October 2021 – Bensenville Community Public Library

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Parish’s Picks: Baking Fun!

Hey hey… Parish is back with a new booklist! This time he’s selected some of his favorite activity and DIY books for kids and teens.

October is finally upon us, and what better way to celebrate a month of ghosts and ghouls, as well as another great fall season, with some baking! October and fall are the perfect time to fine tune your baking skills… with Halloween approaching, and soon other holidays that bring loved ones together, why not start the holidays with a little baked goodness? This booklist features some of Parish’s favorite cookbooks with tons of easy to follow recipes, and beautiful pictures.

The Big, Fun Kids Baking Book

by Food Network, Maile Carpenter | Grade: 4th-8th

An ultimate baking primer for beginners, written by the editors of the top-selling food magazine, shares more than 100 photographed recipes for everyday and special-occasion cakes, brownies and other baked favorites while providing fun ideas for customizations and alternatives to cakes.

From Parish: Food Network is one of my favorite channels to watch during my free time! This book is nicely written and put together. One of my favorite things about the book is the table of contents — it’s listed by cookies, bars, and cakes with pictures of each item. Readers who enjoy baking, and learning different ways to make cookies, or how many drops of food coloring to make a certain color will love this book.

The Ultimate Kids’ Baking Book

by Tiffany Dahle | Grade: 3rd-8th

Now your kids can bake their cake and eat it too (with a little help from mom and dad). There are so many reasons for a kid to celebrate and this book has desserts for every milestone, from First Day of School Smart Cookies and Family Road Trip Muddy Buddies to Fall Break Snickerdoodles and the Best Birthday Cupcakes.

From Parish: We all know the saying “don’t judge a book by its cover” well, I 100% judged this book by its cover! I’m a big donut guy and the pink sprinkled donuts looked so good, I just had to check this book out for its recipes! (Donut recipe is on page 69!) I highly recommend making the “Father’s Day Pretzel Bark” on page 109. I give it a 10/10.

Baking with Kids

by Leah Brooks | Grade: 1st-5th

Get ready to measure, mix, and decorate! Baking with Kids is just the book you need to help teach children to bake. Show your children how to safely use basic equipment in the kitchen and explain all about the important ingredients they’ll need to make the most delicious baked goods. Recipes include muffins, scones, breads, pretzels, crackers, pizza dough, pie crust, cake, cookies, cupcakes, and more! Celebrated chef and instructor, Leah Brooks creates activities with simple step-by-step photo illustrations that will guide kids through each recipe and inspire creativity throughout. Put on your aprons–it’s time to get baking!

From Parish: I highly recommend this book to those looking for fun ways to bond with their family. This book isn’t only filled with fun recipes the whole family will love, but also gives pointers on how smaller hands can help with the recipe. A must checkout!

Easy Eats: A Bee and PuppyCat Cookbook

by Natasha Allegri | Grade: 6th-12th

Bee and PuppyCat from the popular YouTube series of the same name love to eat, well, almost everything. Their never-ending quest for their next meal or snack leads them on adventures through space and time. Make food magical with this Bee and PuppyCat cookbook of tasty recipes and cooking tips and tricks. For beginner or experienced cooks and intergalactic temp workers alike.

From Parish: Bee and PuppyCat is my favorite TV series. First, if you are a fan of Adventure Time, you’ll love Bee and Puppycat! One of my favorite things about this book is how they indicate how many servings a dish makes… using Puppycat icons!

The Pokemon Cookbook

by Maki Kudo | Grade: 6th-12th

Create delicious dishes that look like your favorite Pokémon characters — from desserts to pizza — with more than 35 easy, fun recipes. Make a Pokémon ball sushi roll, Pikachu ramen or mashed Meowth potatoes for your next party, weekend activity or powered-up lunchbox.

From Parish: Growing up around when Pokemon started, I couldn’t pass checking out a cookbook based on the show! Full of Pokemon puns, this book will teach you how to turn a normal salad into a Shaymin Green Salad (page36). Great book to push your creativity to the next level.

Disney Princess Cookbook

by Disney | Grade: 3rd-12th

Make learning how to cook fun and downright magical with inspiration from the Disney Princesses! Featuring simple step-by-step instructions and mouth-watering photos of each dish, this cookbook makes it easy to whip up enchanting treats, while enjoying captivating illustrations of the princesses and their friends.

