Sprinkles and Secrets

Cupcakes #2

by Lisa Schroeder, Nathalie Dion

In this companion novel to It's Raining Cupcakes, twelve-year-old Sophie has a dream come true when she's offered a TV commercial spot. She's not just happy about the opportunity, she's over the moon happy!

But then she finds out what exactly she'll be advertising: the delectable, ever-popular brownies from Beatrice's Brownies, which just so happens to be the number one competitor to It's Raining Cupcakes, a cupcake shop owned by her best friend, Isabel's, family.

Sophie has a tough choice to make: Follow her dreams or crush her best friend. What's a girl to do?

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Friendship, Childrens, Food, Contemporary, Young Adult

224 pages, Hardcover

First published September 20, 2011

About the author

Lisa Schroeder is the author of more than twenty books for kids and teens. Her latest novel is A NIGHT TO DIE FOR, a YA murder mystery. She lives in Oregon where she works full-time and writes when she can.

twitter: www.twitter.com/lisa_schroeder
instagram: lisaschroeder15

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

In book 2 of the cupcake series, the focus is now on Sophie, Isabel's bff. Sophie wants to be an actress so bad she can taste it. She finally get's a chance to prove how good she is, but in doing so it could hurt her Bff and her family. I felt so bad for this kid. She finally gets a chance to do what she's always dreamed of, but doing it will hurt her bff. She wants to do it, but she doesn't want to hurt anyone in doing so. So she does something she shouldn't which is lie.

This is a cute little book about friendships. It doesn't matter if you're 12 or 112, the message in this one is pretty clear.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sophie wants nothing more than to be an actress someday. She loves chocolate and musicals and her best friend Isabel. Sophie finds out that she has been selected to audition for a commercial and she is super excited until she learns who the commercial is for...Beatrice's Brownies. Beatrice's Brownies is a rival for It's Raining Cupcakes the store Isabel's parents operate. How can she be in a commercial for their competition? Especially when Cupcakes isn't doing so well. How can she tell her best friend? It will break her heart, ruin her family's business and destroy their friendship.

This is a nice story about friendship and what you do for your friends. Sophie doesn't always make the best decisions but she really has everyone's best interests at heart. She has to deal with wanting to be an actress, her friendship with Isabel, her new friendship with a boy and her family. Each chapter is about a different food (mostly chocolate) and there are recipes at the back. Sophie is going through a lot of things other kids her age go through and it makes for a fun, enjoyable story. I'm definitely going to have to read It's Raining Cupcakes now.

[Lexi]

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited to read this!!!!!!!!!

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I think there are two kinds of happiness. There’s the real kind of happiness when you have to smile because you feel so good inside. … Then there’s the fake kind of happiness. Something is supposed to make you happy … so you smile anyway and put on the best happy show that you can because you don’t want to look like a bad person.”

Sophie wants to be happy for Isabel, now that she has jetted off to New York City to compete in the National Bake Off. It's hard, but she's trying her best. One thing that helps her is that her mom gets tickets to Wicked. Since Isabel is gone, she invites Lily and friend from theater camp to attend with her. And, also thanks to theater camp, Sophie gets an agent, who wants to set her up for a local commercial. The problem is, the commercial is for the chain that could be putting It's Raining Cupcakes out of business. How can Sophie betray Isabel that way? “Oh, I need an education, all right. I need an education on how to choose between the opportunity of a lifetime and ruining my best friend’s life.”

Sophie knows that she should tell Isabel, but she just doesn't know how. Even her parents think she should take advantage of the opportunity. So she chooses to go to the audition and the consequences get pretty ugly.

A good story about honesty among friends, forgiveness and friendship. Sophie's solution to the problem she gets herself into "is amazing", according to one of my students who just loves these books. I like that these friends can have problems with each other, but at the end of the day they manage to work things out. It's a good example for young readers.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed It's Raining Cupcakes last year and was pleased to learn that Lisa Schroeder wrote a follow-up to that book entitled Sprinkles and Secrets. How could I resist another cute, delicious-looking book cover?

