Books with title Mia's Baker's Dozen

Mia finds that one more in the mix is always better in this treat of a tween series!Mia is getting used to her new family now that her mom is remarried to Eddie and she’s gained a new stepbrother, Dan. She’s in the groove of going to her dad’s house on the weekends, and everything is going pretty well at home and at school. Well, except for Spanish class. Mia’s parents and stepfather speak it and she does too—but speaking it and writing it are two different things, and somehow Mia ends up in the hands of the merciless Mrs. Alvarez and almost failing Spanish class. Still, things are so good at home that Mia doesn’t want to worry anyone or rock the boat. But when her parents find out—all three of them—she realizes that instead of having two parents, she’s lucky enough to have three, and all three of them pitch in to help her. A baker’s dozen is a bonus!

Mia finds that one more in the mix is always better in this treat of a tween series!Mia is getting used to her new family now that her mom is remarried to Eddie and she’s gained a new stepbrother, Dan. She’s in the groove of going to her dad’s house on the weekends, and everything is going pretty well at home and at school. Well, except for Spanish class. Mia’s parents and stepfather speak it and she does too—but speaking it and writing it are two different things, and somehow Mia ends up in the hands of the merciless Mrs. Alvarez and almost failing Spanish class. Still, things are so good at home that Mia doesn’t want to worry anyone or rock the boat. But when her parents find out—all three of them—she realizes that instead of having two parents, she’s lucky enough to have three, and all three of them pitch in to help her. A baker’s dozen is a bonus!

Mia finds that one more in the mix is always better in this treat of a tween series!Mia is getting used to her new family now that her mom is remarried to Eddie and she’s gained a new stepbrother, Dan. She’s in the groove of going to her dad’s house on the weekends, and everything is going pretty well at home and at school. Well, except for Spanish class. Mia’s parents and stepfather speak it and she does too—but speaking it and writing it are two different things, and somehow Mia ends up in the hands of the merciless Mrs. Alvarez and almost failing Spanish class. Still, things are so good at home that Mia doesn’t want to worry anyone or rock the boat. But when her parents find out—all three of them—she realizes that instead of having two parents, she’s lucky enough to have three, and all three of them pitch in to help her. A baker’s dozen is a bonus!

A greedy baker learns a lesson about cutting corners.The baker, Van Amsterdam is known in Colonial America for baking his St. Nicholas cookies; however, his greed drives him to become stingy in his business, selling people short of quality cookies. Until one day, when a strange, old woman buys a dozen cookies from him. She expects to receive 13, but the baker withholds the last one. Unbeknownst to the baker, the woman curses the baker, and his business goes downhill. The woman returns for another dozen cookies, but this time he gives her an extra measure. This is the story behind a "baker's dozen," and the custom of offering 13 items instead of the usual 12, spreads throughout the colonies. The baker learns that his customers respect him more for his kindness, not his wealth. This holiday story is the perfect companion to a day of cookie making and Christmas lessons about giving and humbleness. In addition, readers will learn the importance of fairness, trustworthiness and selflessness.

The great depression in post WWI England seems a strange backdrop for a children's book. But Baker's Dozen at its core isn't a story of hardship, it is a life lesson for children and adults alike that giving selflessly, even if it seems like what you have to give is inconsequential, can cause a ripple effect of ever growing positivity. There is no good gesture too small.