Everything on a Waffle

Primrose Squarp is 11, and her parents are missing. Not dead, as everyone in her small town thinks, but missing, lost at sea. As she bounces from town babysitter to huckster uncle, losing digits along the way, Primrose takes refuge in a restaurant where everything, even the steak, is served on a waffle. This is hilarious, a collection of the most improbable characters, a picture of small town BC life, and a realistic story of a girl refusing to give up hope.

"Haven't you ever just known something is true?" Little Primrose Squarp is a different sort of girl ... she doesn't seem to fit in anywhere since her parents were lost at sea and are presumed dead. She doesn't believe they perished at sea and she doesn't seem too upset by being bounced around from old Miss Perfidy's mothball ridden house to living with her uncle who she barely knows. She's happy so long as she can go to The Girl on the Red Swing restaurant where the kindly owner, Miss Bowser, listens to her and teaches her how to cook several of the dishes she serves at the restaurant ... where every meal is served on a waffle. Primrose sits and munches on waffles while she talks about all that is happening to her and Miss Bowser offers show more advice and an ear to listen. It seems bad things keep happening to Primrose, but she takes them all in stride, even with the annoying Miss Honeycutt continually interfering in her life and making things worse than they already are. Never once does Primrose believe all those who tell her that her parents died when her mother went out in a small boat to look for her father who was out on a fishing boat in a terrible storm. She just knows they are alive and continually asks those around her if they haven't ever just known something to be true no matter what. She's proven right in the end when her parents make a miraculous arrival home after having been stranded on a deserted island. Everything on a Waffle is a delightful, funny, richly woven tale about keeping faith, being yourself, and accepting all that life may throw in your path. It includes several recipes written in Primrose's wonderfully frank and funny style. A must read for both youngsters and adults alike. show less

Quirky, down-to-earth, and laugh-out-loud funny. Primrose Squarp (I love saying her name!) has a distinct voice, often amazed at what adults believe and don't believe. She is most confident that her parents, lost at sea, will come back, even though all the adults in her small town think she's crazy. Primrose never loses faith. Includes recipes, some a bit odd (Butterscotch Chow Mein Noodle Cookies), others I plan to try (Aunt Tilly's Lemon Sugar Cookies).

Had I been on the awards committee, I might well have voted for this book rather than for the actual medalist, A Single Shard. I certainly enjoyed reading it. Could it be that the heroine's Dickensian name (Primrose Squarp) took a few points off? And then, the Newbery Medals are for American books -- and although presumably Polly Horvath is a citizen or permanent resident of the US, she set her book in British Columbia. And the book is SO DARN CANADIAN -- which is a big part of its charm. Oh, it starts out like any other "problem book" for kids, with Primrose's parents lost at sea and her fate in the hands of the town council. But almost immediately funny things start happening, and Primrose never loses hope, and you realize this is not show more going to be another problem story. The setting, a fishing village in BC, is filled with characters who would be right at home in Cicely, Alaska. The only villain in the piece is, of course, a British aristocrat. All's well that ends well, and it's a fun way to spend a few hours. Kids can even try some of the recipes that end each chapter. Highly recommended. show less

Primrose’s parents are missing at sea. Everyone else is sure they’ve drowned, but Primrose knows they’re alive and together and coming back. In the mean time, someone has to look after Primrose. This role is filled by various colourful characters: old Miss Perfidy, who has trouble with her memory; Primrose’s Uncle Jack, the developer; Bert and Evie, who foster her; and Miss Bowzer, proprietor of the local café, where whatever you order comes served on a waffle.

The thing that makes this book different from any other I have read for young people is Primrose’s preoccupation with food and recipes. Lots of kids’ books feature descriptions of meals and/or food; Everything on a Waffle features a recipe at the end of each chapter, show more for something mentioned during the course of the chapter. Dishes presented are as diverse as ‘Ming Dynasty Tuna Casserole’, ‘Pear Soup’, and ‘Aunt Tilly’s Lemon Sugar Cookies’. Primrose records these recipes as they come up, on her mother’s memo pad, which seems to be the only tangible reminder of her parents’ existence she has left.

This is a story about characters. Coal Harbour is full of them: people who are out-of-the ordinary in some way. Primrose is a character herself, of course, but she is also the narrator of the story, so the reader interprets all the other characters from Primrose’s perspective. Interestingly then, Primrose’s parents feature in the story only by their absence from her life; the reader learns almost nothing about what kind of people they may be.

Throughout the story, Primrose is on a quest. Not, as might be expected, to find her parents; but instead to find reassurance that she isn’t crazy to believe in her parents’ survival. She asks many people the same question: “Didn’t you ever believe anything just because you knew it was true?” In response she is told many interesting stories, and occasionally meets someone who has no idea what the question even means. In the story’s satisfying conclusion, Primrose comments, “I left parts of myself some places and found others unexpectedly” – she discovers her own personality.

Primrose suffers from another affliction common to many young people: adults who have the best intentions for her. It doesn’t help that there are so many adults vying for the position of primary caregiver in Primrose’s life, each one of them with a different idea about what would be best for Primrose. These range from “special care” to “ways of dealing with these issues”, but the only effect that any of this seems to have on Primrose herself is that she is suddenly expected to look after the class pet guinea pig, Herman, at the weekends.

This book is funny and original, and I consider this alone to be sufficient provocation to recommend it widely. However, I also can’t resist, by way of recommendation, giving the following example of this author’s amazing craft: “…and she looked at Miss Perfidy as if a tuna fish had just died on her foot”. Visualise that, if you will (then read the story for more)! show less

Everything on a Waffle is an amazing book. I loved this book for two reasons. First, the characters in this book were fantastic. For example, the main character, Primrose is a highly-intelligent (both intellectually and emotionally) middle schooler who has a satirical view of the world. She is bombarded with other over the top characters, such as a vain guidance counselor, an irresponsible jokster of an uncle, an old lady who is obsessed with mothballs, and a sarcastic restaurant owner who puts all her food on a waffle. It was a joy getting to know all these characters and watching them interact. The author ties the overall plot together by adding in occasional recipes that relate to the story in some way.

Second, the writing in this show more book really captured my attention. For example, the author writes, "I have hair the color of carrots in an apricot glaze (recipe to follow), skin fair and clear where it isn't freckled, and eyes like summer storms." I loved how the prose were written in first person, and they are both child-like and poetic at the same time. The characters descriptions of both herself, the people around her, and the setting give incites into her character.
Ultimately, the overall message of this book is to trust your gut and never lose hope. show less

Cute story about a girl who loses her parents at sea, and how she copes. She's plucky and the characters are amusing, but somehow it's not enough, there's almost too much cuteness.