Reviews: (by author)

Travers, P.L. Mary Poppins in the Kitchen. Illus. Mary Shepard. San Diego: Harcourt, 2006. First pub. 1975. ISBN 0-15-206080-4. $14. Hardcover. 80 pp.

Well, it's so British! Here is your book for Yorkshire Pudding, Lancashire Hot Pot, Shepherd's Pie, and. Cabbage. The first half is a lively Mary Poppins story. The Banks adults must leave for a week. Who will cook for the children? Mary Poppins, of course! The book's week long time frame allows Travers to show the children shopping for food and then preparing it daily with Mary as well as encountering the kinds of eccentrics you'd expect. Readers learn a lot from seeing the Banks children having such an adventure with food.

The second half of this lively "Cookery Book with a Story" is an alphabet of recipes, from Apple Brown Betty to Zodiac Cake. Mary's calm and confidence (snippiness, too) in all situations are illustrated so brilliantly by Mary Shepard, and Harcourt has done a beautiful job with coloring her delightful, detailed artwork.

A. Allison, October 2006

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