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By Anna Egan Smucker
Illustrated by Amanda Hall
Brother Giovanni is a happy man, content to do what he knows best: baking.
But all is not well at his monastery, where the monks are trying to teach the
children their prayers in time for a very important visit from the Bishop.
Having tried everything, they turn to Giovanni — but he doesn’t know anything
about teaching! Eventually, though, Brother Giovanni discovers how to use his
gifts to offer the children the perfect motivation and invents the tasty treat
we now know as the pretzel.
This vibrant book, which includes a historical note
and a pretzel recipe, tells the fascinating story behind one of the world’s
most popular snacks.
Reviews:
Publishers Weekly
05/25/2015
Drawing from the semi-apocryphal origins of the pretzel,
which trace the baked good to a monk in medieval Europe, Smucker (Golden
Delicious) introduces Brother Giovanni, “the best baker his monastery had ever
had.” With the bishop scheduled to visit the monastery, the children the monks
teach must learn to recite their prayers before his arrival. Giovanni tries
singing, making “mean” faces, and dancing with the children, but while these
attempts bring him closer to the children (the genial monk’s efforts to frown
have the children rolling on the floor with laughter), they don’t help them
learn their prayers. Taking inspiration from the medieval setting, Hall (The
Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau) ornaments her bright, playful paintings
with filigrees and other decorative elements. When Brother Giovanni has his
eureka moment—using the shape of two arms crossed in prayer to create a snack
for the ages (and a delicious reward for the children)—he is flanked by two
trumpet-playing angels, and a pretzel rests above his head like the flame of the
Holy Spirit. It’s a winning blend of the holy and the holey. Ages 4–8.
(Aug.)
Kirkus Reviews 2015-06-06
A fanciful and inventive version
of how those yummy big soft pretzels came to be. Brother Giovanni is a monk of
inveterate cheerfulness and a most excellent baker. But the bishop is coming,
and the children don't know their prayers: what to do? The abbot hopes that
Brother Giovanni's youth and smile will coax the children into learning. Brother
Giovanni sings to them and allows them to dance at lessons, but that doesn't
work. He even tries Brother Jerome's advice to put on a stern face (the montage
of Giovanni's attempts at stern faces is very funny). But after a night of
sleeplessness and prayer, when he makes far too large a batch of dough, he folds
and twists ropes of dough into the position of his arms at prayer and then
offers the pretiolas as a reward. Everyone loves them and works hard at learning
their prayers to earn the treat. While it was probably a monk who invented
pretzels, no one knows for sure, as Smucker explains in a closing note. Hall
sets the tale in a candy-colored place of well-scrubbed children; the small
monastery is equipped with the requisite cat. Delightfully, a pretzel recipe is
included. As happy a piece of ecclesiastical cuisine as can be imagined (Picture
book. 5-9)
About the author: Anna Egan Smucker has written several books for children and has poetry featured in many journals and anthologies. She lives in West Virginia with her husband and dog, Flash. Anna Smucker: www.annasmucker.com
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