Title: How to Bake a Book
Author/Illustrator: Ella Burfoot
Age Group: 2-6
Synopsis: A great book is like an amazing cake.
The Low Down:
There’s something so soothing and magical about baking. Combining a whole bunch of seemingly innocuous items that produce something so fabulously tasty has always seemed like a type of magic to me. Finding a book like that can inspire the same type of feelings.
Ella Burfoot’s story is more of a narrative through the intensely imaginative creation of a book cake. Told by a delightfully, cheerful little girl who seems to skip from page to page, the book is a perfect comparison between the acts of baking and story telling. Of course, certain parts of the process must be observed. The addition of characters, punctuation, words, ideas, feelings, and morals all allude to their baking counterpart, whether it is flour, sugar, eggs, or spices. Throughout it all, Burfoot cleverly uses turns of phrases to appeal to young and older reader alike. Bug delighted in following the rhyming story to completion and pretending to participate as the book progressed.
The illustrations are firmly cemented in the realm of imagination but occasionally take a quick hop into reality. Perfectly shown when the little girl measures out small, big, and mixed words using an actual measuring cups and scales or thickens her plot by allowing the mixture to come to a boil. Burfoot also sneaks in fun details in the ingredient and cook book labels. “Wolf it Down” by B.B. Wolf or “Cooking for Creatives” pairs perfectly with packages labeled as “Peaceful Sunny Words” or “Dried Princess Peas.” But the greatest trick of all is the way Burfoot turns a slice of cake into a book at the end. I was unsure how she was going to accomplish this until the last few pages and then I was very impressed.
This was such a fun book. So much so, that I immediately held a conference with my baking pals to see how in the world Bug and I could try and incorporate these same ideas to bake our own book. It took quite a bit of trial and error but we ended up with a really fun activity that took this book one step further. And the best way to enjoy and good read? With a freshly baked treat, of course!
Story Tips:
- Take a moment to check out the fun details Burfoot has hidden throughout the story.
- Check out how to bake your own book in the Crafty Corner. Keep an eye out!
I need more!
Ella Burfoot has some really sweet stories out including: Betty and the Yeti. See more about her and her stories at: https://www.ellaburfoot.co.uk
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