Review: The Secret Ingredient by Stewart Lewis

The Secret Ingredient by Stewart Lewis.

Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: June 2013
List Price: $17.99
ISBN-13: 9780385743310

Review: I've found myself wondering what would've happened if my mother wouldn't have given me up, Olivia says. The Secret Ingredient is an outstanding book written by Stewart Lewis. The main character of the book is Olivia, a mature sixteen-year-old girl. The Secret Ingredient is a gripping book with a surprising ending!

Olivia is a 16-year-old who loved cooking since she was a little girl. Olivia has struggled with her life because her mom gave her up when she was 2 days old, she has 2 dads, and her dad's restaurant is about to go out of business if people don't patronize it more. To keep the family running, Olivia decides to tryout as a manager at J. Tucker Casting. However, before she tries out, she is in the elevator with a psychic who tells Olivia to be aware of her choices and her future. After that, she tries out and she gets in as evidenced by the quote, "Never give up. You only get one life. Go for it!" Later in the story, Olivia is walking her neighbor's dog, and he leads her to a mysterious cookbook with writing about a mom who lost her baby. Olivia's brother, Jeremy, wants to try and save the restaurant, FOOD; he wants to run an ice cream truck to earn money to save FOOD. Will he save the restaurant, will Olivia find her mom, and will she listen to the psychic and be aware of her choices?

There are many elements of the book that I like, and there was one that I didn't like. For example, one part of the book that was my favorite was when Hank, Olivia's neighbors dog, led Olivia to a special cookbook. That was my favorite part because that cookbook helps Olivia on finding extremely important information about her mom. My least favorite part in the book was when Hank dies. Olivia has been walking Hank for a long time, and he died! "Eventually, everything goes away." The reader wonders if Hank dying helps Olivia? I think you should read The Secret Ingredient because it is filled with lots of mystery and adventure! I would recommend this book to 11 year olds and older because of some mild language use and topics that 10 years old and under wouldn't understand. Also, I would recommend this book to girls because of the romance and girly parts. For example, in the story it talks about girls going through puberty. I would also suggest this book to someone who loves romance, mystery, and adventure. I enjoyed reading this book, The Secret Ingredient by Stewart Lewis, because I love books that are filled with mystery!

Review written by Mira (6th grade student).

We would like to thank Random House for providing a copy of The Secret Ingredient for this review.

Have you read The Secret Ingredient? How would you rate it?