Double Fudge
Encyclopedia
Double Fudge is a 2002
2002 in literature
The year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...
children's novel by Judy Blume
Judy Blume
Judy Blume is an American author. She has written many novels for children and young adults which have exceeded sales of 80 million and been translated into 31 languages...
and the fourth in the Fudge series. It deals with Fudge Hatcher liking money, and the Hatcher family goes to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and they deal with their related family. Fudge also finds out that his cousin is also named Farley Drexel Hatcher.
Plot summary
Peter has just turned twelve years old. His little brother Fudge is five and 1/2 years old, but isn't old enough for first grade yet and is put into a mixed group. He takes up an obsessive and greedy love for moneyMoney
Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...
and his family decide to take him to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing is a government agency within the United States Department of the Treasury that designs and produces a variety of security products for the United States government, most notable of which is paper currency for the Federal Reserve. The Federal Reserve itself is...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
to show how money is made in hopes of curing his obsession. However, the plan doesn't work, and instead they meet up with their long-lost cousins, the Howie Hatchers. There is Howie, a park ranger
Park ranger
A park ranger or forest ranger is a person entrusted with protecting and preserving parklands – national, state, provincial, or local parks. Different countries use different names for the position. Ranger is the favored term in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Within the United...
who resides in Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
and is traveling the country, his pregnant wife Eudora, their perfect, slightly overindulged identical twin daughters Flora and Fauna who are sometimes nicknamed the "Natural Beauties," and the "Heavenly Hatchers," and last but not least, three-year-old Farley Drexel Hatcher, which is also Fudge's real name. The boys are left alone with their cousins and learn that the Natural Beauties have been trying to find a nickname for Farley and try to use Fudge's own nickname. He tries to save his precious nickname from being stolen by the Natural Beauties for Farley's own use by shouting, only to be bitten in the leg by him. After the two are broken up, Peter suggests the Natural Beauties call Farley "Mini-Fudge," but when the other Fudge disagrees, the name is changed to Mini-Farley.
The Howies invite themselves to stay with the Hatchers when they arrive in New York, and when they do arrive, they only cause more mayhem than ever before. Fudge begins to grow a grudge against Mini, the Natural Beauties embarrass Peter when they break into song in public and are invited to perform at an assembly at his school, Mini lets Uncle Feather, Fudge's myna bird who has stopped talking, out of his cage and he has a near-death incident (which causes him to begin talking again), Fudge goes trick-or-treating with Mini on Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
and they get stuck in the elevator, and near the end of the story, in a semi-homage to the original Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing is a children's novel written by Judy Blume in 1972. It is the first of the "Fudge books". It was followed by Superfudge, Fudge-A-Mania and, most recently, Double Fudge...
, Mini swallows Fudge's baby tooth that had just fallen out. The Howies quickly depart from the Hatchers' apartment due to him throwing a fit, and after writing a note to the Tooth Fairy to explain what happened, he still tries to get some more Tooth Fairy money by using a box of Peter's old baby teeth. He takes it back and places it under his own pillow because "hey you never know."