Here are 4 books that Fearless fans have personally recommended once you finish the Fearless series.
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True confession: I’m not a baker, but I love it when other people bake. It’s riveting to watch how they transform the humblest of ingredients into desserts that are beautiful and delicious. I get super excited to see this creative process unfold, which is why I adore The Great British Baking Show and other competitive reality baking programs. They inspired me to write Marvelous Jackson because my main character desperately wants to snag a coveted audition spot on The Marvelous Midwest Kids Baking Championship. He relishes the frenetic energy and noise of a kitchen packed with ambitious and talented people—just like I do!
Eleven-year-old Ellis is the hapless, harmonica-playing main character of Amos' book. He’s spending summer vacation with his newly divorced dad, who’s laser-focused on his goal of opening a brand-new cookie shop in Hollywood. Ellis gets roped into helping him, and shenanigans ensue, many of them involving chocolate chips, bags of sugar, and industrial-size mixers.
I love that Amos loosely based his debut on his own childhood in the 1970s when he helped his father—Wally “Famous” Amos (perhaps you’ve heard of him?)—open a cookie shop on Sunset Boulevard. Woven throughout Ellis’s story are spunky neighbors, Blues music, Black pride, and lessons celebrating the value of hard work. These components add depth to Amos’s otherwise fizzy story.
WINNER OF THE NAACP IMAGE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING LITERARY WORK—YOUTH/TEENS!
It's a summer of family, friendship, and fun fiascos in this acclaimed novel that's as irresistible as a fresh-baked cookie.
Ellis Bailey Johnson has the summertime blues. Instead of hanging out with friends, listening to music, and playing his harmonica, Ellis has to help bring his dad’s latest farfetched, sure-to-fail idea to life: open the world’s first chocolate chip cookie store.
They have six weeks to perfect their recipe, get a run-down A-frame storefront on Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard into tip-top shape, and bring in customers. But nothing goes according to…
True confession: I’m not a baker, but I love it when other people bake. It’s riveting to watch how they transform the humblest of ingredients into desserts that are beautiful and delicious. I get super excited to see this creative process unfold, which is why I adore The Great British Baking Show and other competitive reality baking programs. They inspired me to write Marvelous Jackson because my main character desperately wants to snag a coveted audition spot on The Marvelous Midwest Kids Baking Championship. He relishes the frenetic energy and noise of a kitchen packed with ambitious and talented people—just like I do!
Stamper’s tender, touching novel introduces readers to thirteen-year-old Eli, a Minnesota native who has relocated to New York City with his anxiety-ridden father. Struggling with the recent loss of his mom, Eli desperately wants to watch her old instructional cooking videos on YouTube. Still, his clueless (and, frankly, misguided) dad bans them out of his own overwhelming feelings of grief.
Fortunately, Eli makes a new friend in his apartment building. With help from the unflappable (and cute!) Mathias, Eli purchases ingredients, hones his skills in the kitchen, and even writes computer code for baking the perfect chocolate chip cookie. The result? A journey that’s complicated, messy, and super sweet.
From the acclaimed author of Small Town Pride, Phil Stamper, comes a heartfelt coming-of-age middle grade novel about grief, love, loss, and finding your way forward in the vein of Kate Allen’s The Line Tender and Jules Machias’s Both Can Be True.
The last few months have been pretty tough for Eli. He moved to New York City and left his small town in Minnesota with his extended family and everyone he knows. He hasn’t made any new friends. And his mom died unexpectedly, shattering his whole world. He misses Mom more and more every day, but Dad refuses to…
True confession: I’m not a baker, but I love it when other people bake. It’s riveting to watch how they transform the humblest of ingredients into desserts that are beautiful and delicious. I get super excited to see this creative process unfold, which is why I adore The Great British Baking Show and other competitive reality baking programs. They inspired me to write Marvelous Jackson because my main character desperately wants to snag a coveted audition spot on The Marvelous Midwest Kids Baking Championship. He relishes the frenetic energy and noise of a kitchen packed with ambitious and talented people—just like I do!
Janowitz’s romp of a story centers on twelve-year-old Tristan, who loves reading cookbooks and making desserts. Life is sweet—until Tristan’s parents announce they’re leaving New York City and moving to the middle of nowhere. When he learns there are zero bakeries in his new town, Tristan pledges to bring back the famous Petersville chocolate cream doughnut, which sets him on an unexpected and entertaining adventure. He learns how to craft a business plan, buy ingredients in bulk, and manage demanding customers.
Spoiler alert number one: l like that even though Tristan nails the renowned doughnut, he puts his own delicious spin on things. Spoiler alert number two: this book will make you very hungry. Prepare accordingly.
Superfudge meets The Lemonade War in this funny, heartwarming book about change, adventure, family, and of course, doughnuts. Tristan isn't Gifted or Talented like his sister Jeanine, and he's always been okay with that because he can make a perfect chocolate chip cookie and he lives in the greatest city in the world. But his life takes a turn for the worse when his parents decide to move to middle-of-nowhere Petersville-a town with one street and no restaurants. It's like suddenly they're supposed to be this other family, one that can survive without bagels and movie theaters. His suspicions about…
True confession: I’m not a baker, but I love it when other people bake. It’s riveting to watch how they transform the humblest of ingredients into desserts that are beautiful and delicious. I get super excited to see this creative process unfold, which is why I adore The Great British Baking Show and other competitive reality baking programs. They inspired me to write Marvelous Jackson because my main character desperately wants to snag a coveted audition spot on The Marvelous Midwest Kids Baking Championship. He relishes the frenetic energy and noise of a kitchen packed with ambitious and talented people—just like I do!
McDunn covers a lot of ground in her heartwarming novel about Elliott, an aspiring young cook who finds refuge in the kitchen. Elliott struggles with ADHD, his best friend has moved away, and his dad and stepmom are getting ready to welcome their new baby. Everything feels chaotic and difficult—and it only gets worse when Elliott has to team up with the popular and wicked-smart Maribel for a huge school project.
Sure, there are some pretty big obstacles for Elliott to overcome in Honestly Elliott, but I love that his voice is unwavering and brave, and his journey from sesame noodles to “desperation pies” (cool historical reference alert!) is nothing short of delightful.
Schneider Family Book Award: Best Middle Grade Honor Book!
Highly-acclaimed author of Caterpillar Summer, Gillian McDunn explores boyhood in a funny, big-hearted story about a kid trying to find the best way to be his best self.
Elliott isn't sure where he fits in. Ever since his best friend moved away and his dad and stepmom announced the arrival of their new baby, he's been feeling invisible. Plus his dad just doesn't seem to understand what having ADHD really feels like, or why cooking is the one activity where Elliott's mind clicks into place.
