Read your book and eat it, too!

The recent arrival of Tonya Hurley's Ghostgirl in paperback reminded me of my new favorite TV show: Ace of Cakes. If you're not familiar with the wicked geniusy bakery Charm City Cakes, prepare to be astounded (and hungry!).

They often build -- I don't think "decorate" is really the right word -- children's lit-themed cakes for parties and book events, including a life-size Ghostgirl:


and a ginormous (although not quite life-size) Hogwarts!


And then, just as I was pondering what else I could post about cakes and books, a friend sent me this awesome post from the Cakewrecks blog. (There's another one here!) I can't decide if favorite is the Wild Things cake by Coco Cake Cupcakes:


or the Peter Rabbit cake by Heavenly Confections:


Possibly the most astonishing cake I've come across is this Discworld cake by Jane of Jane's Cakes:


Those among you who attended our Deathly Hallows party might remember the Sorting Hat cake I made a la this one by Margie Williams:

Maybe someday (with a lot of practice and research!) I'll open a kids' bookstore/bibliophile's bakery. Talk about la dolce vita, eh?

(P.S. Remember these awesome Peeps dioramas? I love me some Wild Thing-themed desserts.)

We'll eat you up, we love you so!

This is a little belated if you think Peeps are an only-Easter treat -- really, does anyone actually stop eating them when Easter's over? -- but via the Washington Post, here are some incredible Peep homages to our favorite children's books:

"Goodnight Peep" by MaryLea Harris

"The Mad Hatter's Peep Party" by Amy Billingham, Rob Black, and Lauren Emeritz

"Peepaline" by Grace Timmeny

And my personal favorite...

"Where the Wild Peeps Are" by Margaret Cooney and Adam Matuszeski

The whole round-up of the fourth year's entries in their annual "Peep Show" diorama contest is definitely worth a look. The winner was this interpretation of the Pixar movie Up, entitled "Eep!"

But EVEN BETTER (I know, it better be spectacular to beat out a Peep Where the Wild Things Are), the Washington Post reports that J.K. Rowling's considering more Harry Potter books! Apparently, at the Easter Egg Roll at the White House, JKR said she may write more Harry sequels "maybe 10 years from now" and other, non-Harry books in the "not-too-distant future." I, for one, am willing to wait! In the meantime, listen to Hank Green's (brother of Looking for Alaska author John Green) song "Book 8" and giggle.

Herbivores, omnivores, and carnivores alike will gobble up these veg-approved goodies.

The 14th annual Boston Vegetarian Food Festival took place this weekend, and I hope you were able to get out in the beautiful weather and eat some yummy animal-friendly food! Many of us CG staffers (myself included) are vegetarian or vegan, so we were there in spirit even if we were here at the store, eating yummy animal-friendly food we brought from home instead.

As a long-time herbivore, I subscribe to the magazine Vegetarian Times. Imagine my delight at seeing George-approved items for veggie and green kids as I browsed the latest issue for vegan holiday recipes. It was like "what Vegetarian Times wants to buy this week"! First up is a Q&A with author Michael Pollan, who's just adapted his best-selling adult nonfiction book The Omnivore's Dilemma into a young reader's edition. (You can find it upstairs on the features table!) Several of us read the "grown-up" Omnivore's Dilemma for our book club, and while it was enlightening, I definitely would have preferred to read this more accessible version: all the same info, but made more digestible (har-har).

VT also featured a few of our green faves in their "Kid Stuff" holiday recommendations. Crocodile Creek's Moo Cow 7-inch ball -- like all their playground balls -- is already a hot seller around here! Trend-spotter Rachel long ago called the coolness of their other pick, the Green Toys Recycling Truck. Rach says, "Not only is this awesome green truck an excellent, sturdy toy, but it's also made entirely of recycled plastic! It has different compartments for bottles, cans and paper, catering to all the recycling needs of your toy room (or driveway, or sandbox). It's always a bonus when buying a really fun toy truck actually benefits the environment!" (Pssst... I think the Recycled News Colored Pencils are an awesome choice for the older kid in your life. I sense an impending "green gift" round-up!)

A dear friend who's a fellow children's bookseller, vegetarian, and book club member (hi Ari!) recently sent me a signed copy of Jonathan Safran Foer's new nonfiction book Eating Animals. We don't carry it at Curious George (....yet...), and I haven't even read it all the way through yet, but I am recommending it to vegetarian parents ANYWAY. Foer struggles with two of the herbivore's biggest dilemmas: eating local vs. eating veggie, and whether to raise kids vegetarian. This promises to be a compelling nonfiction read with the emotional complexity of his novels Everything is Illuminated and Extremely Close and Incredibly Loud.

Those parents who do have vegetarian kiddos should check out That's Why We Don't Eat Animals: A Book About Vegans, Vegetarians, and All Living Things by Ruby Roth. While upholding every family's right to make their own choices, this gently illustrated and compassionately written picture book explains the many ethical, environmental, and health reasons some families don't eat meat. That's Why We Don't Eat Animals not only inspires readers to consider living in a more animal-conscious way, but also empowers them with concrete examples of how to do so.

It's almost time to put up our "Happy Thanksgiving -- Save a Turkey!" poster. If you are also of the "No Turkey" or "Tofurkey" Day persuasion, make sure to pick up one of our vegetarian kids' cookbooks! Judi Gillies and Jennifer Glossop's Jumbo Vegetarian Cookbook is a no-fuss multicultural veggie cookbook for the middle grade set. This book offers oodles of vegetarian and vegan dishes from around the world, appropriate for any occasion from breakfast to midnight snack. A handy key indicates each recipe's difficulty and time investment -- always a consideration! -- and whether it is suitable for vegans. They've also provided lots of information on nutritional needs for vegetarian kids, and give all measurements in metric as well as the more familiar (to us Americans) cup-and-teaspoon system.

