An endearing graphic novel for girls, Claire and the Bakery Thief is a mystery, adventure, and drama novel all rolled into one.
Written for girls, ages 7 to 10, Claire and the Bakery Thief by Janice Poon (Kids Can Press, ISBN: 978-1-55453-286-5) is a sweet and charming graphic novel that girls will love to read. There are also five fun and healthy recipes at the back of the book for kids to try out.
The Plot
Claire thinks she is a city girl at heart, but when her father loses his job and they move to the country to start a small bakery, Claire decides to make the best of the situation. Her mother, on the other hand, is having a harder time adjusting to the new surroundings and her parents begin to argue.
While playing in the woods one day, Claire meets a new friend, Jet. Jet’s parents are divorced and she talks about how little she gets to see her father who has moved away. This worries Claire because she does not want her mom to leave her and her dad.
When her parent’s bakery finally opens, business takes off. The bakery is always filled with people buying breads and cakes. Claire takes notice of all the people that come into the store, so when an artificial flavoring salesman starts hanging around the bakery and talking to Claire’s mom, Claire gets upset. Does her mom like this strange salesman? It her mom going to leave her and her father the same way Jet’s father left home?
One day, after her parents have another argument, Claire sees her mom leaving town with the creepy salesman. Scared that her mom wasn’t going to come back, Claire, with Jet’s help, go to the big city to find her mom. What the girls do find is totally unexpected as they find themselves in the midst of a kidnapping and one crazy man’s desire to take over the world with his chemicals for food baking scheme.
Yummy Recipes
In the back of Claire and the Bakery Thief are recipes for foods that are in the story. There’s a recipe for crunchy cookies, apple cake, pizza patties, yogurt smoothie, and bread clay.
Organic Fun
Claire and the Bakery Thief is not a typical graphic novel. Being Earth friendly and organically inclined, author Janice Poon brings the lifestyle of pro-Earthers to the forefront with a story about a girl who faces every child’s fear of divorce and worry over the welfare of parents. This book is a great read and, hopefully, the first of many Claire books.
