The Biscuit Maker
Age 3+
Picture Books
In Mavin Road there’s no time for hellos or chats until a mysterious biscuit maker’s magic brings everyone together.
Benedict Stanley lives alone with his cat in Mavin Road where families hustle, joggers puff and workers scurry to the train. There’s no time for hellos or chats. So Benedict begins making biscuits to mark moments in all their lives, leaving them secretly at their doors. People start talking. Who is this mysterious biscuit maker? When Benedict falls ill, young Rory, the only person to know his secret, gathers the residents of Mavin Road and brings them to his door. A beautiful heart-warming book that celebrates community and human connection.
Resources
Creators
Sue Lawson writes fiction and non fiction books for children and young adults. Her books have won and been shortlisted for numerous awards, including the Family Therapists Award, the Prime Minister’s Literary Award and the Children’s Book Council of Australia Awards. Her latest young adult novel Freedom Ride was shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council Book of the Year Awards, the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, the Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards and longlisted for the Davitt Awards.
Illustrator Liz Anelli previously lived and worked in England but now resides in Newcastle, NSW. She has a passion for drawing and keeps rows of sketchbooks in her studio. In 2017, her book Desert Lake: The Story of Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre (written by Pamela Freeman) was a CBCA Notable Book and was shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Literary Award, NSW Premier’s History Awards, the Environment Award for Children’s Literature and the Educational Publishing Awards. She will also publish Dry to Dry with Walker in 2020 (written by Pamela Freeman) and The Biscuit Maker (written by Sue Lawson). Her other picture books with Walker Books include Ten Pound Pom (written by Carole Wilkinson) - shortlisted for CBCA Picture Book of The Year and winner of the Educational Publishing Awards in 2018 - and Maddie’s First Day (written by Penny Matthews).
Reviews
The Biscuit Maker is a story of societal awareness and evoking change through the power of positive action and caring. … Not only is this story sweet to share with loved ones at home, its richly layered visual narrative and poignant prose makes it a compelling platform for classroom discussions, too. Delicious on every level.
Dims Write Stuff
This is an engaging story made even more appealing by the humorous illustrations, depicting both the locals and their houses, and including a fabulous endpaper sketch of the whole street.
CBCA: Reading Time