Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com
WARNING: This book contains "spoilers." That is, the young cook of the story will "spoil" your appetite with her descriptions of the luscious cupcakes and muffins she bakes!
Foster McFee and her mother have just escaped an abusive situation and are settling down in a new town. Foster isn't exactly sure what went on between her mother and Duke, but she knows they quickly packed their stuff and headed to West Virginia.
Now, they are living in a silver-bullet trailer in tiny Culpepper and learning what makes their new town tick. Foster has already made friends with Macon, who dreams of becoming a documentary film maker. He hopes to begin his career by making a film about the prison that was recently built in Culpepper. Foster spends her time dreaming of the cooking show she hopes to have on the Food Network. The Sonny Kroll show is how she learned to bake her delicious cupcakes and much more. Now, she's using her talent to wow the citizens of their new community.
Foster is dreading the upcoming school year. She barely made it through sixth grade because she can't read. It is just something that has confused her from the beginning. No matter how hard she tries, she doesn't get it. That is, until she meets Miss Charleena, a retired actress living in Culpepper. With Miss Charleena's help, Foster discovers that with true effort and determination, she can learn to read from the recipe book of her hero, Chef Sonny Kroll.
Joan Bauer is back with a heartwarming and inspiring story about the struggle to succeed. Bauer takes readers into the minds and hearts of the residents of a little West Virginia town and shows how working together and caring for one another can achieve anything. The added bonus of reading about delicious baked goods will have readers heading for the kitchen as soon as they finish this one.
WARNING: This book contains "spoilers." That is, the young cook of the story will "spoil" your appetite with her descriptions of the luscious cupcakes and muffins she bakes!
Foster McFee and her mother have just escaped an abusive situation and are settling down in a new town. Foster isn't exactly sure what went on between her mother and Duke, but she knows they quickly packed their stuff and headed to West Virginia.
Now, they are living in a silver-bullet trailer in tiny Culpepper and learning what makes their new town tick. Foster has already made friends with Macon, who dreams of becoming a documentary film maker. He hopes to begin his career by making a film about the prison that was recently built in Culpepper. Foster spends her time dreaming of the cooking show she hopes to have on the Food Network. The Sonny Kroll show is how she learned to bake her delicious cupcakes and much more. Now, she's using her talent to wow the citizens of their new community.
Foster is dreading the upcoming school year. She barely made it through sixth grade because she can't read. It is just something that has confused her from the beginning. No matter how hard she tries, she doesn't get it. That is, until she meets Miss Charleena, a retired actress living in Culpepper. With Miss Charleena's help, Foster discovers that with true effort and determination, she can learn to read from the recipe book of her hero, Chef Sonny Kroll.
Joan Bauer is back with a heartwarming and inspiring story about the struggle to succeed. Bauer takes readers into the minds and hearts of the residents of a little West Virginia town and shows how working together and caring for one another can achieve anything. The added bonus of reading about delicious baked goods will have readers heading for the kitchen as soon as they finish this one.
