FRESH CIDER AND PIE portrays the story of a sinister fly whom outwits a spider -a sneaky arachnid whose plans were to gobble up the fly whole. Now, the fly himself was just going about his day, innocently soaring through the open window of a tiny cottage home. Upon being caught by Miss Spider, the fly is granted one last wish -so, he requests his favorite dish...a slice of apple pie with a glass of cider. With unforgettable illustrations by the infamous Aliki (A Weed Is a Flower, My Visit to the Zoo), author Franz Brandenberg whisks us away with a tale so very delightful.
The four-color illustrations were prepared as pen-and-ink line drawings, with halftone overlays for yellow, blue, and red. I have a special place in my heart for this children's book, as it was one of the first that my parents had bought for me as a wee-one. This is true -the book I hold in my hands has been with me since 1984! Which entails that this one is not exactly for sale.
Brandenberg & Aliki's FRESH CIDER AND PIE was released in 1973 -the very same year as quite a few other happenings took shape; the U.S. launched space station Skylab, the fourth Arab-Israeli war had taken shape, and Roe v. Wade was ruled constitutional by the Supreme Court. It's sad to think that we haven't advanced much, politically -in fact, we have de-evolved. But that's whole other discussion we'll save for later...