From Parish: If you know a fan young or old who LOVES Disney princesses this is the book for them. All the current Disney princesses have a recipe that’s based on their movie, and a few recipes dedicated to their awesome companions. One of my favorite recipes from this book is the Sun Punch (page 103). This punch is supposed to represent a bright golden-yellow light similar to the lanterns used during the light the sky festival during Rapunzel’s birthday.

The Official Harry Potter Baking Book

by Scholastic | Grade: 3rd-12th

Delight in 43 tasty recipes inspired by the Harry Potter films! From Pumpkin Patch Pies to Owl Muffins, Luna’s Spectrespecs Cookies to Hogwarts Gingerbread, The Official Harry Potter Baking Cookbook is packed with mouthwatering recipes that will, dare we say.

From Parish: If you’re a fan of the Harry Potter series, you’ll love all the recipes inspired by the movie. One of my favorite recipes — which is easy to make — are the Wizarding Hats (page 22). Turning simple pigs in a blanket to delicious magical hats. This book will give anyone a taste of Hogwarts!

The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook

by Rosanna Pansino | Grade: 3rd-12th

The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook combines two things Rosanna Pansino loves: geek culture and baking. Her fondness for video games, science fiction, math, comics, and lots of other things considered “nerdy” have inspired every recipe in this book. You’ll find the recipes for many beloved fan favorites from her internet baking show of the same name, such as Apple Pi Pie, the Chocolate Chip Smart Cookie, and Volcano Cake; as well as many new geeky recipes, such as Dinosaur Fossil Cake, Moon Phase Macaroons, and the Periodic Table of Cupcakes.

From Parish: Rosanna Pansino’s Nerdy Nummies YouTube channel was one of my favorites to watch. All her recipes are inspired by video games, science fiction, math, and comics. Rosanna taught us ways to show and share our nerdy side with our friends! One of my favorite recipes is the video game controller cookies (page 150). Being a big gamer myself, I couldn’t pass up baking these delicious, cool cookies!

Super Good: Baking for Kids

by Duff Goldman | Grade: 4th-8th

From New York Times bestselling celebrity chef and host of Ace of Cakes and Kids Baking Championship Duff Goldman, this book teaches budding young bakers how to make dozens of crazy delicious concoctions–from confetti snickerdoodles to unicorn cupcakes to amazing dessert pizzas. With more than 35 delicious recipes and tons of fun fact-filled sidebars on everything from the science of yeast to the history of baking, Super Good Baking for Kids shows kids how to make treats that will amaze parents, delight friends, and make the whole family go “mmmmmm.”

From Parish: When I picked this book up a while ago, I checked it out because it was written by the Ace of Cakes himself, Duff Goldman. (If you haven’t seen any of his shows, I highly recommend you do!) This book is really nice for children who have an interest in baking and would like to master cakes. Duff does not only share really delicious recipes, but helpful hints and lessons during the process. Highly recommend those who have a cake interest or those who enjoy looking at good cakes!

The Unofficial Hocus Pocus Cookbook

by Bridget Thoreson | Grade: 5th-12th (parental guidance)

Since its debut in 1993, the movie has achieved cult-classic fame, with both children and adults as a loyal fanbase. Fans fall in love with the delightful, demonic and diva-esque Sanderson Sisters and the sleepy New England town they torment. Now you can conjure up your own spooky treats and bewitching drinks to celebrate Halloween, whether you’re attending a surprise rave in town, or just spending “a quiet evening at home.” is filled with over 60 recipes for fare inspired by everyone’s favorite witches and their spells, potions, and schemes. It is the ultimate must-have for fans of all ages—but don’t worry, no children were harmed in the test of these recipes.

From Parish: Can we really enjoy October if we don’t spend one day watching our favorite three witches put a spell on all of us? No, we can’t. The Unofficial Hocus Pocus cookbook is a great masterpiece that will satisfy any fan of the movie. Parents, if you’re picking this up for your child, please note that the last few chapters have adult drink recipes.

Want more recommendations?

You can check out all of our online booklists (for kids and for adults), or reach out to us! Our staff is ready and willing to make reading, listening, or viewing recommendations to you! Email us at reference@benlib.org or contact us via our online form!

