An absolutely beautiful and heartwarming gentle fantasy quest story!
This title incorporates environmentalism and gender expression.
The environmentalism comes in when Juniper and Hadley are trying to solve the mystery of a town’s missing crops that are being eaten. The local giant caterpillar had their food source taken away and were eating the town’s crops.
I appreciated the scene when Hadley, who is non-binary, talks to a fairy, Thistle about how fairies don’t have a gender and it’s a very affirming moment for Hadley (and likely will be for readers).
This is perfect for fans of the Tea Dragon Society and I can’t wait to see more from this author!

The Baker and the Bard is peak cozy fantasy. The characters were sweet, the setting was whimsical, and the story was fun and low-stakes. Also, gotta love a little queer romance as well (I appreciated the discussion on gender and the easy acceptance of beings who don't prescribe to one or any). Juniper and Hadley have pretty opposite personalities, but compliment the other very well and the 'quest' they went on was entertaining without feeling stressful. It was just two friends going on an adventure together! All-in-all, a very enjoyable and quick read. Great for any fan of cozy fantasy!

Juniper, a baker's apprentice, and Hadley, a bard and delivery person, take a journey to find a special magical ingredient for a bakery customer's unique request -- and encounter a mystery that leads to new friends who need help.

What a lovely cozy fantasy graphic novel! The simple, soft artwork added to the cozy vibes, and the story offered gentle little discussions about gender identity, the protection of habitat and the environment, respecting differences, and finding your people. My only complaint is that the story is very lightly sketched in terms of details -- I would have enjoyed learning even more about these characters and this world. 4 stars.

Thank you, Feiwel and Friends and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

Once upon a time, there's a bard who's struggling to find inspiration and a baker who wanted to open her own bakery someday. they're best friends. One day the baker's employer needed help to find a rare ingredient for a special order. so they went to fetch that ingredient while also going on a little adventure.

This is truly a cozy fantasy, simple but heartwarming. the soft coloring also adds to serene and magical atmosphere. I love this.

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc.

This graphic novel follows two best friends who journeyed to obtain unique ingredients for a customer's unusual request. This was such a sweet and calm read. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a light read. It was fascinating to see the ecological destruction play out. It was a quick read. I hope the author makes this into a series. It would be really nice to see where these characters' journeys continue.

I received an ARC of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This cute graphic novel brings to mind the work of Kay O'Neill, whom I adore. The story is cute and sweet, the art is colorful and eye catching. I am going to be needing a giant caterpillar to take home now. My one complaint about this book is the way the author handled the non-binary discussion. It was jarring, completely random, and unneccessary. I think Hadley would have found her way without that entire scene.

The Baker and the Bard is Fern Haught’s debut graphic novel. They did a wonderful job of capturing the feelings of a cozy fantasy and putting it into the graphic novel form. I loved going along with our two best friends as they went on an adventure seeking out a rare ingredient for a special order. Overall, a delightful quick read and I look forward to seeing more from Fern Haught.
Thank you NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Baker and the Bard by Fern Haught is a YA graphic novel in which we follow a baker, Juniper, and a bard, Hadley, as they embark on a quest to find a missing ingredient for a very important bakery order. Along the way they come across a town with mysterious monster problem and try to help solve the mystery.

I thought this book was a very quick and cute read. If you’re into the cozy fantasy genre, this is definitely of that realm. I like the colorful and lovely illustration style. The plot is simple, but I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. This book will make you smile and I don’t think it needs to go really any deeper than that!

This was so super cute and fun!
It really delivers on the Legends&Lattes/Animal Crossing/Tea Dragon vibes.
The only thing I could really criticize is the small bit on being nonbinary was delivered awkwardly in my opinion.
I am all for representation, but not when it feels like it's included just as a selling point. I don't think it was the creators intention, but it's something to keep in mind in the future.
I look forward to seeing what the creator does in the future and hope to see more adventures with these characters.
P.s. the star rating isn't as nuanced as I would like. I would probably give this a 4.75.

This is a sweet cozy graphic novel that I think could also work for parents reading aloud to younger kids. The art style has a soft dreamy effect, and the plot is very gentle. A pair of friends goes on a journey to another town to get special mushrooms for their bakery. Along the way they meet some fey creatures in the forest and help them out. It's a pretty light little book with a warm "let's work together" message. Some nonbinary and queer rep if you're looking for that, but not a major aspect of the book.

I am really happy to read this since it has been a while I read comic books.
I also like how casual the topic of gender is brought up in the story.

I'm also invested in the relationship between the Baker and the bard.

The color scheme is swoon-worthy. The story is pretty straightforward but incredibly charming. I requested for the art and the cozies and they delivered. Will definitely be adding to my home library upon release.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me this eARC in exchange for a fair and honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun read with a fun comic style that I think anyone can just jump in and enjoy.

"The Baker and the Bard" follows a simple journey to go get some glowing mushrooms and the chaos that ensues. With magical mushrooms and giant caterpillars to fey that just want to protect the environment, the story of Juniper and Hadley is a comforting story about friendship and adventure.

