mrskatiefitz's review against another edition
3.0
*This is a review of two Aladdin Mix titles: The Icing on the Cake and You're Invited Too.
The Icing on the Cake is the second book in the Saturday Cooking Club series and You’re Invited Too is the sequel to You’re Invited. In The Icing on the Cake, Liza is about to turn thirteen and her grandmother, Nana Silver, is desperate to throw her a big fancy party, the thought of which makes Liza hugely uncomfortable. As she and her friends Frankie and Lillian look for ways to get out of the terrible party, they also begin to attend another of Chef Antonio’s cooking classes with their moms… and some cute boys. While Lillian struggles to make sense of a crush, Frankie begins trying to reinvent herself in the image of Lillian’s practically perfect sister, Katie. You’re Invited Too returns to Sandpiper Beach where the girls of RSVP - Vi, Sadie, Lauren, and Becca - have just stolen a wedding client away from Sadie’s mom. Unfortunately, Alexandra Worthington is a real Bridezilla, and the girls soon find themselves overwhelmed by her ridiculous demands. As Sadie handles the majority of the bride’s phone calls, Lauren frets over her slipping grades, Becca worries about her new braces, and Vi faces a mean girl in school who keeps teasing her about her dad’s new job as the janitor.
Both of these books are appealing to middle grade girls because they offer something for everyone. Each girl in each group of friends has a distinct personality and her own special interests and abilities, so it is likely that every reader can find at least one character to whom she can relate. The interactions between and among the girls are also compelling, as they bring to life the friendships and struggles that are common to all middle schoolers. Each book also presents a hopeful outlook on life, which asserts that good friends can help girls rise above all the drama of middle school life, including relationships with boys, bad grades, and mean girls.
Of the two books, The Icing on the Cake has somewhat stronger characters, while You’re Invited Too has a more memorable setting. Because there are only three girls in the Saturday Cooking Club series, I felt like I got to know each one a bit better, while the four characters in You’re Invited became a bit difficult to keep track of, especially when they each had such specific individual problems going on. Sandpiper Beach, however, is practically a character unto itself, and by the end of You’re Invited Too, when bad weather threatens the town, I could almost imagine being there myself, and I had a good sense of where things were located and who the significant townspeople were. While I can picture Chef Antonio’s kitchen, I honestly kept forgetting that Icing on the Cake is set in New York.
Both these books are quite lengthy, but neither is a laborious read. The breezy tone of each chapter and the fact that the point of view shifts frequently keep the stories moving quickly, and there is a never a sense that nothing is happening. Some readers might have trouble buying the fact that three tween girls take multiple classes from a celebrity chef, or that four tween girls can run an event planning business (that one was a stretch for me!) but most will appreciate the escapism of reading about these unlikely situations. Both of these books will be eagerly devoured by readers who have enjoyed previous Aladdin Mix titles, especially Kitchen Chaos, You’re Invited, and At Your Service. Other books like these about groups of friends include The Snob Squad series by Julie Anne Peters, the Nerd Girls series by Alan Lawrence Sitomer, and The Darlings books by Melissa Kantor.
The Icing on the Cake is the second book in the Saturday Cooking Club series and You’re Invited Too is the sequel to You’re Invited. In The Icing on the Cake, Liza is about to turn thirteen and her grandmother, Nana Silver, is desperate to throw her a big fancy party, the thought of which makes Liza hugely uncomfortable. As she and her friends Frankie and Lillian look for ways to get out of the terrible party, they also begin to attend another of Chef Antonio’s cooking classes with their moms… and some cute boys. While Lillian struggles to make sense of a crush, Frankie begins trying to reinvent herself in the image of Lillian’s practically perfect sister, Katie. You’re Invited Too returns to Sandpiper Beach where the girls of RSVP - Vi, Sadie, Lauren, and Becca - have just stolen a wedding client away from Sadie’s mom. Unfortunately, Alexandra Worthington is a real Bridezilla, and the girls soon find themselves overwhelmed by her ridiculous demands. As Sadie handles the majority of the bride’s phone calls, Lauren frets over her slipping grades, Becca worries about her new braces, and Vi faces a mean girl in school who keeps teasing her about her dad’s new job as the janitor.
Both of these books are appealing to middle grade girls because they offer something for everyone. Each girl in each group of friends has a distinct personality and her own special interests and abilities, so it is likely that every reader can find at least one character to whom she can relate. The interactions between and among the girls are also compelling, as they bring to life the friendships and struggles that are common to all middle schoolers. Each book also presents a hopeful outlook on life, which asserts that good friends can help girls rise above all the drama of middle school life, including relationships with boys, bad grades, and mean girls.
Of the two books, The Icing on the Cake has somewhat stronger characters, while You’re Invited Too has a more memorable setting. Because there are only three girls in the Saturday Cooking Club series, I felt like I got to know each one a bit better, while the four characters in You’re Invited became a bit difficult to keep track of, especially when they each had such specific individual problems going on. Sandpiper Beach, however, is practically a character unto itself, and by the end of You’re Invited Too, when bad weather threatens the town, I could almost imagine being there myself, and I had a good sense of where things were located and who the significant townspeople were. While I can picture Chef Antonio’s kitchen, I honestly kept forgetting that Icing on the Cake is set in New York.
Both these books are quite lengthy, but neither is a laborious read. The breezy tone of each chapter and the fact that the point of view shifts frequently keep the stories moving quickly, and there is a never a sense that nothing is happening. Some readers might have trouble buying the fact that three tween girls take multiple classes from a celebrity chef, or that four tween girls can run an event planning business (that one was a stretch for me!) but most will appreciate the escapism of reading about these unlikely situations. Both of these books will be eagerly devoured by readers who have enjoyed previous Aladdin Mix titles, especially Kitchen Chaos, You’re Invited, and At Your Service. Other books like these about groups of friends include The Snob Squad series by Julie Anne Peters, the Nerd Girls series by Alan Lawrence Sitomer, and The Darlings books by Melissa Kantor.
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