The Cook and the King by Julia Donaldson, David Roberts (Illustrator)

The King needs a new cook.  Everyone that applies doesn't make food that appeals to him.  Finally, he's down to the last applicant who stand there shaking and saying he really doesn't cook much but he could learn.  The King hires him.  The first taste test will be the next meal the King eats.

Abrams Young Readers shared a copy of this book with me for review (thank you). It has been published and you can grab a copy now.

The illustrations are luscious.  The King is big and robust, his cook is small and thin and worried about everything.  The King says he wants fish and chips and he takes the cook out on the sea to get a fish.  He has no luck fishing, so the King takes over and gets two or three.  Back to the castle they go.  Then the King tells him to peel the potatoes and slice them for chips.  The cook is afraid he'll cut off all his fingers, so the King does that, too.  And guess what happens when he tells the cook to cook it?

The story is a bit silly and makes you smile.  I wonder if the cook will ever learn to cook?