There's not a lot to say - which I think is a good thing! For the little story that "The Baker and the Bard" is telling, I don't need to write paragraphs on it. It has a compelling presence on its own. The art style is what makes this book ultra compelling to me!

It was a wonderful read with some hints at the environmental movement and conservation. Would highly recommend when this comes out.

A magical and very sweet adventure as two friends and bakery apprentices journey to find an important ingredient and along the way make new friends, discover new creatures, and discover new experiences as well. Juniper and Hadley usually spend their days apprenticing at a little bakery but when they get a big order they have to journey to find magical mushrooms. Along the way they stumble across a mystery and meet an unlikely fairy with some mysterious new creatures, and so begins their adventure. This was a really cute and sweet read and I would definitely recommend it!

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Feiwel & Friends for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A sweet and cozy graphic novel. The magic system was very low stakes-it didn't mention how the system worked once. I wish there was more "oomph" and a few issues weren't resolved, but overall if you want the cozy and wholesome vibes..pick this up.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Synopsis:
The Baker and the Bard by Fern Haught is a YA cozy fantasy adventure graphic novel.
Juniper, aka June, and Hadley are best friends. They work at a bakery together, June as the baker and Hadley as the bard providing entertainment to the patrons. One day a wealthy and mysterious stranger comes in to place an order, but there is a problem. To fulfil the request they will need to travel to seek out one of the needed ingredients.
On the way they encounter a problem in the area. Choosing adventure, June and Hadley go on a quest to help others and end up discovering more about themselves and their identities along the way.

My Thoughts:
First of all, the art work is absolutely stunning in its style and simplicity. This is a short graphic novel that is what is known as being “low stakes” meaning there is no life and death type situations in the story, but rather the story is about the characters’ interactions and development specifically in terms of gender identity.
This is a very cute story, and is a wonderful intro to these characters, but I would love to see more about them and their journey of self-awareness and self-acceptance and how that looks in their day to day life in their village.
As a parent and an educator I believe all young adults would benefit from reading this story and being aware that gender is not binary.

I love a cozy graphic novel! The art is gorgeous, the story drew me in right away, and the characters felt like friends from the start. I especially love the seamless queer representation, romantic and platonic relationships, and senses of adventure and wonder that lace each page. This is a quick read and I would definitely read more about these characters and setting in a heartbeat. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

This was so cute! I can't wait to try out the recipe in the back, and I really hope we will get more books set in this world.

Thank you, NetGalley and MacMillan publishing for the ARC! This book was so lovely! It was such a cute, graphic novel about friendship, adventure, and gender expression. I think it would be great for younger audiences to read, and provides a gateway for those struggling with their identity.

This cozy middle-grade comic definitely has a feel of Tea Dragon Society with all the colorful illustrations and sweet relationships; however, it isn't as fully fleshed out. If it were a confectionary, it would be whipped meringue; soft, sweet, with little structural integrity or texture, and one note flavor. While I seem overly critical of the book, I still think it's cute and fine for children or middle grade, but I (an older reader of graphic novels) was not the target demographic.

The dialogue is over-simplified, and straightforward without subtext, which feels like the author is trying to spoon-feed and direct the reader (and feels stilted to me). Things in the story feel a bit forced, such as how it progresses in some areas, leaving it feeling disjointed and lost while trying to connect the dots. Some of these are explained as the character, Hadley, needs story material for songs. Still, it feels flat because the character struggling with gender identity gives no indication of it until speaking bluntly about it with the fey Thistle-this makes it feel as if it's shoehorned in and not meaningful as it is supposed to be.

Hadley has been having a silent existential crisis questioning their gender and place in the world but gives absolutely no indication of it; there are no panels of being referred to as he/she, always they which makes it seem as if there is no problem, no panels of looking sad, of awkwardly almost saying something but not, there is no lead up at all so the discussion which breaks story immersion because it seems to come out of nowhere. Reading the story, I noted that when Juniper referred to Hadley she used they, which lead me to come to the foregone conclusion that our societal shortcomings aren't present in this world and that these things were widely accepted in this fantasy world-which was not the case? In comparison to Tea Dragon Society, no one in that world questions their gender identity, or their love of the same gender-it is just accepted that's the way it is. The Baker and the Bard isn't supposed to be Tea Dragons but there should be some setup or pretense for situations like these if it's important to the story.

The characters, while cute, seem to have no substance. Juniper has no other personality than reigning in, or failing to, Hadley and being a long-suffering crush/love interest. She likes baking and Hadley, but what else is there? We should feel connected to the main characters-the side characters like Mira and Thistle don't need fleshing out as much, but Hadley and Juniper should feel more real. Cozy stories should focus on relationships and the joy of small things (like coffee and treats in Legends and Lattes).

Honestly, this story felt more like a children's graphic novel because of the simplicity of world building, dialogue, and story-which didn't show any struggles whatsoever. The story itself happened so easily it could be explained in bullet points and follow the story just as well.