Baker's Magic

by Diane Zahler

Overview

Bee is an orphan, alone in a poor, crumbling kingdom. In desperation, she steals a bun from a bakery. To Bee's surprise, the baker offers her a place at his shop. As she learns to bake, Bee discovers that she has a magical power. When a new friend desperately needs her help against an evil mage, Bee wonders what a small orphan girl with only a small bit of magic can do. Bee's journey to help her friend becomes a journey to save the kingdom, and a discovery of the meaning of family.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781623706432
Publisher:	Capstone
Publication date:	01/01/2017
Series:	Middle-grade Novels
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	336
Sales rank:	451,687
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Lexile:	740L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Diane Zahler is the author of four middle-grade fairy-tale retellings: The Thirteenth Princess, A True Princess, Princess of the Wild Swans, and Sleeping Beauty’s Daughters. She has also written two nonfiction books for older readers, The Black Death and Than Shwe’s Burma, and a nearly infinite quantity of textbook materials for elementary and high school students. She’s made her home in Seattle, Morgantown, Ithaca, Solana Beach, Manhattan, the Bronx, and Belgium, but now lives with her husband and dog in an old farmhouse in the Hudson Valley. She really likes baking – and eating what she bakes.

Interviews

strong female character; baking theme; environmental theme; fantasy

Editorial Reviews

Diane Zahler (The Thirteenth Princess) cooks up a scrumptious, gracefully eco-minded middle-grade fantasy of found families and unusual heroes worth cheering.

Shelf Awareness

Baking is already a sort of magic, so it’s no wonder the two have been combined with such success in this story of twelve-year-old runaway Bee. . . .This fantasy novel truly has it all: pirates, princesses, evil mages, and even a recipe.

Barnes & Noble Kids blog

A heartwarming middle-grade fantasy adventure that offers several different kinds of magic. Featuring a strong female heroine, an unusual quest, an epic ecological battle — and pastries! You’ll never take trees for granted again.

Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America

The obvious love between the baker and Bee, who was alone and guarded for so long, is moving, and it develops at an authentic pace. Pirates, magical creatures, family mysteries, and a dramatic battle with the mage will all keep readers busy, and the constant undercurrent of baking provides a firm and tasty grounding. . . .audiences will just appreciate a yeasty and enjoyable fantasy.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

...a wonderful story with a lovely ending.

Imagination Soup

Baker’s Magic is a delightful tale sure to entertain young fantasy enthusiasts. . . .Mixing themes of magic, love, friendship, and environmentalism, the story truly has a little something for everyone. It is light-hearted, entertaining, and thoroughly enjoyable.

ForeWord Reviews

...like a good recipe, it all comes together. Standout secondary characters, a creative environmental twist, and just enough intrigue make this a pleasing adventure story for middle-grade readers.

Booklist Online

It was so interesting and kept me reading. I especially liked how believable the characters were. . . .This is a well-done, interesting story that I think anyone would enjoy reading, but especially middle school-aged kids.

Kids' Book Buzz/San Francisco Book Review

11/30/2015
When 12-year-old runaway Bee is caught stealing a sweet bun from a bakery, the proprietor allows her to work off her debt, then invites her to stay on as his helper. Each kingdom in Bee’s world has a mage, a powerful wizard who assists the king, and Bee discovers that she has the ability to bake her feelings into the pastries she creates. Bee’s talent comes in handy when the kingdom’s orphaned princess, Anika, is forced to flee the evil mage who has taken over (Bee bakes fatigue into sweet buns, which puts the castle guards to sleep and allows Anika to escape). As Bee, Anika, and their friend Wil attempt to find a way to unseat Master Joris, they discover the trees the mage removed from Aradyn, find lost family members, and make new friends. Zahler (Sleeping Beauty’s Daughters) has created a cozy fantasy adventure with tension, twists, and sweet treats. Bee and her companions are quick-thinking and determined heroes, and their journey to right wrongs should appeal to a broad range of readers. Ages 9–12. Agent: Jennifer Laughran, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

02/01/2016
Gr 3–6—A cozy fantasy adventure featuring strong female characters. In the Holland-esque kingdom of Aradyn, hungry orphan Bee's theft of a pastry leads to a job and temporary home in a bakery. Bee's newfound happiness magically infuses her baked goods with positive feelings, and the business's increasing popularity attracts the attention of the palace. Powerful mage and pastry lover Master Joris has become guardian to the orphan princess, is holding her captive, and has converted all arable land into valuable tulip fields at the expense of trees. Using magic from the village blacksmith's assistant, Bee helps the lonesome Princess Anika escape a forced marriage. As their shoddy vessel sinks, the group is saved by a crew of tulip-hijacking pirates led by the fierce Zafira Zay. A high seas adventure leads to surprising discoveries about assumed-dead relatives and long-lost trees. The plucky orphan finding magic and friendship is not a new theme, but ample action and charming characters like Bee, Princess Anika, and Captain Zafira Zay make this an entertaining read with an empowering message for girls, while still maintaining cross-gender appeal. Fans of Lisa Graff's A Tangle of Knots (Philomel, 2013) or Ingrid Law's Savvy (Dial, 2008) will find a satisfying analogue in this volume. A recipe for the prominently featured delicacy "Bouts Buns" is included. VERDICT Text complexity and a wholesome plot make this a good choice for higher-level readers in lower grades. A solid addition to larger middle grade collections.—Deidre Winterhalter, Niles Public Library, Niles, Illinois

School Library Journal

2015-11-17
A young orphan will need all the magic she can muster if she is to help her friends, defeat an evil mage, and figure out how to save the kingdom from destruction. Desperately hungry, Bee steals a bun from the local bakery. Astonishingly, instead of punishing her, Master Bouts gives her a warm place to sleep, clean clothes, and a job. But when Bee's moods begin to find their ways into her baked goods, Master Bouts begins to suspect that the young orphan is more than she appears. After the castle requests treats from the bakery, Bee is sent to deliver them. There, she meets Princess Anika and the evil mage, Master Joris. When the two girls discover Joris' plot to marry the princess off, Bee is determined to rescue her. While this joyful, creative adventure is filled with pirates, magic, missing trees, and a cuddly hedgehog, it is more than just a sweet ride. At its core, this is a story of bravery, resilience, and love. And while the premise of emotions magically empowering food is not new, this recipe has enough added ingredients to satisfy. A sweet, magical, environmentally conscious adventure. (Fantasy. 8-11)

Kirkus Reviews