By Lisa Graff
Amazon rating: 4.7/5.0, grades 3-7
Good Reads: 3.95/5
Common Sense Media: 4/5, ages 8+
4Rbooks: 3.5/6, Grades 4+
Synopsis:
Cady is an orphaned girl with a special talent. She can bake the perfect cake for each person she meets. Not simply perfect in texture and flavor, but perfect for that person’s individual likes and personality. Through her trial adoption by Toby, she is brought together with a wide range of characters at the boarding house above the Lost Luggage Emporium in Poughkeepsie, New York. Like her, most of the characters have special talents, some good (knitting, music, finding perfect families for orphans), and some not so (hiding, theft, stealing talents from others). There is also a young girl who is desperately trying to discover if she has any talent at all.
Unknown to them, they are all tied together by events of the past. A man in a gray suit with a collection of knots helps to bring them together and discover their connections. As events unfold (Cady preparing for the national bake show, Will escaping to visit a science exhibit, Zane trying to raise money so his family could go back to their apartment, the owner desperately tracking down a lost peanut butter recipe) slowly the knots untangle, and the puzzle pieces come together.
Parental Guidance: low
One boy’s talent is for spitting.
There is a traffic accident where a woman is hurt.
Theft is a repeated activity.
Recommendation:
Chapter by chapter, this story is laid out through the eyes of each individual character. Usually, I have found this style of story telling compelling, but with nine different characters it became confusing bouncing back and forth between the different elements of the plot. Attentive readers could find it interesting, but I’m afraid many will find it too difficult to understand and give up before finishing.
The idea of everyone having a special talent is an intriguing premise, but after a strong start (Cady’s ability to bake, Mallory ability to find the perfect homes for orphans) the talents don’t seem all that special (hiding, theft, spitting). It devalued the concept of finding one’s unique talent.
I gave this book a 3.5 because it was a definitive middle of the road recommendation. Not great enough to endorse, but not bad enough to warn against. Meh! One fun item to note, each of Cady's cakes comes with a recipe in the book. Parents with children who love to bake can enjoy spending time together creating each of her special treats.
Hozzászólások