Birdfeeder Banquet

William Blackburn is a professor of English at the University of
Calgary.

This is the first work of fiction written by Michael Martchenko, already
well known as an illustrator of the works of, among others, Robert
Munsch and Allen Morgan. Birdfeeder Banquet tells the story of Jennie
and a good deed that backfires. Concerned that birds scorn her
family’s feeder, Jennie concocts for them a blend of her own favorite
foods. Her good intentions soon produce bad results, however, for the
birds turn out to be the kind of brutish and ungrateful welfare
recipients that are the stuff of capitalist diatribe. They grow steadily
larger and steadily more demanding and greedy, terrorizing cats, dogs,
and, all too soon, the very townspeople themselves. Accepting
responsibility for creating this mess, Jennie succeeds where the mayor
and town council fail, coming up with an ingenious and whimsical
solution that satisfies all concerned. The author’s sense of fun and
frolic is well served by the witty and colorful illustrations that
accompany his text.