken , duck , and the goose , as they sit and fight over the perfect nest to lay eggs .
Memorable quotes : Two of some memorable quotes from this book was when the goose saw her nest for her first time in the beginning of the story “great balls of fire “ and when the duck saw the nest for her first time “sacr’e bleu” .

My overall assessment of this book’s quality : I really enjoyed this piece of art , had everything that a great book needs , 10/10 .

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It' s the perfect read-aloud with voices!

A flustered cat is on the verge of crying fowl in a farmyard story that will crack kids up. Jack the cat is building the perfect nest. It' s bound to attract the perfect chicken, who will lay the perfect egg, which will make the perfect omelet. And sure enough, a chicken shows up ( Caramba ), but so do a duck ( Sacre bleu ) and a goose ( Great balls of fire ). Feathers get ruffled -- and Jack gets much more than breakfast -- in a funny tale with a sweet final twist.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jack, the cat, decides to build a perfect nest ... one so perfect it will attract the perfect chicken who will then lay the perfect egg so Jack can make the perfect omelet. At first, all is well. A chicken wanders in, according to plan, and lays a small egg. But then, a duck waddles in and lays a bigger egg. Finally, a goose lumbers in and lays the biggest egg. None of the birds will leave the perfect nest. By the time Jack convinces them to leave, the eggs begin to hatch. Now what?

Cute

Pair this one with Mother Bruce.

[Olivia S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty cute. A cat builds a nest to lure a chicken to lay an egg he can eat for breakfast, and when a chicken, a duck, and a goose each lay an egg in it he thinks it's his lucky day. The eggs hatch before he can eat them, however, and he ends up snuggling the babies instead of eating eggs. Cute pictures with funny details.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A funny book about a cat who wants to build a nest to attract a chicken so he can have an egg for an omelette. A chicken, a goose, and a duck all fight over the nest, and each lay an egg. The cat doesn't get to make an omelette though because all three eggs hatch and the cat ends up becoming their caretaker.

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book caught my eye at a recent library visit and what a delight it proved to be! Jack the cat has built the perfect nest in hopes of getting the perfect egg for his omelet. Jack is in for quite the surprise and so are readers as a group of unique feathered moms show up. This fast paced read provides ample opportunity to use your vocal talents to voice the distinct cast of characters. Such a fun read that will leave you smiling the rest of the day.

[Alyssa Gassel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, it incorporates silly stories and even some bilingual parts for the different animals. This book is about a cat who builds a nest for a chicken to lay an egg so he can make an omelette. It’s a fun little story. The plan doesn’t work as he hopes, which makes for a super goofy but fun story.

[Diana C. Kobylak · Rating 5 out of 5]

This cute story tells the story of chicken, duck, and goose babies hatching and taking on the languages of their mommas, whom the cat inadvertently chased off. He wanted to eat the eggs. Instead he is now in charge of caring for the hatchlings.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect group read aloud! Lots of different voices to do, bright, vivid illustrations, and both the font and the book are big enough for the reader and the kids to see well. The story is also amusing and fun.

[Pam L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would pair well with mother Bruce by Ryan T Higgins!

[Kaitlin Kline · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my new favorite book. That is all.

[Danielle Mootz · Rating 5 out of 5]

We loved this sweet story.

[Tracy Schillemore · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't crazy about this book. There is a lot of opportunity to use your voice in different ways if that's your thing.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picture Book

[Gwen Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilariously cute story - Fun dialogue and plot. Very engaging - great for making predictions

[Kristen Thorp · Rating 3 out of 5]

176/365

[Emma Pruett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun book to real aloud with different voices.

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable. I will be reading this to Kindergarten this year!

[Franklin · Rating 4 out of 5]

<3

[Library Lady Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would be a good pair with a Henny Penny read for the trickster aspect.