A sweet, cozy fantasy graphic novel that is very queer and talks about ecological destruction, giant caterpillars, and gender. It feels like a cake and a hot drink at a really pretty small coffeeshop was a graphic novel, and very comforting. Also I loved how the little pet snake has the same name as the author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Feiwel & Friends, and Fern Haught for the opportunity to read The Baker and the Bard in exchange for an honest review.

We have Hadley (a water genassi I think?), the bard who uses they/them pronouns and has a very expressive snake named Fern (probably my favorite aspect of the art). They sing some fun on-the-fly songs during theit quest with Juniper, a firbolg baker.

Together they are tasked with a quest to find glowing oyster mushrooms for a rich bakery patron and find themselves sidetracked to help some fae caterpillars.

I love the simplicity of the art style, which makes for a cute charm to the story. I also found the recipe for muchroom galette at the end of the book quite a delight. A wholistically fun graphic novel for teens and D&D fans.

A very cute quick read! The art was gorgeous and I loved the story, though I wish there was more! There were queer characters, non-binary characters, an adventure, wonderful friendships and it was just very sweet.

I received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC!

"The Baker and the Bard" follows Hadley and Juniper as they set off on a mini adventure to find some glowing mushrooms for a recipe. Along the way, they discover that something has been eating the local farmers' crops and try to help figure out what's going on.

This was such a cute and cozy graphic novel! Cozy fantasy is one of my favorite genres so I loved this. The art style was so charming. I also loved how kind and accepting the characters were. I only wish that we got to spend more time with Hadley and Juniper so that we could see more of them and their world.

*actual rating: 4.5 stars

Absolutely adorable graphic novel about friends, baking and what it means to be who you really are! This is a cozy fantasy that reminds me of legends and lattes. Non-binary rep, and acceptance of who they are as a fae is so subtle but so impactful! I will for sure be snagging a copy of this for my shelf!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review!

Cozy, low stakes fantasy- perfect for middle grade readers but I loved it as an adult. Cute illustrations, lovely story! A plus!


Thank you NetGalley for allowing me an arc in exchange for my review!

Cozy, cute little read. Want to know more about the fey in this world. Love the iPad art, very cutesie.

This is a very sweet, cozy fantasy graphic novel, perfect for early middle grade and up in my opinion. The comp to the Tea Dragon books is apt, but if that were mixed with bit of children-friendly 'Legends and Lattes.' Super cute, with great lessons.

The Baker and the Bard is short and sweet, the art style is so cute and fits the wholesome story so well.
The characters go on an adventure to find an ingredient for an order at the bakery but end up making and helping new friends along the way.
I love the silly interactions between some of the characters, like using magic to put a tiny detectives hat on their snake friend.

Thank you netgalley for the e-ARC

The Baker and the Bard had a very cute and sweet story. I think the art could be more…defined? More polished maybe? Judging by the book, I assume this is the author’s first published work, which is amazing!
The story in the beginning and end felt a little rushed, but the middle where they were helping the fey I just kept thinking about the mushrooms! They have a deadline!! I felt that the romantic relationship between Juniper and Hadley could’ve been expanded more, like they seemed to just be friends and then all of a sudden, they kiss!
The part where Hadley is sitting around the campfire with Thistle and mentions gender I felt was unnecessary? I understood Hadley was non-binary when Juniper used they/them pronouns for them but I felt like there wasn’t really any build up to warrant that conversation, if that makes sense.

This book's subtitle is “a cozy fantasy adventure” and it really is. Juniper and Hadley work in a bakery and are sent out to find mushrooms that glow to make a mushroom galette for a rich lady.


They are supposed to go and come back, but of course, Hadley finds that the town where the mushrooms grows is having a mysterious something eating their crops, and so the two of them decide to find out who, rather then hurrying back to the bakery.
They discover a fairy named Thistle, and her giant caterpillars, who are only trying to find things to eat since the townspeople took away their faovirte crop to grown their own.


So it is a bit of an ecological story, mixed with fantasy, mixed with Hadley, who is non-binary, asking if fairies had gender, to which Thistle replies that they don’t. It is not a big part of the story, but asked in a way that affirms how Hadley feels


And it really is a sweet little story. Beautifully drawn and a quick read. Reminds me a bit of the Dragon Tea series.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book will be published by Felwel & Friends on the 5th of March 2024.

say it with me, kids: any book that ends in a recipe is a slay!!! This book was wonderful. As a kid, I would have referred to this as a circle story because it starts and ends with similar themes or motifs and takes place within 24 hours. Let’s dive deeper tho!

This book touched on Intro to Environmentalism themes, had a queer love story, and also discussed gender identity in very fun ways. That’s not my favorite part tho; there were so many different types of creatures who got voices in this book! it was so fun trying to identify what each character or extra was, and it was also so much fun going on an adventure that turned into a side quest and then recalibrated back to a main quest with these two main characters. Would absolutely but this for a child in my life!!!

rep: nonbinary character, queer character

spice: none

Loved the illustration and the nonbinary representation. The story was cute and fluffy and gave fall vibes. I’d definitely read more from this author.

A baker and a bard go on an adventure to find a magical ingredient for a recipe. The story is sweet and simple, just like the art style. I like the nonbinary representation. Fern, the pet snake, is very cute, especially with its miniature detective hat. It's nice to see a depiction of a snake without it representing/being evil. The romance felt a touch unnecessary for an already relatively short, fantasy-bakery focused graphic novel.

i really liked this book, it had cozy vibes and it was so sweet! i would definitely recommend it to my friends!

thank you netgalley for the e-ARC!

Cozy fantasy graphic novel? Sign me up.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. This is Fern Haught's debut graphic novel. They craft stories set in magical worlds with diverse characters. If you enjoyed graphic novels like Crumbs or Mooncakes, check out The Baker and the Bard. It's a cute and cozy little read, with likeable characters. My favorite part was the recipe illustrations!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This is everything I love! An adorable cozy fantasy with beautiful art. I loved Hadley, Juniper, and Fern. Im a sucker for sweet little graphic novels and this one hit all the points I look for. Sometimes you just need a soft story after reading things that are heavy. I feel like this would be helpful for lots of kids today, especially with the topic of gender identity and how you see yourself. Hadley and Fern in the little hats got me. And I loved the message of helping others and understanding differences while also coming to an agreement of how we can all live together. Cozy fantasy has slowly become one of my fave genres and I’m always open to books like these!

Book title: The Baker and the Bard
Author: Fern Haught
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
This is a story about a bard named Hadley and a baker named Juniper. They go on an adventure looking for glowing mushrooms to make for a customer at Junipers bakery. Along the way they find some adventure and forest friends. I liked the overall story and inclusiveness in the book.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me an ARC copy of the book.

I felt like not much happened in this graphic novel. The plot was very flat. The artwork wasn't my style either. I felt like some of the full page artwork wasn't as beautiful as they should be.

This could be a good story for children who was nonbinary and are looking for representation in a book, but I felt that aspect of the book was more of a throw in storyline as opposed to something meaningful to the story.

This story was very sweet and very simple. I had a great time overall and could really feel the cosy elements of the story. I definitely think the novel itself struggled due to its length, the plot was very linear, the characters and their introductions was very simple (although the non-binary mc made my heart very happy) and relationships were more told than shown.

However! It's still delightful and enjoyable and very quick - if you like 'the tea dragon society' you may find the same vibes here full of whimsy and queer delight. But especially, I think this story has a perfect home with a younger audience.