From Publishers Weekly
Readers who think they're in for a celebration of smeared frosting and blowing out the candles may be surprised to find instead Fraser's (
On the Day You Were Born) New Age musings on what a birthday cake
means. "So hold on, bakers!," exhorts Fraser, as she proceeds, in full gym-instructor mode, to show the earth orbiting around a massive sun, rendered in a confetti-like spray of triangles and circles. "We're riding the Earth in a great spinning circle around the Sun, from your birthday to your
next birthday.... You will need exactly 364 more sunrises, all clouds included." Metaphorically speaking, that means gathering up a year's worth of seasonally themed ingredients (e.g., "the sound of a returning red robin, singing. Simply open the window. Your bowl will catch it"). The cut-paper collages depict a toque-wearing, angelic-looking chef combining the fanciful ingredients with a wave of a wooden spoon; every few pages, Fraser returns readers to the perspective of an orbiting earth to underscore her theme. While her deep thoughts may not appeal to all readers, Fraser deserves plaudits for prompting youngsters to think of their birthday as more than an opportunity for presents. Recipes for a basic yellow cake plus vanilla and chocolate frostings round out this upbeat lesson. All ages.
(Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From School Library Journal
Grade 1-3–A baker invites readers to savor a year by starting at any chosen date and assembling a fanciful (or real) birthday cake to celebrate the Earth's journey and their own. The recipes begin by having children collect the first sunrise after their birthdays and gather a host of nature's ingredients such as the sounds of a returning red robin, 12 full silver moons, a south-flying bird's shadow, and the sound of snowflakes falling. After collecting 364 more sunrises, the baker adds traditional cake ingredients. Pop-off-the-page, vibrant-colored cut-paper collage illustrations capture the fanciful and factual concepts. The back matter includes recipes for both cakes and frosting. The last page gives information about Counting Circles, and Frasier suggests that counting the rings of a tree's cross section is like counting birthday candles on a cake. This unique book blends a melodic, metaphorical look of nature with scientific topics. It is perfect for one-on-one sharing and is sure to prompt discussion. Frasier's many fans will appreciate this thoughtful offering.
–Helen Foster James, University of California at San Diego Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
