‘Pie’ by Sarah Weeks (Friday cat blogging)

Of course, I couldn’t resist reading Pie by Sarah Weeks, with its premise that a cat has inherited a world-famous pie crust recipe. Not with Lardo, the cat in question, so endearingly pictured on the cover.

I have a weakness for cat books and would likely have read Pie even if it wasn’t one of the featured titles in Oregon Battle of the Books (OBOB), third- to fifth-grade division, 2013-2014.

As Pie opens, Alice’s aunt Polly has died, leaving her pie crust recipe to Lardo and Lardo to her niece. Polly’s legacy — 13-time winner in an annual pie-making contest — is suddenly up for grabs. And someone is determined to do anything to be the next “Blueberry” winner.

A break-in at Polly’s pie shop, the disappearance of Lardo — Alice and her friend Charlie chase leads and investigate clues in a satisfying mystery story.

OBOB is a statewide voluntary reading motivation and comprehension program for third- through 12th-grade students. It is sponsored by the Oregon Association of School Libraries in conjunction with a Library Services and Technology Act grant.

OBOB’s mission is to encourage and recognize students who enjoy reading, to broaden reading interests, to increase reading comprehension, promote academic excellence and to promote cooperative learning and teamwork among students. In each division, books are chosen to expose students to quality literature that represents a variety of literary styles and viewpoints.