Sophie is a 12-year-old girl living in Willow, Oregon, with her parents and little brother Hayden. More than anything, she wants to be an actress. While her best friend Isabel excels at baking (her family owns the local bakery It's Raining Cupcakes), Sophie possesses talents that could take her to Broadway or Hollywood. But first she needs to start at the bottom. When a counselor from her theater camp calls and tells her that she can get her signed to a talent agency, Sophie is thrilled. She even scores an audition for a local television commercial. But her dreams are dashed when she discovers that the commercial is for Beatrice's Brownies, the main competitor to Isabel's family's bake shop. Sophie is faced with a dilemma — go ahead with the commercial and ruin her friendship with Isabel, or turn the opportunity down and hope that something else comes along soon.

I really enjoyed Sprinkles and Secrets. Like It's Raining Cupcakes, this book's protagonist faces some difficult decisions, learns from her mistakes, and eventually grows with the help of her family and friends. Schroeder's books portray positive female characters who are not flawless — they make some poor choices, but they always set things right in the end.

[Crys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sophie and Isabel are best friends, but they each have their own passion. Sophie's passion lies in acting; Isabel, baking.

Sophie has been offered an opportunity of a lifetime - to star in a national commercial. The company she would represent happens to be the rival to Isabel's family cupcake shop.

Sophie cannot bring herself to tell her best friend, but can she bring herself to give up such an opportunity? Can their friendship survive the big secret?

Sophie's character is well-developed and interesting. The plot is nicely paced, and there are several heart-warming and giggle-worthy moments that kept me turning the page, wanting more.

Reminiscent of Beverly Cleary, this novel brings wholesome storytelling to a modern audience. Schroeder has hit it out of the park in this follow-up novel.

[Amber Hodges · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because I have always wanted to be an actress and the book is about a girl who acts.

[Leah Bekker]

It such a cute book! Like It's Raining Cupcakes, I can say that it left me on the edge of my seat every time I opened that book!

[Aleta · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 Stars

[Abi]

This is the second book in its series. The first book was It’s raining cupcakes. This book it is from Sophie’s POV. Her dream is to be an actor, and she gets the chance-but it’s for Beatrice's Brownies. As the story continues Sophie realizes she has a difficult choice; Catch her dream, or keep her best friend, Isabelle. She is reluctant to tell Isabelle about the audition. But does not have a chance. As soon as Sophie got the part it was in the newspaper. She saw it herself. In the end, sophie makes up to Isabelle, and they are friends once more, and Isabelle tells sophie to follow her dream. All in all this is one of my favorite books.

[Eve L-A Witherington · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the second of the trilogy, this time we continue the story from Sophie's perspective as we see how her aim for fame and acting threatens her friendship with Isabel after she wins a commercial call back for a rival to Isabel's mums cupcake shop.



We also see her battle jealousy over Isabel's success with her cupcakes and how she discovers boys can be friends with girls too after making a new buddy during all the chaos in her life! Showing how friendship can survive anything and supporting each other is best this celebrates friendship and passion for our hobbies at it's best!

[swan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I liked this better than the first book in the series, although the drama was a bit over the top. I liked all the chocolate references too, which are subheadings to the chapter titles. I guess I'll read the third book in the series to feel complete. They're very quick reads, since they're for a younger audience.

[Ann Saephan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this multiple times when I was younger, and I enjoyed it a lot. I'm not sure about now since it's been years since I last read it and I'm now an adult, but I had some fun with it. It's an adorable story.

I didn't know it was a series. Maybe I'll read the rest!

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book highly suggest

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read for sixth grade girls. I will be gifting it to our 6th grade ELA classroom library.

[Nehemya Renee Crumpley · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is a good book to read I love her and her imagination.

[Nyah Prince · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was like the best book i have red in 2o18.
It taught me some great baking kills that our family tried and they worked ir they didn't
But i hope you have a great time to enjoy the book!

[Summer Payne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was so excited to read this after the first one but was kind of disappointed.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very cute story, get ready to crave cupcakes!!!

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are like cupcakes. Maybe they're not the best for your literary development, but they are so sweet and fun and easy to consume in large quantities. Definitely comfort reads of mine.

[Jaqueline Torres · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Sophie & Isabel friendship! The cupcake talks >>>

[PottWab Regional Library]

E

[Anjanette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Sweet Treat from Lisa Schroeder!

Twelve-year-old Sophie yearns to be an actress. When she’s offered the opportunity to appear in a television commercial, at first it seems like a dream come true. There’s just one problem––the commercial is for Beatrice’s Brownies, the successful chain that just might put the cupcake bakery owned by her friend Isabel’s family out of business! Can Sophie follow her dreams without losing her best friend?


