Benedict Stanley and Audrey Mae live at number 23 Mavin Road
The Biscuit Maker by Sue Lawson and Liz Anelli is a beautifully told and illustrated story about kindness, neighbourhoods and life at its simplest.
Benedict Stanley is an old man who lives with his cat and loves to bake using his late wife’s recipe.
He bakes to celebrate anything he can in his local community but does it without seeking attention or thanks.
Many of the neighbours appreciate his kindness but like many of us do not seek out where it came from, perhaps too afraid we might have to have long conversations, miss out on time on our devices or spend time with those we don’t know too well.
It is only until Benedict Stanley becomes sick and his cat seeks out food and company that the neighbours realise just how special this man and their community is. His sickness brings them together for the best in many different ways.
The Biscuit Maker is a wonderful book to share with children to talk about random acts of kindness, the importance of community and how we can look out for others in the simplest of ways.
It is a great book to look at different types of characters, double page spreads without words and how different communities can look.
It is also very pertinent for ‘R U OK day’ as it is often the older people or those who live alone in our community who often get forgotten. As friendly neighbours checking in on these people can give us lots of joy and perhaps even a street party!
The addition of the biscuit recipe at the end of the book is fantastic with many children wanting to borrow the book so that they can make some biscuits of their own to share!
