Cupcake Cousins (Cupcake Cousins Series #1)

by Kate Hannigan, Brooke Boynton Hughes (Illustrator)

Overview

Baking a fluffy pink cupcake is awesome, but wearing a dress that looks like one? No, thank you!

Cousins Willow and Delia can't wait to spend a week vacationing together with their families. Their aunt is getting married, and Willow and Delia are hoping their tasty baked goods will be enough to get them out of being flower girls in the wedding.

But with a mischievous little brother, a bacon-loving dog, and a misbehaving blender in the mix, their treats don't exactly turn out as planned. When a real emergency threatens to ruin the wedding, will their baking skills be enough to save the day?

Join Willow and Delia in the kitchen by following their scrumptious recipes for whoopee pies, peach pancakes, and other tasty treats!


Praise for Cupcake Cousins
"[D]ebut novelist Hannigan has assembled all the ingredients for an entertaining and gentle-natured family tale."
-Publishers Weekly

"Hughes' cheery black-and-white illustrations capture the cousins' exuberance, highlighting both misadventures and sentimental moments. . . . Hannigan's lively tale celebrates family and friendship."
-Kirkus Reviews

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781423194163
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	05/05/2015
Series:	Cupcake Cousins Series , #1
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	512,629
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 5.10(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Kate Hannigan loves to test new recipes on her husband, three kids, and even the family dog. When she's not creating disasters in her Chicago kitchen, she's usually at her desk writing fiction and nonfiction for young readers. Kate is also the author of Cupcake Cousins, Cupcake Cousins: Summer Showers, and The Detective's Assistant. Say hello online at katehannigan.com.

Brooke Boynton Hughes grew up in Loveland, Colorado, where she spent lots of time drawing cats, mermaids, and tree houses. Today, she lives in Washington and holds a BFA in Printmaking from Colorado State University and an MFA in Figurative Art from the New York Academy of Art. Brooke is also the illustrator of Cupcake Cousins, Cupcake Cousins: Summer Showers, Baby Love, and Henry Wants More! Visit her online at brookeboyntonhughes.com!

Editorial Reviews

"[D]ebut novelist Hannigan has assembled all the ingredients for an entertaining and gentle-natured family tale."— Publishers Weekly

"Hughes' cheery black-and-white illustrations capture the cousins' exuberance, highlighting both misadventures and sentimental moments. . . . Hannigan's lively tale celebrates family and friendship."— Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

03/10/2014
Fourth-grader Willow lives for summer vacations on Lake Michigan with her extended family, including her cousin Delia. This year, Willow and Delia’s Aunt Rosie is getting married, but the girls think they’re too old to be flower girls, especially in dresses fit for a toddler. Their plan is to demonstrate that their real talents involve baking, but they get off on the wrong foot with the caterer, disappointing Willow. Delia, meanwhile, is worried about her father’s unemployment and the toll it’s taking on her parents’ marriage. Add in a pair of snobby older sisters, an energetic younger brother, and a wedding day baking emergency, and debut novelist Hannigan has assembled all the ingredients for an entertaining and gentle-natured family tale. Delia’s anxieties and Willow’s struggle to be seen as more than a little kid are relatable, and first-time illustrator Hughes’s spot illustrations (not all seen by PW) give a good sense of the girls, the vacation home they love, and the matter-of-fact racial diversity of their clan. The ending is almost as sweet as the recipes that end several chapters. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Teresa Kietlinski, Prospect Agency. (May)

Publishers Weekly

2014-03-31
Culinary mishaps ensue when 9-year-old cousins Willow and Delia conspire to avoid being flower girls in their aunt's wedding. Willow and Delia are adamantly opposed to their roles as flower girls at their aunt Rosie's wedding. During their annual summer visit to Saugatuck, on the Lake Michigan shore, the pair devises a plan to foil their impending flower-girl debuts. In hopes of replacing their flower-girl status with catering duty, Willow and Delia decide to spend the week preceding the wedding showing off their culinary expertise. However, the girls soon discover that Mr. Henry, the owner of their vacation house, has hired a new chef and caterer. Undaunted, the girls persevere. The duo's schemes are disrupted by comical kitchen catastrophes, the antics of Willow's 5-year-old brother and their family dog, as well as the mysterious behavior of Mr. Henry. Hannigan deftly portrays the angst Willow struggles with as she approaches the early-preteen years. With keen insight, she also explores Delia's worries about her father's job loss and concerns about her parents' marriage. After the girls learn that the new chef has also suffered a recent job loss, their determined efforts to help her in a crisis establish a newfound maturity. Hughes' cheery black-and-white illustrations capture the cousins' exuberance, highlighting both misadventures and sentimental moments. Recipes featuring various foods from the story are included. Hannigan's lively tale celebrates family and friendship. (Fiction. 9-12)

Kirkus Reviews

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