[.ca] Fannie in the Kitchen: The Whole Story from Soup to Nuts ... (ISBN 0689869975)

From Amazon.com:
Young Marcia Shaw is not thrilled to hear that a mother's helper named Fannie Farmer is joining her Victorian household to cook for the growing family. Somehow, though, it's hard to complain when suddenly the blueberry pies are "sweeter than a summer sky" and the biscuits are "small, light, and flaky. Just delicious." In spite of herself, Marcia quickly becomes an avid fan and ardent student of Fannie, even encouraging her to begin writing precise instructions to her cookery magic, thus spawning one of the first published cookbooks, Boston Cooking-School Cook Book, a.k.a. The Fannie Farmer Cookbook. Considered the pioneer of the modern recipe, Fannie Farmer transformed countless kitchens into oases of exact measurements and perfect cooking. Deborah Hopkinson's fictionalized account, complete with original griddle cakes recipe, is a warm, humorous take on the real Fannie Farmer. Nancy Carpenter created splendidly original illustrations for the book, manipulating 19th-century etchings and engravings and blending them with her own watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations. Wonderful! (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter

Wonderful for classroom use:
I am an educator who likes to use historical fiction with elementary students. Students love the story of FANNIE IN THE KITCHEN, and we have also used the book to talk about how cooking has changed over the years. I bring in old kitchen utensils from antique stores to show them. (Many kids can't identify a sifter, to say nothing of a butter mold! And when was the last time you saw a doughnut cutter??) We also use the book as a jumping off point to talk about math and measurements. Although this is clearly a humourous, fictionalized take-off on a footnote to history, students and I also enjoy talking about how young Marcia must adjust to change, as her mother has a new baby. The way the illustrator depicts the developing relationship between Marcia and Fannie is delightful. As the author note states, Fannie Farmer was one of the first to recommend precise measurements in cooking. What a fun way for kids to be introduced to this 19th century figure

Fun Fiction:
Kids might have seen the Fannie Farmer Cookbook in the kitchen but never known that Fannie Farmer was a real person. This is an obviously fictionalized story, but it does include some actual quotes from Farmer's early cookbook. Nancy Carpenter's illustrations combine Victorian clip art with her own drawings. Not a biography, but a fun introduction to the name of Fannie Farmer and a story about how a young girl gains confidence in the kitchen.

Cute book, but historically inaccurate:
Hopkinson has written a clever picture book incorporating tasty recipes, but take the details of Fannie Farmer's life with a grain of salt. Hopkinson has altered the facts to serve her story. Farmer's first cookbook was an update of a cookbook, written by one of her predecessors at the Boston Cooking School, which already incorporated precise measurement using standard measuring cups and spoons. Farmer's contribution was "level" measurement (as suggested by Marcia) and kitchen-testing of all the recipes by the school's students and faculty. Read "Fannie in the Kitchen" to your child as an introduction to Fannie Farmer. Then read "Perfection Salad" by Laura Shapiro to learn the true story.

An inviting beginner's guide:
Marcia is trying to help her mother cook, but is doing a terrible job until Fannie Farmer steps in and teaches her about cooking. Nancy Carpenter's whimsical drawings accompany Fannie's lessons in this inviting beginner's guide to both cooking and how Fannie Farmer invented the recipe.

A delicious book!:
What a wonderful book this is! Nancy Carpenter has worked magic with her art. Kids just love the little touches, like the mother licking the bowl. This book got a Child Magazine Award and a Parenting Magazine Award, too. I have used it in classrooms to talk to students about cooking, measuring and how people used to cook. One of the best books of 2001!!