Lisa Papademetriou’s ‘Confectionately Yours’ delivers a delicious read

“CONFECTIONATELY YOURS: SAVE THE CUPCAKE!” by Lisa Papademetriou, Scholastic, May 2012, Paperback, $5.99 (young adult)

“Confectionately Yours” delivers a delicious read with cupcake recipes, self-discovery and new friendships.

Hayley is experiencing much more than she signed up for during her eighth-grade year. A change in scenery due to her mom’s job loss and the necessity for her to help out at the family “tea shop,” comes with some changes. Her best friend, Artie, has begun hanging out with a different crowd, leading to a romance with Dylon — Hayley’s dream romance! Feeling betrayed and a bit confused, Hayley tries to lean on her other bestie, Marco, who it seems had a different understanding of their relationship as well.

Trying to gain new friends, confidence and win back Marco, Hayley shares her baking talent with her homeroom class. In sharing, she discovers one of her newfound friends has celiac disease — she can’t have oats, wheat, barley or rye. Learning new ways of baking, Hayley finds an opportunity to bake her way into people’s lives and develops more friendships and knowledge along the way.

Designed with recipes intertwined throughout the story, this book is a great read for a young baker.

A story of friendship, change and family, “Confectionately Yours” is a fun read. I appreciated the insight of the author and the celiac disease component weaved into the story. Considering the heightened awareness we all have for those with allergies or concerns, the book helped to make the frightening task of such a change something all can handle — even teenagers.