Flip Flop Flapjack: Wildhorse Jack and the First Stampede Breakfast

Written by Brenda Joyce Leahy

Illustrated by Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle

Red Barn Books

978-1-989915-12-7 (hc)/978-1-989915-11-0 (pb)

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

May 2023

 

Many families, especially those in western Canada, may be planning a trip to the Calgary Stampede this July and for those with children who'd like to throw in a literacy component that recalls how the first pancake breakfast arose, Brenda Joyce Leahy, granddaughter of its founder, Wildhorse Jack, has got you covered.

From Flip Flop Flapjack by Brenda Joyce Leahy, illus. by Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle

As a child, Frankie Morton loved participating in the Stampede. She'd ride her pony Rosie in the parade alongside her family, enjoying the cheers her father, Wildhorse Jack Morton, drew from the crowds.

Papa enjoyed performing in the rodeo events and Frankie, her dad's biggest fan, was sure he'd win every event. But, from the Wild Cow Milking to the Wild Bronc Riding and the first Chuckwagon Race, Papa failed to win, though he entertained the crowd with his antics and always congratulated the winners. Frankie was devastated.

From Flip Flop Flapjack by Brenda Joyce Leahy, illus. by Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle

The next day, Mama took Frankie and her sibs downtown to find Papa and his cowboys at a chuckwagon flipping pancakes and handing them out to the crowd. When Frankie wonders how he can be so cheerful when he'd lost all his events, he reminds her that...

"I might not be the best at bronc riding, or wild cow milking, or even chuckwagon racing. But I can be the best at having fun at the Stampede, and my kind of fun includes sharing what I've got."

From Flip Flop Flapjack by Brenda Joyce Leahy, illus. by Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle

Flip Flop Flapjack may be a humourous take on a historic event, but it will also teach young readers that winning isn't everything. Brenda Joyce Leahy, whose mother was Frankie, has recounted, with some creative license, what she'd heard of that first Stampede breakfast from her family, focusing on both Wildhorse Jack and his popularity and the sharing of that first pancake breakfast. In addition to this whimsical story, Brenda Joyce Leahy shares information about and photos of her grandfather, Wildhorse Jack Morton, and about the Calgary Stampede, as well as providing a recipe for his pancakes.

From Flip Flop Flapjack by Brenda Joyce Leahy, illus. by Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle

That same playfulness of text is emulated in the artwork of Alberta's Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle. She plays up the humour in the story–like Mama telling the kids that "This is the first time your father has cooked breakfast and I'm not going to miss it"–with her cartoon illustrations, from Wildhorse Jack's voluminous moustache to the family's enthusiastic pet badger Maggie and hilarious horses and cows. Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle, who is well-known for her coffee paintings as well as her Stampede-themed windows, obviously understands how to capture the colour and liveliness of the Stampede and she's making a visit to that event all the more fun in Flip Flop Flapjack.

It's hard to believe that this year marks the 100th anniversary of that first Stampede Breakfast. With Brenda Joyce Leahy and Melissa Bruglemans-LaBelle's picture book, you can revisit that milestone of Stampede history. You can purchase the book earlier in prep for the Stampede, but I suspect that it might be a welcome distraction and break when running between events this year. Your choice but, with a stack of pancakes, it'll be a welcome treat.