Freckles #12

Freckles and Lard, fed up with their girl friends' control, declare a "Woman-Hating Week" with their buddies, vowing to ignore all females—including June, Hilda, and Jenny—until they're "men." But when a new girl, Pat Owen, arrives in town with red hair and green eyes, the boys' resolve starts to crumble, especially when they realize she might be the weakest link in their plan.

Freckles and Lard find themselves in trouble after violating the self-imposed "Woman-Hating Week" by visiting Pat Owen, leading to a frantic chase and a series of misadventures involving hidden boys, a mistaken identity, and a dramatic river rescue. When Pat reveals she sheltered Lard to protect him, the boys’ prank backfires as their secret is exposed, forcing them to face the consequences of their actions.

Marooned on a deserted island with nothing but questionable snacks and dwindling hope, Freckles and Lard endure hunger and absurdity while dreaming of home. As their friends and Mr. McGoosey search desperately for them, the boys cling to the faint hope of rescue—until a surprising twist brings them face-to-face with familiar voices and a rescue plane.

Freckles and his friends launch a surprise project to build a doughnut shop on Pop’s vacant lot as a gift for Mrs. Kane, the local baker who makes deliveries on foot. As they tackle construction with enthusiastic but clumsy efforts, their mishaps accidentally attract the help of skilled workers like Mr. Lowe and Mr. Sharp, who step in to fix their mistakes.

Freckles and his friends secretly build a doughnut shop for Mrs. Kane as a surprise, revealing it to her with a dramatic grand opening. As she marvels at the gift, they tease her about Buck’s wild ideas for the shop’s menu and celebrate her new venture with a heartfelt, twinkling light show.