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.

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!