Cookbook for girls

Gr 3-6-The photos alone make this attractive cookbook worth the price of admission: glistening grilled peaches, stacked mini fish cakes flecked with parsley, and noodles tangled around chopsticks. The design is eye-catching, with a sweet cursive font that girly girls will love and photos illustrating, step by step, how to complete each dish. There is even a section focusing on crafts, which includes instructions for invitations, place settings, and folded napkins. Safety warnings are included throughout. However, once the recipes are actually made, the problems arise. First, the dishes are for a somewhat sophisticated palate-average eaters aren't likely to go for jambalaya or green salad with broccoli, peas, and spinach. Additionally, some of the recipes can be very bland or odd-tasting. To its credit, the recipes cover a wide range of abilities, from the easy and versatile nachos to the more complex pizza squares (the homemade crust calls for yeast and kneading). Most of these dishes will appeal to adventurous eaters and their foodie parents. There isn't a lot of cultural diversity here, but the recipes are wrapped in such a pretty package that the book is likely to circulate based on looks alone.-Laura Lutz, Queens Borough Public Library, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.