Sharing Bake Sale

A third grade reader was eager to read Sara Varon's graphic novel ROBOT DREAMS last week. It is a rather sad story about two friends, a dog and robot, and the latter rusts after a visit to the beach, making it unable to be the companion to the dog. I suggested the reader might enjoy Sara Varon's book BAKE SALE, and I put it on reserve for him. It is a comical but thoughtful story about Cupcake and his friend Eggplant. Cupcake wants so badly to learn from the master chef Turkish Delight (whose name makes me laugh simply because I do not have an appreciation for it). The next day, the young reader rushed in to tell me how much he liked it.

"Did you make any of the recipes in the back?" he asked. 

I confessed I had not tried them.

"I really wanted to make the brownies, but my parents said we didn't have time."

We looked at the recipes together and agreed that several looked like they would make delicious treats. The next day I was in his classroom for a reading workshop mini-lesson about character. 

"If I bake brownies this weekend, would you like me to bring one for you?"

"That would be kind of you,"  I told him. I certainly did not expect him to show up at my office door this morning, eager to give me a large, wrapped brownie! But there he was, unzipping his backpack and telling me that they were much better when they came right out of the oven. And they should be good because they did have a whole bag of chocolate chips in them! Oh, and before he returned the book, he was copying the recipe for himself so they could make it again at home.

I thanked him, my mind considering once again the connections between readers and books and the people who share them with each other. Along with his thank-you note, I am sending my favorite brownie recipe!