(1) YA Kiki, who is Black and Cree, has been gone for five months when the book begins, and the police have stopped looking for her. Her friend and fellow First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Student Association member Berlin, a high achiever living with depression, and Cam, Berlin's longtime childhood rival, feel Kiki's loss profoundly. When Berlin thinks she sees Kiki outside Pink Mountain Pizza, where she and Cam work--and where much of the story is set--the two put aside their dfferences to search for her. They're assisted by new coworker Jessie, whose abusive father, a developer, is trying to buy Pink Mountain Pizza out from under Joe, one of the few Black business owners in town. Their social media campaign to raise awareness and save the store garners much support but also provides a platform for people to attack Joe, bringing to light issues of capitalism and anti-Black racism. Kiki's page-turning story and her mother's earlier disappearance provide multiple angles on the epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People. Through a well-characterized ensemble cast, Ferguson (The Summer of Bitter and Sweet, rev. 5/22), who is Michif/Métis and white, addresses the myriad difficult topics facing her characters with sensitivity and care.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Gianna Ruggiero. Young Pipo is convinced that pizza is the best and, determined to scientifically prove its superiority, sets off on a culinary reconnaissance mission through her culturally diverse neighborhood. Thanks to the generosity of her neighbors, Pipo gathers plenty of data as she experiences new dishes: bibimbap, tagine, red beans and rice, dumplings. Each new food is delicious and provides an opportunity to learn a bit about her neighbors' cultural traditions and personal stories; however, Pipo concludes that pizza is still the best. Baffled by others' (including her weary-of-pizza parents) inability to see its preeminence, she seeks the guidance of shopkeeper Mr. Gonzales, who tells her that "pizza is the best, but it's not the only best." The vibrant and busy illustrations--a blend of spot art, single pages, and double-page spreads--deliver a balance of whimsy and realism to complement the energetic text. Back matter includes a simple recipe for "Pipo's Pizza" and a reminder that "even imperfect pizza is still pizza, and pizza is always delicious." Pair with other such community- and culinary-focused titles as Thank You, Omu! (rev. 11/18), ¡Vamos!: Let's Go Eat (rev. 3/20), and Our Little Kitchen (rev. 11/20).

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Deborah Melmon. In line at a pizza place, Missy meets Jane, who exchanges Post-its from the restaurant's wall for her pizza. After Missy's dad explains that each Post-it represents a slice pre-purchased by another customer as a mitzvah (good deed), Missy is inspired to pay forward slices herself. Cheerful cartoonlike illustrations are a good match for the girls' friendship; an author's note describes the Philadelphia shop on which the story is based.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith

(3) 4-6 Checkerboard Library: Female Foodies series. Short chapters present straightforward biographies of inspiring female food entrepreneurs and cover the evolution, growth, and success of their empires. Each volume's second-person-perspective introduction provides a you-are-there connection for readers. Captioned color photographs, "Food Bite" sidebars of additional facts, and an appended "By the Numbers" statistics section are included in every book. Timeline. Glos., ind. Review covers these Checkerboard Library: Female Foodies titles: Angie Bastian, Debbi Fields, Marie Callender, Peggy Cherng, Rose Totino, and Ruth Fertel.

Reviewer: Gail Hedges

(4) 4-6 Fakespeare series. Illustrated by Daniel Jennewein. Two fifth graders find themselves sucked into Shakespeare plays and must help complete the story before they can return to their own lives. Warring pizza-making families (Romeo and Juliet) and kings launching stink bombs to obscure evil acts (Hamlet) take center stage in these wacky riffs on the Bard's works. The frenetic stories are filled with juvenile humor and childlike cartoon drawings. Review covers these Fakespeare titles: Something Stinks in Hamlet and Starcrossed in Romeo and Juliet.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) K-3 Scholastic Reader series. Moby the kid ninja (Ninja on the Farm) is this time looking to help Papa Peppy at the pizza restaurant. But ninja skills and food service don't necessarily mix. Rhyming couplets run along the tops of pages, with onomatopoeia sprinkled into the pictures. The highly detailed, vibrant, and action-orientated illustrations are great for movement, but they leave emerging readers with little rest for their eyes.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(4) K-3 I Like to Read series. This beginning reader follows a mouse as he searches for food in a bustling metropolis, evades predators, and ultimately takes the subway carrying his prize: an enormous slice of pizza. Garland's pencil and digital illustrations have an odd plastic-like quality, but they successfully support the sight word–filled text. New readers may find humor in this spunky rodent's trek across a garbage-strewn city.

