Pancakes!: An Interactive Recipe Book (Cook In A Book)

From School Library Journal Toddler-PreS—The first in an upcoming series of interactive child-friendly recipe books, this title guides a youngster through the process of making pancakes. It begins with an introduction to the ingredients and utensils needed to successfully execute the recipe. Each subsequent page illustrates a piece of the recipe and allows the child to actively "cook" by pulling tabs and spinning wheels. These interactive features depict an egg being whisked, flour and milk being added, and batter being poured into a pan. A golden brown pancake pops out from the page and can be manipulated from the pan to the serving plate. Simple yet colorful visuals adequately represent the materials and processes that would be done in the kitchen, providing the perfect opportunity for adults to extend the story by carrying out the recipe with actual ingredients. VERDICT Recommended for most picture book/board book collections, this interactive and delightful adventure for the youngest chefs promotes parent/child interaction and cooperation and opens the door to an enriching conversation.—Kristen Todd-Wurm, Middle Country Public Library, NY "This cleverly designed first book in the Cook in a Book series lets children help make pancakes, but there's no need to break out the aprons: all the cooking is accomplished by pulling tabs... Turning wheels... And flipping cardboard pancakes."― Publishers Weekly, Starred Rewiew * "Learn while having fun... Inspiring... This is not your average children's cook book. The bright colours are appealing and whilst children will need a bit of help at the cooking stage, everything else is up to them."― Smallish "Clever, charming, beautifully interactive and beautifully illustrated and designed, this is not only a treasure for little ones-it's also a fine addition to any divine-picture-book-addict's stash (the stash of this middle-aged woman included)."― Kids' Book Review "With help from sliders and spinners even the youngest sous-chefs can pretend to mix ingredients, pour batter, and dish up a yummy pancake... Real food may not be 'required,' but only the most unfeeling caregiver would fail to provide it after such an appetizing teaser."― Kirkus Reviews "The illustrations are simple and clean, which fit this book PERFECTLY!"― Let's Talk Picture Books "[A] fabulous board book."― Book Nerd Mommy "Stylish... With its simple graphic illustrations that resemble paintings by Frank Stella... The book itself is a perfect square (think Josef Albers), fun and colorful. The most satisfying part is when you get to pop the little cardboard pancake out of the page, turn it, and press it into the next page to complete the illustration of a short stack of pancakes."― NYT Book Review " Pancakes! is a wonderful introduction to cooking and can add a whole new dimension to imaginative play... It's fun, interactive and makes a great gift."― Where The Books Are "A safe and mess-free introduction to cooking!"― Right Start "Sometimes a novelty book comes along that transcends the "kid" category and provides fun and "Ooooh!' moments for readers of all ages. Pancakes! An Interactive Recipe Book offers just this kind of delicious excitement... Wonderfully conceived in its bold vibrant images and simple recitation of a pancake recipe... The brilliant interactive elements invite kids and adults alike to play with this book over and over."― Celebrate Picture Books "Recommended for any picture book/board book collection, this interactive and delightful adventure for the youngest chefs promotes parent/child interaction and cooperation and opens the door to an enriching conversation."― School Library Journal "Lotta Nieminen's interactive board book delights with sturdy tabs, wheels and flaps, an enjoyable change for the technology-obsessed toddlers of today."― ReadPlus "Cooking pancakes has never been so satisfying or so clean - although by following the recipe and method."― KidStyleFile "Here's a novelty book that encourages kids to interact with it... All via cunningly designed tabs nad clever book construction... If you'd like the opportunity to introduce your kids to top-notch art and graphic design from around the world, do take a look at Phaidon."― The Book Chook "Flippin' tasty... Learn to make pancakes with this interactive recipe book... [It] has novelty paper-engineered features that allow little hands to 'cook' by pulling tabs, turning wheels and popping pancakes straight out of the page."― Little London "This interactive and delightful adventure for the youngest chefs promotes parent/child interaction and cooperation and opens the door to an enriching conversation."― School Library Journal "[M]y toddler's favorite books in the world! Each one is a sturdy board book that contains a real recipe for the food featured. The real fun is that through lifting flaps, turning wheels and other interactive features you get to simulate the cooking. Perfect for little foodies."― Book Nerd Mommy "We're all over this fantastic book for our Picture Book of the Week this week. Let's cook in a book! Strange though it may seem to not only find that this book is such a colossal fave with a busy 9 year old (despite being aimed at a far younger age) but also to find that this book requires no food, but will still have you chopping, mixing and making, it's only once you dive in that things become a lot clearer... Again, Lotta has perfected the art of bridging the gap between books and toys with a truly interactive experience for busy little hands... What a truly brilliant idea, and a worthy book of the week!" ― Read it Daddy blog Lotta Nieminen is an illustrator, graphic designer, and art director from Helsinki, Finland, now running her own New York-based studio. In 2014, she was nominated for Forbes magazine’s annual 30 Under 30 list. In 2010, she received the Art Directors Club Young Guns award in the Art & Style category. This is her first novelty book for young children. Read more