A BAKER'S PORTRAIT

Painter Michelin is out of work because people don't care for her candid portraits. When her family finds her a commission, it puts Michelin in a quandry: her aunt and uncle, who are bakers, are not only unprepossesing but fat. But after honest (if ugly) preliminary drawings, she finds a way to satisfy both her integrity and her sitters—she paints their favorite foods, a handsome chocolate cake and a crusty challah. Using vigorous black line and vivid, sophisticated colors in her own sympathetic but unsparing art, Edwards makes it clear that, though these people may look homely, they are also interesting and likable. An entertaining story whose message reaches beyond the world of art. (Picture book. 5-9)*justify no*