Pie

Delightfully quirky characters populate the 1950s-era small town of Ipswitch, Pa., beginning with 10-year-old Alice’s aunt Polly, pie baker extraordinaire, who confounds her family and neighbors by giving away—rather than selling—her shop’s mouthwatering pies. Astonish­ing­ly, her nonprofit business flourishes, lifting the town’s economy and fame, as Polly repeatedly wins the coveted Blueberry Award. Polly’s death leads to widespread grieving, as well as anxiety about Ipswitch’s future. Humor and mystery ensue when the town learns that Polly inexplicably bequeathed her secret piecrust recipe to her grouchy cat, Lardo, and Lardo to Alice. In response, adults indulge in behavior ranging from bizarre to criminal: the entire town begins baking pies, someone catnaps Lardo and ransacks Polly’s store, and Alice’s unpleasant and money-grubbing mother becomes even more so, feeling jilted by being left out of Polly’s will. Alice and her friend Charlie become amateur sleuths and prevail over adult immaturity, while Polly’s generous spirit resonates from beyond the grave. With pie recipes introducing each chapter, Weeks’s (As Simple as It Seems) novel stimulates both sweet tooths and sweet nostalgia. Ages 9–12. (Oct.)