New Thriller and Suspense

By bcplweb Booklists, Booklists, What's New

All of the titles featured here in this booklist we have in our collection. To see if an item is available to check out or place on hold, click the cover image or button to the right of the description.

Bullet Train

by Kotaro Isaka

A dark, satirical thriller by the bestselling Japanese author, following the perilous train ride of five highly motivated assassins.

A massive bestseller in Japan, Bullet Train is an original and propulsive thriller that fizzes with an incredible energy and surprising humor as its complex net of double-crosses and twists unwind. Award-winning author Kotaro Isaka takes readers on a tension packed journey as the bullet train hurtles toward its final destination. Who will make it off the train alive—and what awaits them at the last stop?

Survive the Night

by Riley Sager

It’s November 1991. Nirvana’s in the tape deck, George H. W. Bush is in the White House, and movie-obsessed college student Charlie Jordan is in a car with a man who might be a serial killer.

Josh Baxter, the man behind the wheel, is a virtual stranger to Charlie. They met at the campus ride board, each looking to share the long drive home to Ohio. Both have good reasons for wanting to get away. For Charlie, it’s guilt and grief over the shocking murder of her best friend, who became the third victim of the man known as the Campus Killer. For Josh, it’s to help care for his sick father—or so he says.

The longer she sits in the passenger seat, the more Charlie notices there’s something suspicious about Josh, from the holes in his story about his father to how he doesn’t want her to see inside the trunk. As they travel an empty, twisty highway in the dead of night, an increasingly anxious Charlie begins to think she’s sharing a car with the Campus Killer. Is Josh truly dangerous? Or is Charlie’s jittery mistrust merely a figment of her movie-fueled imagination?

One thing is certain—Charlie has nowhere to run and no way to call for help. Trapped in a terrifying game of cat and mouse played out on pitch-black roads and in neon-lit parking lots, Charlie knows the only way to win is to survive the night.

The Turnout

by Megan Abbott

With their long necks and matching buns and pink tights, Dara and Marie Durant have been dancers since they can remember. Growing up, they were homeschooled and trained by their glamorous mother, founder of the Durant School of Dance. After their parents’ death in a tragic accident nearly a dozen years ago, the sisters began running the school together, along with Charlie, Dara’s husband and once their mother’s prized student.

Taut and unnerving, The Turnout is Megan Abbott at the height of her game. With uncanny insight and hypnotic writing, it is a sharp and strange dissection of family ties and sexuality, femininity and power, and a tale that is both alarming and irresistible.

Sleeping Bear

by Connor Sullivan

Perfect for fans of Brad Thor and Vince Flynn, this white-knuckled debut thriller follows a former Army veteran seeking solitude in the Alaskan wilderness after her husband’s death—only to find herself a pawn in a deadly game with Russia.

After her young husband’s untimely death, Army veteran Cassie Gale decides to take a few days of solitude in the Alaska wilderness before she starts her new job. But when she fails to show up on her first day and her dog is discovered injured at her wrecked campsite, her father knows that this is much more than a camping trip gone awry.

As it turns out, Cassie’s not the first person to disappear without a trace in Alaska’s northern interior. Bears. Wolves. Avalanches. Frostbite. Starvation. There are many ways to die in here. But not all disappearances can be explained. Cassie’s is one of them, along with a number of other outdoor enthusiasts who have vanished in recent years.

Regaining consciousness in a Russian prison, Cassie finds herself trapped in a system designed to ensure that no one ever escapes alive. It will require all her grit and skills to survive. Meanwhile, her father rushes to outrun the clock, scouring thousands of acres, only to realize she’s been taken by a far more nefarious adversary—one with the power of the Eastern Bloc behind it. Ties to his past life, one full of secrets, threaten to surface. He knows there’s a price to be paid, but he’s determined it won’t be his daughter.

Version Zero

by David Yoon

From the brilliant mind of New York Times bestselling author David Yoon comes a lightning-fast and scorchingly observant thriller about how we can save ourselves from the very real perils of a virtual world.

Max, a data whiz at the social media company Wren, has gotten a firsthand glimpse of the dark side of big tech. When he questions what his company does with the data they collect, he’s fired…then black-balled across Silicon Valley.