Reviewer: Morgan Stewart

(3) PS On "pizza day," the child narrator of this agreeable story spends the day with Daddy, making pizza from scratch: they harvest vegetables and herbs from their garden, mix the dough, cook the sauce, and put it all together. Bright illustrations show each step, sometimes zooming in on the enthusiastic narrator. Iwai's pleasing descriptions may well inspire readers to try the recipe at the end.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Ellen Shi. When Mama's wish for "world peace" is interrupted by a sneeze, she gets "world pizza" instead. Shi's engaging illustrations depict people the world over enjoying pizzas falling from the sky. Pirates drop their swords to eat pizza, angry neighbors open their doors to eat pizza, etc., until everyone goes to sleep happy. The one-note joke wears thin, though the message is a hopeful one.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(4) K-3 Two witches--who love to bake but are frightened by the wild antics of children--face a dilemma when one of their pizzas rolls out the door, escaping into the street. As they struggle to retrieve their creation, the witches discover good friends and good appetites all around. Palmer's energetic, comic illustrations provide the strength of an otherwise underwhelming story. Pizza recipe appended.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(2) PS Illustrated by Ponder Goembel. It all begins with a simple question posed by a hungry toddler's mother: "What will you say when the doorbell rings and we open the door?" asks Mom. "Hi, Pizza Man!" replies the child. Then Mom poses a series of questions. "What if it's not a pizza man? What if it's a pizza woman?...a pizza kitty?...a pizza duck? Then what will you say?" And the game rolls on in this funny, imaginative book, ideal for reading aloud.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc. | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 1995

(4) K-3 On his way to pick up a pizza for lunch with Mommy, young pig Pinky gets coated with snow that's fallen from a tree. Unaware of his appearance, Pinky soldiers on, puzzled by all the hubbub ("A walking snowman!"). It's a good, if limited, gag; Gorbachev's greater achievement is his art, which shows a snow-dappled neighborhood full of good-naturedly curious Richard Scarry–esque animals.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Billy Aronson. In the PBS Kids stars' latest "problem" book, a teenager orders half a pizza pie from Peg's Pizza Place (Peg: "What in the world is half a pie?"). This serviceable, overstuffed introduction to the concept of adding halves is based on a Peg + Cat television script and illustrated with what look like (but aren't) stills from the animated show.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS Frank Asch Bear Book series. In an amusing story that should resonate with young readers, Baby Bear can't think of anything but pizza after he tastes his very first delectable bite; he even dreams of space aliens cooking strange pizzas. The next morning, to his parents' chagrin, Baby Bear requests pizza for breakfast. Asch's familiar, clean-colored illustrations do much of the storytelling and feature numerous round, pizza-like shapes.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) 4-6 In Rome to help at her great-aunt's pizzeria, which is losing customers to a competitor, Lucy hopes her odd skill of matchmaking couples based on pizza preferences is just the ticket. Charismatic Lucy pulls together a team to revamp the restaurant while also investigating sabotage of a secret recipe. This third Lost outing pairs a lively city tour with a slight mystery.

Reviewer: Amanda Mc. MacGregor

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Eric Comstock. Pizza night at Charlie's house goes awry when a slice vanishes into thin air. Charlie, who's pictured with a pie-chart torso, plays detective, using deductive reasoning and fractions to narrow down his suspect list. Written with numerals and presented graphically, fractions fit quite neatly into the playful mystery. Retro, mid-century-styled illustrations feature clues and math concepts.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(4) K-3 Grow Your Food series. Illustrated by Daniele Fabbri. Pies, pizzas, salads, and tacos don't grow on trees, and young children are led through chatty, superficial explanations of key ingredients and where they come from: for example, pizza "crust is made from wheat. For that, you'll need a wheat field. / And for the cheese, you'll need milk..." Cheery illustrations playfully illustrate the processes. An easy recipe is included in each volume. Reading list, websites. Glos. Review covers these Grow Your Food titles: So You Want to Grow a Pie?, So You Want to Grow a Pizza?, So You Want to Grow a Salad?, and So You Want to Grow a Taco?.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(3) 1-3 Finley Flowers series. Illustrated by Jessica Scheret. Third grader Finley enters a cooking contest with best friend Henry; first prize is a year of free pizza--the perfect birthday gift for Henry. Through trial and (much) error, Finley learns that cooking requires skill as well as creativity, and that supporting a friend is more important than winning. A light, lively story with a satisfying conclusion and colorful spot art.

Reviewer: Lauren Rizzuto

(4) 1-3 In this overtly silly book, the Glorkian Warrior and his sidekick, Super Backpack, team up to deliver a pizza and meet their heroic destiny. At over one-hundred pages, the slim story line is too protracted, though the candy-colored comics are energetic and the slapstick humor (e.g., a plot point involves the main character punching himself in the face) will resonate with young readers.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth

(3) K-3 History of Fun Stuff series. Illustrated by Daniel Guidera. Who were the first people to make ice cream, and how is it made today? Is pizza really from Italy, and how much of it do Americans eat every year? Such questions are answered in these peppy, fact-filled easy readers. Retro-style cartoon illustrations and large-font text are nicely laid out on bright pages. Additional cultural information, science connections, and quizzes round out each volume. Review covers these History of Fun Stuff titles: The Deep Dish on Pizza! and The Scoop on Ice Cream!.

Reviewer: Kari Allen