SPRINKLES AND SECRETS is the follow-up to Schroeder’s IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES. It is a great read on its own, but I recommend reading it together with IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES. The book picks up the story where CUPCAKES left off, with a cliffhanger ending after the bake-off, and is told from the viewpoint of CUPCAKES’ main character Isabel’s best friend, Sophie. I felt that Sophie’s character was consistent in both books, but readers will find it illuminating to see that while Isabel’s assessment of Sophie as a girl who always seems to get what she wants isn’t exactly wrong, life isn’t always easy for Sophie either.

Sophie is an appealing main character with a caring personality and a mostly sunny outlook on life. While Sophie’s dilemma in SPRINKLES AND SECRETS is not nearly as weighty as Isabel’s was in IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES, her struggle to balance her own dreams with loyalty to her friend is relatable, as are the missteps she makes along the way. Sophie has the benefit of a very close family to offer support and advice, but ultimately she wrestles with her conscience and follows her heart to make her own decisions.

The book is written in a style simple enough to draw in a reluctant reader, while the story is plenty engaging for more sophisticated readers (I think I enjoyed the book as much as my ten-year-old daughter did). The author packs a lot into this little book––we get to know Sophie’s family well, and there is also a sweet subplot about Sophie’s annoying lab partner-turned-friend (or maybe more?), which shows how Sophie’s concern for others’ feelings extends to her middle-school classmates too.

The story is set in Willow, Oregon, the kind of town where kids can walk or ride their bikes most everywhere and generally operate without too much dependence on adults, which also adds to the Beverly Cleary-esque feel of the book. While adults are present and involved, the kids solve their own problems. My daughter noted this as her favorite aspect of the book, and we both had fun seeing how Sophie creatively attempts to make things right with Isabel. Recipes are included at the end of the book for an extra treat.

This book is not due to be released until September––the lovely author donated an advance copy to an online charity auction to benefit the victims of the earthquake in Japan, and my daughter and I were very excited to snap it up. We both highly recommend SPRINKLES AND SECRETS (and IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES, if you haven’t read it yet), and hope that Lisa Schroeder writes more stories about Sophie and Isabel!

[Jasmine Gardner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the book Sprinkles and Secrets by Lisa Schroeder. I have been into the whole other series of the Cupcake Diaries because I like their storyline and how they deal with kids in middle school which are my age and the same type of issues and drama that goes on. I feel I can relate a lot to these books. This particular book is a sequel to Its Raining Cupcakes. Sophie is the main character in this book, and she has a huge decision and choice to make, between her best friend's friendship and her chance of her dream to be on tv! Her best friend Isabel has a family business, and Sophie would be doing the commercial for their rival and most fierce competitor! Isabel's family business has been suffering and this would totally put them under. Its a page turner and keeps you wanting to read to find out what decision she makes and if she stays loyal to her friend and gives up her dream of stardom, or lies and decieves everyone. Sophie's new friend Dennis helps navigate her through these tough decisions and gives her good advice so she can possibly have her friendship with Isabel and her tv dream! There is a bake off involved, which happens in almost all of these types of books! I would definately recommed this book. I think girls can relate to it because of the middle school drama and the choices we make and compromises we make daily and the pursuit of your dreams and happiness and above all, friendships!

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This companion to "It's Raining Cupcakes" is the story of Isabel's best friend, Sophie. Isabel is off on her trip to New York City for her baking competition, & Sophie is feeling kind of depressed & maybe a little jealous, but then something amazing happens: the mother of a friend from theater camp who happens to be a talent agent contacts Sophie about signing a contract & working to get her in front of a camera, possibly starting with commercials & working her way up to a real acting career. Sophie, whose dream has always been to become a famous actress, is literally beside herself with excitement, especially when she gets tapped for her first audition. Then she finds out said audition is to do a commercial for Beatrice's Brownies, a national chain that is the main competitor for Sophie's best friend Isabel's family's small, local cupcake shop.
Sophie's struggle to figure out whether to pursue this amazing opportunity to begin the path towards reaching her dream in spite of feeling that she'll be betraying her very best friend feels very real, & her actions in dealing with it are authentically middle-school girl. It's a cute follow-up, & fun to see things from another character's perspective. Girls who enjoyed the first book will like this one just as well.

