PHINEAS L. MACGUIRE . . . GETS COOKING!

Fourth-grade scientist Phineas L. MacGuire is back for another outing, exploring science ideas in the world around him and figuring out a way to deal with the class bully.

He’s supported by his friends, fellow scientist Aretha, who’s working on a Girl Scout cooking badge, and polar-opposite Ben, who seems to live largely for bacon (even in brownies). Tasked with cooking his family’s supper for the foreseeable future, Phineas comes to understand—and to explain to readers—some of the scientific principles of cooking, including how yeast and baking soda make foods rise. What he’s less able to make sense of is why class bully Evan has suddenly focused on him, strong-arming him into cooking brownies for him almost every day—or else. With few viable options, Phineas does what any good scientist would; he attempts to study Evan’s behavior—with unexpected results that offer both insight and a resource for kids dealing with their own bullies. Unlike previous Phineas stories, this one lacks science experiments, but with new information about how some aspects of cooking work, readers could develop their own. McDaniels’ softly shaded illustrations are attractive and numerous, but they don’t always quite match with descriptions in the text.

Phineas, good-humored and insightful in his believable first-person voice, once again provides a pertinent, easy-to-read tale for grade schoolers.