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Rating: 
Summary: *INGREDIENTS PRECISELY MEASURED FOR LAUGHS*
Review: Deborah Hopkinson is an engaging author, and is herself a prolific writer of *convincing* reviews. Her story about Fannie Farmer is a favorite of mine & will head a list of holiday gift suggestions (*Listen up, family*) destined to be published on the internet - - my choices please me so greatly!
In the 'proper Bostonian' household of the Charles Shaw family, Fannie Farmer was hired as a "mother's helper", more specifically a cook. Mrs. Shaw expects a 2nd child; daughter Marcia is 'put out' by being supplanted - - not so much by the baby -- as by someone who will prepare food & do many things Marcia feels she does "extremely well" like polishing lamp chimneys. This lively child, quite capable of getting herself into many scrapes, is soon a convert to Fannie and her cooking. The story is divided into the parts of a menu "from Soup to Nuts" and includes Fannie's trademark "precise measurements" in the recipe for griddle cakes, a bonus bound to please young readers.
The 1906 edition of the Boston Cooking School Cookbook (see McHaiku's 10-16-04 review) played an important role in the household of my childhood. One of Fannie's "hints" incorporated in Nancy Carpenter's amusing illustrations is: "The mixing & baking of cake requires more care and judgement than any other branch of cookery." Happily, my mother took this to heart and became famous for her chocolate cakes.
Children will discover all sorts of historical objects in the illustrations - - they will doubtless elicit giggles as well as questions and tummy rumbles. Nancy Carpenter has made pen & ink sketches that are oh-so-cleverly "collaged" with period engravings on a computer, then printed and hand colored. They are ingenious as well as educational, quaint and comical. The match-ups of text and illustrations are thoroughly entertaining even when readers are not familiar with the name of Fannie Farmer. I love this book and hope Hopkinson & Carpenter team up again & soon.
Reviewer McHAIKU says, "Thank goodness Fannie Farmer's cookbook was revered in our 1930's household" but WHERE in the double-spread of impossibly impressive desserts that decorate the "Fifth Course" is Fannie's (& my mother's) prize chocolate cake?
Rating: 
Summary: Cute book, but historically inaccurate
Review: 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.
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Summary: Wonderful for classroom use
Review: 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
Rating:
Summary: Fun Fiction
Review: 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.
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Summary: Absolutely Delicious.....
Review: Little Marcia was not very happy the day her mother announced that before the new baby's born, a woman named Fannie Farmer was coming to live with them to cook and be a mother's helper. Marcia didn't think her mother needed any more helpers. She could already wash the clothes until they were spotless, polish the oil lamps until they shined and even make candles. Though she tried to discourage this mother's helper idea, Fannie Farmer arrived right on schedule. Marcia tried to dislike her, but Fannie's easy manner and engaging ways made them fast friends in no time. In fact, Fannie was an excellent cook and willing to teach and share her culinary knowledge and pretty soon, Marcia was cooking perfect biscuits and pancakes, choosing the ripest melons at market and even testing the freshness of eggs. There was only one big problem. Fannie had all that information in her head and it was way too much for Marcia to remember. "...what if I wrote out precise instructions for you? Then you could cook exactly as I do." And just like that, the Fannie Farmer Cookbook was born..... Deborah Hopkinson has taken some historical facts, mixed in a little fiction and written a delightful picture book about Fannie Farmer and her creation of the modern recipe and cookbook. Her clever story, divided into "courses" instead of chapters, is charming, witty and includes some of Fannie's helpful cooking hints. Nancy Carpenter's wonderfully inventive artwork combines period engravings with pen and ink watercolor illustrations, which complement the story beautifully and give the book a real turn of the century look and feel. With "Fannie Farmer's Famous Griddle Cakes" recipe included, as well as a short biography at the end of the story to fill in more detail, Fannie in the Kitchen is just perfect for youngsters 4-8 and it's a safe bet to assume that you'll be eating delicious, made from scratch pancakes, in the very near future.
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Summary: A delicious book!
Review: 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.
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Summary: Delightful Children's Book!
Review: This is a delightful children's book that will appeal to adults, too. It's historical fiction about the real Fannie Farmer. The illustrations are warm and humorous. If your kids like to cook, this is the book for you!
I read recently, in an interview, that the author attributes inspiration for the book to being in excellent health. Said having quit all forms of caffeine freed the mind for more creativity. I say amen to that as I too am free with a little help from my friends at www.s oycoffee.com. They have an excellent coffee sub called s o y f e e that I simply adore. Made from soy that you brew like coffee, it's simply a godsend. I want to thank the author for writing a really great book.
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