Salad People, Pretend Salad, and Honest Pretzels by Mollie Katzen are three great vegetarian cookbooks for "preschoolers and up." You may recognize Katzen's name from the beloved Moosewood Restaurant, her adult vegetarian cookbooks, and Moosewood's frozen vegetarian foods (yum!). These adorable books are also ingenious: kid-friendly language and sequential panels clearly illustrate the steps for young chefs. Each recipe is a carefully planned balance of nutrition, education, creativity, and fun. Every "cartoon" diagram ends with the directive "EAT!" or "DRINK!" -- which really is the point of the whole cooking exercise, and one adults often seem to miss. Honest Pretzels just came out in paperback, which makes it even more kid-accessible and kitchen-sensible.

Once you've discovered your new favorite vegetarian recipe, let us know... We need goodies to keep us in prime condition for the upcoming holiday season! (P.S. I will personally taste-test any vegan fudge recipes you may be worried are not up to snuff for Christmas cookie platters.)

Bookish Banana Bonanza!

This past Saturday was the second annual Harvard Square Bookish Ball - and we certainly brought all kinds of monkey business to the day! We had folk musician Charlie Hope enrapturing kids, and authors Steve Kluger and Matt Tavares signing and chatting away, and author Jo Knowles (alas, not pictured), led a great creative writing workshop for teens and adults. Our own staffers held activities, too: kids could decorate cookies and make and color their own books.

You can see more photos over on our Facebook page, but here's a few snaps of the fun!

Charlie Hope

Steve Kluger

Matt Tavares

Treasures!!

Thanks to everyone who came - authors, musicians, budding artists and writers and chefs - we had a great time, and we can't wait 'til next time!

On books, balls, and baked goods. And more books.

Don't forget: this Saturday, September 12, is our Bookish Ball celebration! The event will begin at 2pm and go all afternoon, with a projected ending time of 6pm. However, we may be too busy monkeying around to stop on time! We have barrels of fun planned, including (drum roll, please)...

-- a signing by Matt Tavares, author/illustrator of the picture books Zachary's Ball, Oliver's Game, and Mudball. He's also the illustrator of Iron Hans, Lady Liberty: A Biography, and the brand-new The Gingerbread Pirates. He'll be here at 2.

-- a signing and reading by Steve Kluger, author of novels My Most Excellent Year, Last Days of Summer, and Almost Like Falling in Love. He's a self-proclaimed Boston-phile and Red Sox fan! He'll be here at 3.

-- a creative writing workshop and signing by Jo Knowles, author of YA novels Lessons from a Dead Girl and the new Jumping Off Swings. (She's my latest book crush!) She'll be here at 4.

-- acoustic performances by singer/songwriter Charlie Hope throughout the afternoon. Her albums include I'm Me! A Collection of Songs for Children and World of Dreams: Soothing Songs and Lullabies.

-- a book-making workshop

-- cookie decorating

-- and of course, all our great books and toys, recommended to you by our knowledgable staff! We may be a little squeezed on Saturday with all the festivities going on, but we'll have a fun, busy day with something for everyone!

O Frabjous Day! Calloo! Callay!

It's certainly been a jungle over here lately! Thanks for bearing with our somewhat infrequent posts while we undergo some store changes. We're still committed to telling you about all the awesome books, authors, and events in and around the store, we should back up to speed very soon. In the meantime, I have some great news to share today...


The über restaurant guide Zagat really liked our "Curious George Never Dines Without Consulting His Zagat" window: we won first place in their promotional contest and they're treating our whole staff to a delicious evening meal! Now, the only trouble is deciding on which illustrious establishment to have said delicious evening meal. If you see a large, rowdy crowd of your favorite booksellers out in Cambridge in the next few weeks, come say hello!

I sneaked a peek at the Nickelodeon Parents' Picks... thanks to you, so far we're leading as Best Boston Book Store. There's still 28 days left to vote, so get over there if you haven't yet! We love you, you love us, we love you even more!

I think I've used up my allowance of exclamation points for the day, so take care, until next time.

Blueberries for All!

As Katie found out from PW this weekend, the dispute over Blueberries for Sal has been settled, and this gorgeous classic is already back in, in all its delicious white and blue glory. You can find Sal and the little bear snacking away on berries on our features table or shelved with McCloskey's other classic New England picture books, including Make Way for Ducklings, Time of Wonder, and Lentil. Hooray!

Another long-awaited berry bonanza has also arrived: Neil Gaiman's newest picture book, Blueberry Girl, illustrated by Charles Vess. Well I remember Katie's anticipation for this title as far back as December...so I'll leave any commentary to her, but suffice it to say, it is really lovely, and truly shows the scope of Gaiman's writing.

Helloooooooo cupcake!

Karen Tack, the author/cupcake queen of Hello Cupcake: Irresistibly Playful Creations that Anyone Can Make, will be appearing on The Today Show tomorrow. While I'm sure she'll demonstrate just how adorable (and easy!) all her fantabulous cupcake designs are, I can't help but wish that Willy Wonka's sweet-transporting television theory had panned out.

One of these days I'm going to host a (vegan) cupcake party so I'll have an excuse to bust out Hello Cupcake, buy myself a dinosaur, mermaid, racecar, or princess cupcake party kit, and hand out goodies stashed away in cupcake trinket boxes. As Rachel says, any party "lousy with cupcakes" sounds like a good idea to me.