Imagine the ultimate cookbook, the one that keeps you engrossed for hours with its images and recipes. The one that situates the food introduced in the context of its culture and the traditions it is associated with. Now imagine that book redesigned for children. This is the best way I can explain Take A Bite. As a child I would pull my mother’s recipe books off the shelves and allow my mouth to water at all the wonderful food. It is lovely that Take A Bite offers younger readers the same thing but designed and written to feel like their own.
This is both a recipe book and an introduction to world food. The book is divided into double-page spreads which introduce the world’s countries and their foods – what is grown and harvested, foods beloved by many who live there, historical facts and the importance of foods to religious traditions. The level of care and detail that has been given to both text and illustrations makes this stand out as something special and will doubtless draw young readers in because it has the ‘flick factor’ (that thing that makes readers flick between pages and continually pick the book back up for another look). There is a food timeline at the back of the book and even the main contents page illustrates where countries are situated on the planet.
A visual guide at the front shows readers the recipes within the book and their page numbers so that if they are in the kitchen they can focus on this aspect of the book alone. The level of visual detail given to the recipes is astounding and will help young people to make a success of their cooking. No assumptions are made about what readers will be capable of creating – something that sometimes makes otherwise beautiful cookbooks for young people dull for those who have been in the kitchen from a very young age.
This will also appeal to readers who love geography or travel. The illustrations bring the countries to life and allow those who are unable to visit them to both share in talk about the world’s countries and plan dream trips that they might one day make.
A beautiful illustrated non-fiction text that will keep readers of all ages engrossed and busy for hours. We are going through an age of spectacular non-fiction for young readers and Take A Bite stands out as one that belongs on library, classroom and home bookshelves.
- Take A Bite by Aleksandra Mizielinska, Daniel Mizielinski and Natalia Baranowska is available now from Big Picture Press. RRP £25.00 (Provided for review)
