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Simply from Scratch

by Alicia Bessette
Dutton. Aug. 2010. c.320p. ISBN 978-0-525-95182-7. $25.95. F
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Married couple Rose-Ellen (Zell) and Nick are childhood sweethearts, surrounded by longtime friends and family in the quiet Massachusetts town in which they grew up. When Nick dies suddenly on a relief trip to post-Katrina New Orleans, Zell is plunged into despair. More than a year later, she is still wallowing in grief when she decides to enter a baking contest to win a prize she intends to donate to the relief effort in Nick's memory. Zell is not a baker and inadvertently gains the help of Ingrid, the nine-year-old food-obsessed neighbor for whom she babysits. Together, they brainstorm disastrous recipes, while Zell finds the courage to accept Nick's death.
VERDICT Fans of Cecelia Ahern's PS, I Love You will find a lot to like here. This strong, richly detailed debut novel, with a truly lovable heroine, explores an old theme, but the spins and turns the story takes along the way are well worth the ride.
Reviewed by Mara Dabrishus, Carnegie Lib. of Pittsburgh , Jul 01, 2010
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