A Birthday Cake Is No Ordinary Cake

by Debra Frasier

Welcome aboard our spinning Earth as it travels on its immense journey around the Sun. Bring a bowl--and come along! Help collect the ingredients for a cake as big as a year, and see how every circle around the Sun . . . equals one . One what? One birthday cake!

For fifteen years, On the Day You Were Born has been the classic book to welcome new babies into the world. Now, this jubilant companion celebrates every year thereafter in the life of a child--and of our great green planet Earth.

Includes delicious cake and frosting recipes, explanations of how the years are marked in nature, and a section called "How many days to your birthday?" so kids can actually find their own special day.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published August 25, 2006

About the author

Debra Frasier is the author and illustrator of many award-winning picture books including On the Day You Were Born and Miss Alaineus, A Vocabulary Disaster. In addition to her well-known talks on creative process, Debra’s innovative "Book Events" build a community’s creativity through projects that start with a story. Visit debrafrasier.com to see how a parade of words can make you laugh, how the alphabet can transform a school carnival into a Word Event, or how a talking dog can make your heart swell and teach first-person writing at the same time!

Reviews

[Helen Meaney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A narrative instruction book, packed full of imperative verbs. This book tells the reader the steps to follow to make this extra-ordinary birthday cake. The book ends with a list of the ingredients necessary to make your own ‘Spinning World Birthday Cake’ as well as the recipe for a birthday cake and frosting. The final page is packed full of information about Earth and its orbit around the sun and how trees mark the passage of time.

[Kristen Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book by Debra Frasier was such a good one! The bright illustrations were amazing. This book discusses North, South, East, and West. It also talks about how it takes a whole year to travel around the sun. It explains a year in relation to a birthday, so that students are able to understand this concept more easily. I believe this would be a great book to use during a STEM lesson!

-Kristen

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like the idea of teaching a child the span of a year and how it affects when their birthday comes. But this book was a little deep.

[Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of interesting how the author approaches the day/night and yearly cycles of the earth.

[Aneesa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Includes recipe.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was just too out there for me. Random ingredients go into a birthday cake, but it's stuff like sunrises and moons and wind. I didn't really care for the illustrations, either.

[Annie MacPherson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like the idea and the writing, but the execution wasn't quite right for me and felt dated. This would be great with witches instead of a baker....imho

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cute book by Debra Frasier talks a little bit about the rotation of the earth, the different seasons and how little things from everyday life are what make you and your birthday special. Each page of the story has some silly new recipe for making a special birthday cake. The illustrations are bright and bold so they would capture the attention of young readers. At the end of the book she shares a cake recipe and homemade frosting too, a great interactive activity for parent and child.


This book is appropriate for ages 4+


I really enjoyed this book, I wouldn't say that I fell in love with it but I like that she has the actual recipes in the back. It would be really fun to have kids assist in the kitchen.

[Debrarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every circle around the Sun equals one. One what? One birthday cake! Point your bowl east to collect the morning sun and then enjoy the year-long search for other delicious ingredients, such as the shadows of geese flying south in the fall and the sound of snowflakes falling. (Butter and sugar come toward the end.) Delightful, poetic and practical: a good gift for any age.

[Green Bean · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the author of the classic On the Day You Were Born, this recipe story celebrates growing with Mother Nature in mind."Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Sun, the first necessary ingredient in any birthday cake. No Sun. No cake." Tulips, crocuses, summer winds, snowflakes, and migrating birds comprise a marvelous year of love and learning.

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Media: Cut-paper collage made with Canson Paper
This is a very cute book about Birthdays. First we learn that sun is very important for cake, because we have to travel around it so that we turn another year older. You add in all of the important parts of every season into your cake, until you finally add the ingredients for cake. They actually include ingredients in the back of the book.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not quite my kind of story. Not sure how well it would work in a storytime, but if I can't get behind it then it is not worth trying (not a fair chance for the book).

A bit too green and Kum-ba-ya for my taste.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute premise, uses lots of math and science. I hoped to use it for Tales, but it's too far above their little heads:)

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

neat idea about adding the good things from each day and season so create a cake that celebrates a year of life. Also has cake recipe.

[Natalie Cottam · Rating 5 out of 5]

love this sweet birthday story! debra frasier is one of my favorites.

[FSU Alumni]

Debra Frasier (B.S. '76)