How to Bake a Book Hardcover – January 1, 2014

This is SUCH a wonderful book & the illustrations are amazing. It's the #1 requested & read book in "Gwama & Gwampa's" library.I bought one for our granddaughter when she was 3 (and a half🥰), & 1 for a baby gift. She will be in kindergarten in a few days & is reading a few words herself.As it is such a hit, we purchased 3 more by request - 1 for a cousin, 1 for the other Gwama & Gwampa's home, & 1 for grandaughter's home.As we read it we discuss the illustrations on each page, compare the pages, look for illustrated words & letters she knows, examine the cover, then read it again - finding something new each time.

Comparing the creation of a story (book) to baking a pie makes for an entertaining premise and a great teaching idea. The little girl spends a lot of time finding just the right 'ingredients' of words, characters, and plot. I loved the imagery that is conveyed by the words and illustrations. The use of words is so clever and fun to read, this is a book I'd recommend for any elementary teacher/librarian who is trying to help students understand the different elements that make up a good story.

We loved its perfect for my little girl and for my students

This is a a charming metaphor for writing a book as if baking a cake. I think it will inspire children to write deliciously!

Darling story - clever approach to putting together a book

This picture book is an adorable representation of the imaginative process of how a book is created, or how a story might be invented. We never actually learn our little protagonist's name as she hustles and bustles around her kitchen and pantry, scooping up ingredients to bake her book, as her cheeks get redder and redder with her increasing fervor. As she imagines all of the ingredients going into her book, she is at times smaller than her kitchen utensils and pantry items, skipping across jar lids, and at other times, she's a little girl simply stirring or decorating objects in true life size. As our little protagonist adds "a spoonful of good and a pinch of bad" then turns up the heat, she watches her plot begin to thicken, and we are also watching, with delight.British author Ella Burfoot's book is a delightful fancy of a child's imaginary world. Why shouldn't a book be cooked, just like a child's favorite recipe is cooked by Mum? Delightful illustrations in warm, soft colors make the visual value of this story quite lovely. Take care to study the pictures....that pantry, with its four-story access by ladder, is quite a marvel....and who wouldn't store their "periods" and "capital letters" shakers (no salt or pepper in this little girl's kitchen to provide spice...it's in the punctuation!) next to the jar of dried princess peas?HOW TO BAKE A BOOK is a confection of fun and imagination for all little children who might wonder how an author "cooks up a book" in one's imagination. Our little cook has indeed baked her story into one delicious book!

I am always drawn to picture books that celebrate a love of reading, and Ella Burfoot's How to Bake a Book is certainly the most charming and clever one I've seen in quite a while. The young girl at the center of the story states that "I am going to bake a book!" and then goes about adding all the elements of a good story, She breaks some ideas into a cup, adds just the right amount of words, cuts out her characters and adds the flavoring (otherwise known as feelings, colors, sounds and pictures). She turns up the heat just enough so her plot thickens, and even remembers to add punctuation. Everything adds up to one delicious book.This book has quite a delightful read aloud flow. The rhyming is spot on, perfectly complementing the whimsical nature of the story and the charming illustrations. While the wonderful flow and colorful illustrations would normally mark this as a perfect preschool story time selection, I think this book will be best used by early readers who will enjoy poring over the small details in the illustrations and the clever use of words as this little girl bakes her book. Teachers looking for a fun way to introduce all the elements of a book will find this to be a charming tool for the kindergarten or first grade classroom.How to Bake a Book is an enthusiastic recommend for any parent wishing to foster in their children a love of words and an appreciation for the magic of stories and reading. Brilliant!

This is such an adorable book. My four year old loves to cook, so it was perfect for him. It kept his attention and kept him interested. Mama approved!

Love it! Great for lessons with the kids for primary grades!