You can almost smell the delicious smell of bread baking in the oven while reading The Only Way to Make Bread by Cristina Quintero and Sarah Gonzales. 

Through the pages, the narrator takes readers through the steps to make bread. Starting with a clean counter or table and ending with a celebration of breaking bread together, this is a story that will inspire some bread making of your own.

This story is particularly nostalgic for me. One thing I could always count on when I visited my grandmother as a child was the smell of bread baking in the oven. She knew when we were coming and would always make sure she had a new batch going. Warm and fresh from the oven, dipped in maple syrup was the perfect way to say hello to Grandma. I would have absolutely LOVED this story as a young reader as much as I love it as an adult.

Cristina Quintero has captured all of the feelings I had as a child with my grandmother and bread and crafted a beautifully inclusive story about baking and sharing a food that is a staple all over the world. Every culture and nation has some form of bread that is part of the fabric of the culture. From dinner rolls to arepas, bannock to bao, we all make bread using similar steps and the only way to make it is your way. 

The Only Way to Make Bread is a celebration of gluten and carbs and I am here for every second of it. The story flows from page to page like a recipe. It is a thicker book but not a long story. Each two page spread features simple text and glorious illustrations. It shows readers how there are similarities in our differences and that sharing our traditions and cultures with each other is what makes life so special. I am hopeful that this story will  inspire young readers to get their hands a little floury and try baking a bread that they haven’t tried before.

Sarah Gonzales’ coloured pencil illustrations are beautiful and perfectly capture the joy of baking together. She fills the pages with images of all different families making bread their way. Each two page spread features close up images and ones that are further away, bringing readers right into the bread making process and reflecting the joy of being together and sharing something special.