Review: Frankie's Favorite Food by Kelsey Garrity-Riley

Frankie's Favorite Food
by Kelsey Garrity-Riley

Available as: hardcover, ebook
Pages: 36
Publisher: Tundra Books
Publication date: August 20, 2019
Suggested tags: picture book, food



From Goodreads:

"A scrumptiously adorable story about a boy, a school play and his love for food. Featuring foods from all over the world, this debut picture book will make you hungry for more!

Frankie has a problem: he has too many favorite foods. He can't bring himself to choose just one to be for the school play, so on the day of the performance, he's still without a costume. His teacher comes up with a delicious idea: what if Frankie becomes the Costume Manager? That way, he can parlay his love of all things culinary into the whole production. From adding some last-minute garnishes to helping the rice and beans into their costumes, Frankie shines backstage until he has a brilliant idea and decides to make his debut on the menu as something that combines his love for all his favorite foods . . .

In this funny and scrumptiously adorable story, readers will delight in the variety of foods represented and the clever performances full of silly word play and sweet camaraderie. In Kelsey Garrity-Riley's author-illustrator debut, she shows the joy of food and revels in celebrating the way food can bring people together and inspire creativity."

Oh my goodness. This is OFFICIALLY my favorite picture book of the year! I loved everything about this one!! The story, the illustrations, the food puns, FRANKIE. Frankie can’t decide what food he should dress up as for his school’s play, because he loves all the foods. (I feel ya, Frankie.)

Review: A Is for Artichoke by America's Test Kitchen Kids

A Is for Artichoke: A Foodie Alphabet from Artichoke to Zest
by America's Test Kitchen Kids; illustrated by Maddie Frost

Available as: board book
Pages: 26
Publisher: Sourcebooks Explore
Publication date: October 16, 2018
Suggested tags: board book, alphabet, food


From Goodreads:

"The perfect book for your little future foodie―straight from the experts at America's Test Kitchen!

This is so much more than an alphabet book! From artichokes to ganache and from oven to zest, this is a whimsical and informative introduction to words and kitchen concepts. Future chefs and food fans of all ages will delight in reading about everything kitchen-related! Three levels of learning means this book will grow with your little one from foodie basics to kitchen confidence! No other board book features ABCs and food in this way―and no other board book features the expertise of the cooks at America's Test Kitchen!"

What an adorable board book for foodie babies and their parents! The illustrations are adorable – smiley little vegetables strolling with their baby vegetables, caramelized onions sunbathing, the Umami Express bus (heading nonstop to Flavor Town, I can only assume)… It’s literally too precious for words.

I love that this can be used with various ages: it starts with the standard “[letter] is for [word],” then includes a one-sentence explanation of the word, and then has a whole paragraph below that to explain the concept more fully to older readers.

I don’t even like cooking all that much and this book makes it so appealing that I want to drop everything and go to cooking school. The concepts covered include foods, cooking tools, appliances, methods of cooking, and more. It’s a great primer on all things food, and it would make an adorable gift for expectant parents who love cooking and want to introduce that love to their tiny foodie-to-be.

Final verdict: I loved it! I thought this book was great! I might buy it for myself and I would definitely recommend it to others.

{ Thank you to Edelweiss+ and the publisher for providing me with a review copy.
My reviews are honest and my opinions are my own; 

your reading experience may vary, so give it a read and see what you think. :) }

{ Let's Read About ... } Food

Here's a reading list I put together that's all about one of my favorite things... FOOD! I tried to keep this one strictly about food itself: eating, types of food, where food comes from, etc. I'm planning other lists for cooking, baking, and other great food-related stuff! (And this was HARD, y'all. Evvvverything is about cooking or baking competitions! But we'll get there soon...) For now, hope you enjoy the list and bon appétit!

{ Board Books } 

{ Picture Books }

{ Beginning Readers }

{ Chapter Books }

{ Middle Grade }

{ Young Adult }

And be sure to check out these booklists for more great books about food:

• This list from The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art of books about food and farms for ages 0-8.
• This list from Kitchen Concoctions of children's books about food, broken down into sections like "books made into movies" and "books about picky eaters".
• This list from Publishers Weekly of books "food-infused fiction for kids".
• Also this hilarious article from Paper Fury entitled "10 Reasons YA Books Should Mention Food".