[Candace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished doing a reread with my daughter with this one and realized I hadn't ever reviewed it the first time through.
This is a companion novel to It's Raining Cupcakes and features Sophie, Isabel's best friend. We get a good bit of Isabel as well and learn whether she won the cooking contest in NYC.

In this book Sophie has acquired an agent and is trying out for a commercial. But this commercial is for a company that could put Isabel's families cupcake shop out of business, so what does Sophie do? How can she even tell Isabel? This puts loads of pressure on her and she struggles to figure out the right thing to do.

I absolutely love every Lisa Schroeder book I read and her middle grade books are no exception. She creates the most realistic sounding characters that you can't help but completely adore. I loved Sophie and her family and friends as well. She has an adorable little brother who just loves anything outer space and their interaction was loads of fun!

Since I read this one aloud I want to mention that Sophie's voice is very easy to read and free flowing. I absolutely loved reading this one to my kids!

[Terryann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Schroeder, Lisa. Sprinkles and Secrets. Aladdin. Sept 2011. ISBN: 978-1-4424-3246-8. $15.99 F

Gr 4-7
In the sequel to It's Raining Cupcakes, BFFs Isabel and Sophie have returned. Isabel has won the baking contest and now it is Sophie's turn to make her dream of becoming an actress come true. The only problem is, the commercial Sophie's been offered is for Beatrice's Brownies, the rival to Isabel's family's shop, It's Raining Cupcakes. When Sophie has to choose between her big break and her best friend, she stalls by lying to Isabel. Told in a similar style to the prequel with chapter headings named after favorite treats, Sophie is a like-able girl who cares very much about her friends. However, as in the previous story, supporting characters lack depth, including Isabel. Sophie's creative solutions to her problems are realistically kid-like and the happy ending will give readers the warm and fuzzies, as will the included recipes.

-Terry Ann Lawler - Phoenix Public Library, AZ.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the book Sprinkles and Secrets. I brings out the true friendship that people have. An aspiring actress, Sophie’s upcoming audition for a commercial may be the big break she has been waiting for. When she discovers the commercial is for the rival of her best friend’s faltering family business, Sophie experiences a crisis of conscience. In this sequel to It’s Raining Cupcakes (2010), Schroeder delves into the complexity of middle-school friendships. Sophie struggles with a confusing kaleidoscope of feelings, including her jealousy over Isabel’s chance to compete in a bake-off and her elation/guilt over the audition. Sophie and Isabel’s friendship is jeopardized when Sophie’s impulsive decision to lie is revealed. With the help of her new friend Dennis, Sophie may be able to achieve her dreams and salvage her friendship with Isabel. While there are the many references to A Bridge to Terabithia in a potentially intriguing subplot, its story line is not fully developed, and the connection may be too ambiguous for readers unfamiliar with the classic tale.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although with the same characters as It's Raining Cupcakes, this middle-grade novel also stands on its own. Sophie, who is 12 years old and has always wanted to be a model, gets called for an audition for a commercial! It is all very exciting, until she finds out that she would be promoting a sweet shop that is in direct competition with her best friend Isabel's mom's cupcake shop. Sophie is torn between her desire to pursue her dream and her loyalty to her best friend. She knows an audition doesn't mean she'll get the job, but how can she tell Isabel that she might be working for the opposition? A sweet story about friendship and loyalty, and how best friends always want what's best for each other.

It is rare to find a middle-grade book that deals with the concept of ethical behavior, so I found this to be a valuable addition to our bookshelf, and a good source of conversation on the subject of doing what's right, not just what you want to do.

[Anna Louise Kallas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book Sprinkles and Secrets by Lisa Schroeder is a book filled with surprises and suspense. Lisa Schroeder tells the story of two girls who are best friends and have different passions. Isabel is interested in baking while Sophie likes acting. Isabel helps her mom at their cupcakes shop, It's Raining Cupcakes. The business is going slow for her family since a new brownie shop opened up. On the other hand Sophie has found herself an agent to kick off her acting career. Her agent recommends that she auditions for a commercial for the brownie shop. Sophie is torn; should she start off her acting career by hurting a friend?

I recommend this book for people who enjoy realistic fiction stories, friendship, and suspense. This is the second book in the series. The first book is, It's Raining Cupcakes, by Lisa Schroeder. Both books were wonderful. I recommend that you read both books in the series.