Review by Booklist Review
Ages 2^-6. It's overcast outside, and housebound animals miss the sun. Then the baker, a dog in a frilly apron, decides "to make my own small sun inside," creating rich, golden, sun-shaped bread. But this is no ordinary bread: it rises to unbelievable proportions, with an aroma and taste so delicious the animals begin to rise and shine themselves--figuratively and literally. Even the real sun can't resist. It breaks through clouds, bringing color, rainbows, and a perfect sunny day for all to enjoy. Bouncy rhymes make this inventive tale an irresistible read-aloud, and Kleven's art is a great match. Enchanting, busy, colorful illustrations combine playful perspectives with whimsical details, patterns, and textures to show an expressive animal cast in familiar and magical situations, from gloom to bright sunshine. A simple recipe for "sun bread" (which, "alas won't make you fly") is printed on the back of the jacket. An exuberant charmer that creatively celebrates the joys and inspiration of sunshine and freshly baked bread. --Shelle Rosenfeld
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Sun, fun and dough are on the rise in this tasty picture book about a baker who helps brighten up her snowbound town. Joy and color have all but disappeared in the midst of a dreary, relentless winter: "The wind it whooshed, the snow it whirled/ / Bare trees shook like chilly bones./ Children grumbled in their homes." But the proprietor of Fiesta Bakery believes she has just the recipe to set things right. With her "loving touch," she fashions a sun-shaped loaf of bread that magically rises and shines, filling the townspeople's stomachs and spirits. The animal citizens' celebration stirs the real sun from its sleep, creating a ripple effect that spreads sunshine and happiness throughout the land. Kleven (Abuela) handles what could have been a sappy theme with a light touch. Her buoyant rhyming text brims with shimmering imagery ("It glittered on the blue-green seas,/ Wove golden ribbons through the trees") and has a consistent, fun-to-read-aloud rhythm. A menagerie of anthropomorphic animals cavorts and nibbles on sun bread in cheerful compositions of paint and collage. A good time (and good food) is had by all, and a recipe for sun bread on the book's jacket invites readers to join the fun. Ages 2-6. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-A wintry village inhabited by a variety of unlikely creatures is the setting for this rhyming tale about how the efforts of a humble baker restore the sun to a chilled world. Bellicose bears, argumentative monkeys, a lachrymose pig, and a depressed giraffe are among the distressed animals pictured. It's not until the town's baker, an innovative little dog, bakes a smiling bread in the shape of the sun that the residents have reason to rejoice and hope. As they share in the feast, their bodies as well as their spirits are so lightened that they rise into the sky. There they make such a joyful noise that the long-slumbering sun is awakened. The baker somehow intuits that it wants some of his special loaf and the happy villagers share it with the celestial body. Sunlight is restored to the Earth and returns the next day for the little baker's promised sun bread and buns. A recipe is included. This sunny tale is marred by an uneven rhyme scheme and awkward phrasing. The story also suffers from a certain incongruity and lack of logic as well. Why are tropical animals depicted in such an alien environment? Why does the sun want to eat sun bread? Kleven's characteristically charming folk-art-inspired collages far outshine the text in this instance.-Rosalyn Pierini, San Luis Obispo City-County Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
In a rain-, snow-, and sleet-bound village of animals, everyone is miserable until the baker makes a loaf of bread shaped like the sun. The loaf brings such joy to the villagers that the actual sun makes an appearance. Gentle rhyming text joins delightful high-energy mixed-media illustrations with plenty of amusing details on each page. A recipe for Sun Bread is included. From HORN BOOK Fall 2001, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The winter winds are whipping through the village, leaving everyone cold and disheartenedand the baker decides to change all that with a loaf of bread. The washed-out colors of winter surround the frozen village, where the villagers yearn for the warmth of the sun. The baker takes some flour, yeast, sugar, and eggs and kneads it into a rich loaf of bread shaped like the sun. As it bakes, the loaf begins to grow, filling the whole village with its warmth. The residentsporcupines, pigs, giraffes, monkeys, and birdsall come out to see and sample this amazing yeasty creation. As their joy grows, the real sun wakes up to see whats what. The animals rejoice and find their gloom drifting away as they are warmed by its rays and the rich flavor of the bread. The poetic lines of this tale swirl and arc around the illustrations, giving the illusion that the wind is blowing them to and fro. The brightly colored drawings made from paint and collage complement this tale of winter turning to spring. On the back cover and jacket is a recipe for sun bread, which, alas, wont make you fly. But, it is heavenly light and high. Though not an especially riveting story, the richly detailed illustrations, with the promise of an accompanying activity, hold alchemy of their own. (Picture book 4-7)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
