A Review of “Marigold Bakes a Cake” by Mike Malbrough
It took me a while to get my hands on this book when it arrived at our house, as my children squirreled it away
and declared it the most fantastic book ever. That might seem reasonable and normal for children who are picture-book age… but my kids are teenagers!
Marigold Bakes a Cake is the story of a orange cat with a penchant for things creative, but if it is Monday he must bake. The book chronicles Marigold’s hilarious adventures one Monday as he attempts to bake a cake, with a lot of help from his bird friends.
A Picture Book Filled With Possibilities!
The artwork in the book is wonderful! There is a level of depth and detail on each page that can turn this book into a lifelong favorite for your child as a read-to-me book, a read-on-my-own book, and a hunt and find activity book.
Read-To-Me
You can read this book aloud countless times to your child and find something new in the pictures every time.
Read-On-My-Own
If your child does not read on her own yet, she can look at the pictures by herself and recapture the entire plot.
Practicing Early Counting & Addition
It is all about the birds… The first interruption is one bird (a finch). The second is two birds (pigeons) that join the finch on the kitchen table. Here is where I would count with my little one and explain that one finch plus two pigeons is one, two, three birds on the table. The process continues in the story with the addition of three loons so you could easily practice counting up to six. After that, the birds arrive in a fast and furious manner and you could play all sorts of math and grouping games with your child as your look through this wonderful book.
Hunt-and-Find Science Activity
One of the first things that popped out at me when I finally wrestled this wonderful picture book from my teenagers was that the author laid layers of complexity in the pictures which are begging for a hunt-and-find activity. Each new bird, or group of birds that show up represents a new species (and the artwork is so good that you can easily recognize the various species). To name a few, there are finches, pigeons, cardinals, loons, a toucan, penguins, owls, robins, a kiwi bird, mallard ducks, and even an American eagle! This book could easily become a central piece you use to teach your children about different kinds of birds and their habitats.
A Marigold-Worthy Family Recipe
We love chocolate pie in our family and the best recipe we have is one that was handed down the generations from my children’s great-grandma.
A Conversation with Mike Malbrough
1. Do you have a cat like Marigold?
Not exactly. But I love how cats are so disciplined and content in the simple joys of their daily routines, until sometime random sends them into complete chaos. It seems like every cat is a bit like that. We did recently bring in a stray that was an tan/ orange tabby that now is happily living with my mother-in-law. He is not much of a baker though.
2. Do you like to bake on Mondays, like Marigold?
I love everything about Mondays. Because my art studio is in my home I have a short drive to work. Mondays are a fresh start. It¹s a great day for making new things.
3. Why does Marigold have so many bird friends?
He’s a sophisticated cat. So word gets around that he isn¹t the sort of feline to eat his neighbors. And once you give birds an inch, they take a mile.
4. Do you think that Marigold would be willing to try baking with the birds again?
I think that he sees their loves for baking and is willing to show them the ropes. Great friendships can grow out of the smallest bit of common ground.
5. How did you learn to paint and draw so well? What can kids do to prepare if they want to be illustrators and artists when they grow up?
The best thing to do is to just as often as you can and show what you create to your friends and family. Learn to see the things around you as basic shapes like groups of circles, triangles, rectangles and squares. Things become easier to draw that way.
Author Bio
Mike Malbrough (www.mikemalbrough.com) was a freelance graphic designer, comic book artist, performer and teacher with a career spanning two decades before beginning his career as a picture book author-illustrator. He is the director of ORNG Ink, an after-school studio for young artists, and has received several awards and honors for his work in the community with children and teens. Mike lives in Orange, New Jersey, with his wife, two adventurous kids, and a cat named Agnes who hates him.
Book Details
Marigold Bakes a Cake by Mike Malbrough
Hardcover | $17.99
Published by Philomel Books
Jul 18, 2017 | 40 Pages | 11 x 10 | 3-7 years | ISBN 9781524737382
