How It Happened! Pizza

November 1, 2023
Grades 3-6 *Starred Review* This enticing book uses ever-popular, seemingly omnipresent pizza to reinforce all kinds of curriculum concepts. There's history (breadcrumbs go back 14,000 years, tomatoes date from ancient South American civilizations), social studies (foods traveled around the world, various cultures have made pizza their own), science (yeast, enzymes), technology (ovens, fast food, drones), entrepreneurship (chefs, chains, rivalries), culinary arts (dough, toppings), and plenty of pop culture (Margherita pizzas are named in honor of a popular Italian queen, Pizza Hut makes deliveries to the International Space Station). All of this information is presented more or less chronologically in brief chapters with sentences that employ straightforward and engaging language. Colorful, dramatic illustrations (graphics, drawings, photographs, quotations, sidebars, lists, random facts) splash across pages, creating busy but not overwhelming spreads. Back matter includes a glossary, suggestions for pizza-themed art activities (jewelry, gear, Halloween costumes), and an eight-page pizza time line. There's a surprising paucity of publications devoted solely to the wonders of pizza, though readers hungry for more facts can check out Jan Thornhill's Who Wants Pizza? (2010), while the whimsically inclined can reach for Kyle Scheele and Andy J. Pizza's A Pizza with Everything on It (2021). This current offering serves as a delectable addition for both school and public library collections.

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Starred review from December 1, 2023

Gr 3-6-For readers who have bitten into a slice of their favorite pizza and considered how lucky they were to have this sublime food in their lives, here are the cool facts about pizza, the origins of its ingredients, and how it became popular all around the world. Every culture has their own take on a flatbread delicacy, and some countries have even put their own spin on pizza toppings. Towler encourages readers to come up with their own spin on pizza and to create pizza art. This book is incredibly eye-appealing, with its vibrant colors (evocative of the 1990s) and photographs of delicious pizza. A table of contents, glossary, and index are included. There is also a pizza time line showing its evolution. Some pages feature questions to encourage readers to think critically about pizza such as, "Is pizza a sandwich?" Quotations from celebrities about pizza and interesting pizza facts are interspersed within each chapter. This is a very well-researched text about the origins of this common food, and will be a new favorite of anyone who loves pizza. VERDICT A thorough and compelling book about a food that everyone loves. Highly recommended.-Kristin J. Anderson

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