With time on his hands and revenge on his mind, Max and his longtime friend (and secretly the love of his life) Akiko, decide to get even by rebooting the internet. After all, in order to fix things, sometimes you have to break them. But when Max and Akiko join forces with a reclusive tech baron, they learn that breaking things can have unintended–and catastrophic—consequences.

Take It Back

by Kia Abdullah

From author Kia Abdullah, Take It Back is a harrowing and twisting courtroom thriller that keeps you guessing until the last page is turned.

Zara Kaleel, one of London’s brightest legal minds, shattered the expectations placed on her by her family and forged a brilliant legal career. But her decisions came at a high cost, and now, battling her own demons, she has exchanged her high profile career for a job at a sexual assault center, helping victims who need her the most. Victims like Jodie Wolfe.

When Jodie, a sixteen-year-old girl with facial deformities, accuses four boys in her class of an unthinkable crime, the community is torn apart. After all, these four teenage defendants are from hard-working immigrant families and they all have proven alibis. Even Jodie’s best friend doesn’t believe her.

But Zara does―and she is determined to fight for Jodie―to find the truth in the face of public outcry. And as issues of sex, race and social justice collide, the most explosive criminal trial of the year builds to a shocking conclusion.

A Man Named Doll

by Jonathan Ames

From the creator of HBO’s Bored to Death, a deliciously noir novel about idiosyncratic private detective Happy Doll and his quest to help a dying friend in a sun-blinded Los Angeles as “quirky, edgy, charming, funny and serious” as its protagonist.

Happy Doll is a charming, if occasionally inexpert, private detective living just one sheer cliff drop beneath the Hollywood sign with his beloved half-Chihuahua half-Terrier, George. A veteran of both the Navy and LAPD, Doll supplements his meager income as a P.I. by working through the night at a local Thai spa that offers its clients a number of special services. Armed with his sixteen-inch steel telescopic baton, biting dry humor, and just a bit of a hero complex, the ex-cop sets out to protect the women who work there from clients who have trouble understanding the word “no.”

Doll gets by just fine following his two basic rules: bark loudly and act first. But when things get out-of-hand with one particularly violent patron, even he finds himself wildly out of his depth, and then things take an even more dangerous twist when an old friend from his days as a cop shows up at his door with a bullet in his gut.

A Man Named Doll is more than just a fascinating introduction to one truly singular character, it is a highly addictive and completely unpredictable joyride through the sensuous and violent streets of LA.

The Wedding Night

by Harriet Walker

After ending her engagement, a woman decides to go on a much-needed getaway with her friends to clear her head—but she soon realizes her secret may be the one thing she can’t get away from.

When Lizzie calls off her wedding in the south of France only a week before the big day, not even her closest friends know why. But since the château is already paid for, they figure it’s the perfect place to take Lizzie and get her mind off her suddenly single state.

When the group arrives, it’s as if the wedding is waiting for them.

The next day, Lizzie wakes to find her friends have drunkenly reveled in the wedding-that-wasn’t—but not all their antics were benign. Someone is set on tormenting Lizzie, and she can’t figure out who.

The more the friends try to piece together exactly what happened that night, the more secrets start to come out.

The biggest secret of all—the one that must not be revealed—is Lizzie’s. But as intimidating messages appear around the château, it seems that someone intends to pursue her until it is. Will Lizzie ever be able to escape her past, or will it destroy more than one life on this trip?

Want more recommendations?

Spooky YA Thrillers

By bcplweb Booklists, Booklists

It’s that time of year… it’s almost Halloween! The air is cooler, leaves are falling, and we are in the mood for some suspenseful, young adult thrillers! If you liked One of Us is Lying — which has been on the New York Times Bestsellers List for 190 weeks and has a show coming out on Peacock in October — we’ve got a great list of read-alikes to give you a scare!

All of the titles featured here we have in our collection. To see if an item is available to check out or place on hold, click the cover image or button to the right of the description.

The Good Girls

by Claire Eliza Bartlett

Targeted as suspects in the shocking murder of a high school senior, three teens-including a notorious party girl, a head cheerleader and a would-be valedictorian-race to expose long-buried secrets and identify the real killer.

I Killed Zoe Spanos

by Kit Frick

Anna Cicconi’s summer gig as a nanny is supposed to be a fresh start. But the community has been on edge since Zoe Spanos, a local girl, disappeared New Year’s Eve. Anna’s resemblance to Zoe causes her to delve into Zoe’s life. She becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected– and that she knows what happened to her. When Zoe’s body is found in a nearby lake, Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn’t satisfied. Can her podcast uncover the truth?

