Cake in the sky ( Italian: La torta in cielo ) is a fairy tale novel for children and teenagers, written in 1966 by Gianni Rodari . According to the author’s introduction, the story was invented by Mrs. Marie Louise Bigiaretti class students from Collodi Elementary School in the Roman quarter of Trullo. In 1972, an adaptation of the book was released (directed by Lino Del Fra ).
Story
In the morning, a huge object resembling a UFO hangs over the Roman quarter of Trullo, which causes panic among the townspeople. The military and police are gathering a temporary headquarters, which includes traffic inspector Meletti, a local resident - a helicopter pilot with the call sign "Diomedes" reports on the object, constantly focusing on its size. At that time, the inspector’s children, Paolo and Rita, were trying to find out what had happened: they suddenly fell on the balcony with a piece of chocolate cake that the children and their dog Zorro taste to taste. Paolo is convinced that the Martians dropped the cake, but Rita believes that a huge cake is hanging in the sky. The guys secretly penetrate the object, and Rita proves her point.
In the midst of the search, they find in the middle of the cake a certain old man whom Paolo calls “Jepetto” for his resemblance to Pinocchio’s “father”. Rita escapes from the cake, losing one shoe. The military discovers a shoe near the object, but finds out that it is declining, and decide to prepare for the worst, waiting for a signal to open fire. In the meantime, Meletti, finding the shoe, calls on all the children in Trullo to try it on - and finds out that Rita was on board, who continues to deny accusations of lying and espionage. Soon, two scientists discover a piece of chocolate and try it, but because of fear and possible indigestion, they are taken to the hospital with Rita.
Paolo inside the cake is talking to an old man who introduces himself as “Professor Zeta,” a nuclear physicist who developed atomic weapons for one country (which most likely means the United States). He wanted to come up with an atomic bomb, after the explosion of which an atomic mushroom cloud could be sent anywhere. However, in the midst of preparations for the test, a piece of chocolate cake got inside the bomb, and after nuclear tests over the ocean, instead of a cloud, a huge cake appeared, into which the professor fell. Blown cake blew to Italy. The professor, realizing that he had made a criminal mistake, prepares to accept death and begs Paolo to force the military to blow up the cake. However, in parallel, Rita explains to the children in the hospital that there is no alien spaceship and that a cake just hangs over Rome.
At the end, the children break through the cordon and run to the cake, eating its huge part. Soon, adults join the children and thank the professor for a wonderful gift for the children. The book ends with the author’s hope that mankind will abandon nuclear weapons and give joy to children by making sweets, sweets and cakes instead of guns and weapons.
Editions
- Gianni Rodari, La torta in cielo, illustrazioni di Bruno Munari, Libri per ragazzi 19, Torino, Einaudi, 1966, pp. 109, ISBN 8806035614 .
- Gianni Rodari, La torta in cielo, illustrazioni di Francesco Altan, Storie e rime 9, Torino, Einaudi, 1993, pp. 120, ISBN 9788879261036 .
- Gianni Rodari, La torta in cielo, illustrazioni di Francesco Altan, Lo scaffale d'oro, Torino, Einaudi, 1995, pp. 92, ISBN 8879261940 .
- Gianni Rodari, La torta in cielo, I Favolosi (supplemento a Il Giornalino), Alba, San Paolo, 2003, pp. 140.
- Gianni Rodari, La torta in cielo, illustrazioni di Bruno Munari, Einaudi ragazzi, Torino, Einaudi, 2009, pp. 109, ISBN 9788879267366 .