THE FRUITCAKE SPECIAL

Brennan

By Frank

THE AUTHOR

Frank Brennan

Author of 5 collections of short stories in Cambridge English Reader series : Three Tomorrows Circle Games Tales of the Supernatural Windows of the Mind The Fruitcake Special Wrote a collection of stories based on a particular theme exp . discovery in The Fruitcake Collection so that he can present a variety of ways looking at the theme.

TITLE
A fruitcake play important role in the story The story evolves around this special fruitcake & how in an instant it can change : The lives of people Their emotion Their reaction to others

SETTING
WORKPLACE Amos Cosmetic factory in New Jersey, USA Place where perfumes are designed by chemists Anna, the main character, works here & she travels to work by bus HOME Anna lives at home with her mother Her Aunt Mimi is the frequent visitor to the

THEME
SUPERFICIAL LOVE Old lady had 7 husbands TRUE LOVE Armstrong fell in love with Anna not because of the fruitcake perfume Anna was patient enough to wait & she got something priceless at the end

Fully rely on the fruitcake

POINT OF VIEW
Written in the 1st person point of view because the word I is uses Readers see the action of the story through the eyes of the main character Anna

LANGUAGE
Simple Whole story written in a hilarious manner Many comic situations that can make people laugh
The scene at the restaurant David declares hid love for Anna, waiter singss his heart out, & during the fight.

CHARACTERS IN THE STORY

ANNA
Works as a chemist in Amos Cosmetics factory in New Jersey USA Job to design new perfumes Single & lives with her mother Her mother & Aunt Mimi worried she is not getting married She knows that David Amos is not possibly in love with her nor is the waiter at the restaurant She recognizes that it is the result of the powerful

DAVID AMOS
Owner of Amos Cosmetics Dark, handsome & fashionable gentlemen Often seen with beautiful women He appear polite but actually does not think much of his workers

AUNT MIMI
Pleasant but she also likes to mind other peoples business Constantly trying to find suitable partner for her niece She gives some fruitcake to Anna

SABINA
A beautiful young model Davids girlfriend Looks down on Anna Furious when David professes his love for and ordinary & plainlooking girl like Anna She & David offer compensation to Anna in the form of money to forget the whole incident at the French restaurant

ARMSTRONG
Pizza delivery boy Totally different than David Amos Through effort & determination, grow from mere pizza delivery man to become owner of the pizza company Wants to make a succes of himself before he declares his love for Anna

ANNAS MOTHER
Naturally anxious that her daughter is still single Right from beginning that Armstrong, the pizza delivery man, would make good husband for Anna. This turn to be right, at the end

WAITER
Works in French restaurant Add humour & comedy to the story by the way he behaves towards Anna when under the spell of the fruitcake perfume

OLD WOMAN
Used to sell fruitcakes in the market Nobody knows much about her except for Aunt Mimi Had 7 husbands who ate her magical fruitcakes Seems to have been able to read peoples mind Offered the cake to Aunt Mimi for her niece Dies early in the story

SYNOPSIS
1. Anna is a chemist in the Amos Cosmetics factory. 1 day while designing a new perfume, she throws in a piece of fruitcake. She bottles the perfume she had made & puts a few drops on herself.

2. David Amos, gets a whiff of the perfume & complements her, something he rarely does. He invites her out on a dinner date. Anna accepts

3. Anna goes home. Her mother & Aunt Mimi are worried that Anna is still single. Her mother mention Armstrong, the pizza delivery man, as a potential husband. Anna tells them about her date with her boss.

4. Anna doesnt likes her boss but she wants to find out the real reason of his unusual behavior. She gets ready & put on her usual perfume Intrigue & not new fruitcake perfume.

5. On the way to an expensive French restaurant, David says very little to Anna. It is a great change from his charming behavior in the office earlier in the day. At the restaurant, Anna feels like he regrets coming out with her. Anna goes to the ladies room

6.Anna puts on new fruitcake perfume. While walking back to the table, a nearby waiter , gets affected & knocks down a table. David Amos now acts as if he is madly in love with her. Anna realizes the power of the fruitcake perfume

 7. Anna goes to answer a phone call in the longue & again encounters the waiter. He declare his love for her & wants to see her again. Anna, very amused, tells him to look to his duties as a waiter. 8. She meets Sabina, Davids current & arrogant girlfriend. David professes his love for Anna. The waiter sings a love song. Angry Sabrina punches David. A fight breaks out between Sabina, David, the waiter & the others. It is chaos. Anna runs off home.

 9. Anna visits Aunt Mimi to find out what she has put into the fruitcake. Aunt Mimi had actually bought the cake from an old woman who has 7 husbands. Unfortunately the old lady passed away. 10. After 2 days, she sees David in his room & Sabina is with him. David has a black eye. He had calmed things down at the restaurant by paying out money. The police were not called.

11.David apologies for his unusual behavior. Sabina says David cannot be interested in Anna. Irritated, Anna takes out the bottle of perfume & pours it on Sabinas dress. She knows David will go crazy over her & so will other men nearby. Anna leaves Amos Cosmetics

 12. She gets a new job at the perfume factory that makes Intrigue. Armstrong, the pizza delivery man, is now owner. 1 day he visits Anna & he confesses that he fell in love with her at the 1st sight but wanted to wait till he had made success of himself before asking her out.

TRUE LOVE WINS THE

THE PLOT ***refer to excel file**

MORAL STORY
True love is born from the heart Hard work always pays off Observation of people around us to discriminate the true from the false.

ACTIVITIES
Discuss about character traits compare & contrast between characters exp : Anna vs Sabina David Amos vs Armstrong Match the characters with their qualities Arrange the events of the story according to the correct sequence. Write a letter for any of the characters exp : Sabina advice her to change her attitude Role-play

THANK YOU