''A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking'' is a 2020
young adult fantasy novel by
Ursula Vernon, under her pseudonym T. Kingfisher. It was first published by Argyll Productions.
Synopsis
When teenage bread wizard Mona discovers a corpse in her family's bakery, it triggers a chain of events that leads to her managing the city's defense against military assault, with the aid of animate
gingerbread men
A gingerbread man or a Gingerbread man cookie is a biscuit or cookie made from gingerbread, usually in the shape of a stylized form / caricature of a human being, although other shapes, especially seasonal themes (Christmas, Halloween, Easter, et ...
and her
familiar — a
sourdough starter
Sourdough or sourdough bread is a bread made by the fermentation of dough using wild lactobacillaceae and yeast. Lactic acid from fermentation imparts a sour taste and improves keeping qualities.
History
In the ''Encyclopedia of Food Microbio ...
.
Reception
James Nicoll
James Davis Nicoll (born March 18, 1961) is a Canadian freelance game and speculative fiction reviewer, former security guard and role-playing game store owner, and also works as a first reader for the Science Fiction Book Club. As a
Usene ...
called ''A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking'' "an entertaining YA diversion that will encourage younger readers to consider just how easily they might be scapegoated by an ambitious politician," and emphasized that he would "enjoy" reading a sequel.
[Bake Me a Cake as Fast as You Can](_blank)
, by James Nicoll
James Davis Nicoll (born March 18, 1961) is a Canadian freelance game and speculative fiction reviewer, former security guard and role-playing game store owner, and also works as a first reader for the Science Fiction Book Club. As a
Usene ...
, at James Nicoll Reviews; published September 14, 2020; retrieved September 15, 2022 ''
Locus'' commended Vernon's "ability to craft engagingly quirky characters", and her portrayal of "a
Pratchettian world where magic makes for a mostly amusing background, except when it doesn't."
[Adrienne Martini Reviews Random Sh*t Flying Through the Air by Jackson Ford and A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher](_blank)
, by Adrienne Martini, in '' Locus''; October 2020 issue; published online November 3, 2020; retrieved September 15, 2022
In 2020, ''
Locus'' named ''A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking'' among the best young adult novels of the year.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking, A
Andre Norton Award-winning novels
Lodestar Award-winning novels
Works by Ursula Vernon
Self-published books