Truly Devious

by Maureen Johnson

When Stevie Bell, an amateur detective, begins her first year at a famous private school in Vermont, she sets a plan to solve the cold case involving the kidnapping of the founder’s wife and daughter shortly after the school opened.

The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym “Truly, Devious.” The past has crawled out of its grave: Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits Ellingham Academy.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

by Holly Jackson

As her senior capstone project, Pippa Fitz-Amobi is determined to find the real killer in a closed, local murder case, but not everyone wants her meddling in the past.

None Shall Sleep

by Ellie Marney

Eighteen-year-olds Emma Lewis and Travis Bell, recruited by the FBI to interview juvenile serial killers, must turn to a notorious teenage sociopath to help track down a new murderer.

The Mary Shelley Club

by Goldy Moldavsky

Scholarship student Rachel keeps to herself at Manchester Prep, preferring the company of horror films to trust fund babies. When a prank puts her on the radar of a mysterious student society, “The Mary Shelley Club”, they subject her to a number of escalating Fear Tests which eventually puts them on the radar of a serial killer.

How We Fall Apart

by Katie Zhao

Jamie Ruan is the queen bee of Sinclair Prep. Until one day, she’s dead. The Proctor, an anonymous poster on the school media app, points the finger at Jamie’s friends. Akil Patel is the school’s track star and he’s running from his secrets. Krystal Choi has a killer sense of fashion, but does that make her a killer? Alexander Lin is always focused on grades, but is hiding a dark secret. Nancy Luo isn’t threatening … unless you get between her and the top spot.

14 Ways to Die

by Vincent Ralph

Ten years ago, Jess’s mother was murdered by the Magpie Man. She was the first of his victims but not the last. Now Jess is the star of a YouTube reality series and she’s using it to catch the killer once and for all. The whole world is watching her every move. And so is the Magpie Man.

They’ll Never Catch Us

by Jessica Goodman

Sisters Stella and Ellie Steckler are both determined to win a scholarship and escape their stifling small town, but their plans are upset when a new girl joins the cross-country team and then disappears.

You're So Dead

by Ash Parsons

Plum Winter and her two best friends sneak into an influencers-only festival event on a private island in the Caribbean. Plum and her friends soon realize that someone has lured each of them to the “festival” to kill them. Someone has a vendetta against every person on the island–and no one is supposed to leave the island alive. So, together, Plum, Antonia, and Marlowe will do whatever it takes to unravel the mystery of the killer, and fight to save themselves and as many influencers as they can, before it’s too late.

That Weekend

by Kara Thomas

After Claire wakes up alone on a mountain with no memory of how she got there, she learns her best friend Kat and Kat’s boyfriend are missing and Kat’s past is full of secrets.

She remembers Friday night, but after that, nothing. Now Kat and Jesse are missing. The answers are buried somewhere in Claire’s memory– and she is pretty sure she is not going to like what she remembers.

The Ivies

by Alexa Donne

Everyone knows the Ivies: the most coveted universities in the United States. Far more important are the Ivies. The Ivies at Claflin Academy, that is. Five girls with the same mission: to get into the Ivy League by any means necessary. I would know. I’m one of them. We disrupt class ranks, club leaderships, and academic competitions…among other things. We improve our own odds by decreasing the fortunes of others. Because hyper-elite competitive college admissions is serious business. And in some cases, it’s deadly.

They Wish They Were Us

by Jessica Goodman

At an exclusive prep school on Long Island, Jill Newman looks forward to her senior year as a member of the school’s most elite clique, the Players, until new evidence surfaces about the murder of her close friend Shaila.

Influence

by Sara Shepard

After her family moves to Los Angeles, Delilah Rollins, already a minor Internet celebrity, plunges into the competitive and glamorous world of social media influencers, but can cosmetics and good lighting conceal cheating, manipulation, blackmail, and murder?

This is Why We Lie

by Gabriella Lepore

When a fellow student is murdered, Jenna Dallas and Adam Cole, who discovered the body, launch their own investigation and discover that everyone in the community of Gardiners Bay has something to hide.

Want more recommendations?