Maya Tatsukawa is a children's book illustrator and designer residing just outside of Boston. She also wrote and illustrated The Bear in My Family, and illustrated Dandelion Magic, by Darren Farrell.
Boston Globe Best Book of 2022 Title Modeling creativity and patience, the friends eventually enjoy their pancakes, making the best of mishaps along the way . . . With each page divided into panels, the simple colored cartoons, rendered in a warm palette, exude softness. Japanese culture is incorporated through a few ingredients and household objects, and a pancake recipe is included. A delightful, delectable read. -Kirkus With characters who resemble plush toys, a cheery pastel palette, and off-the-cuff-sounding dialogue, Tatsukawa creates a hanging-out-in-the-kitchen mood that embodies the essence of home cooking's joys. The pancakes are conveyed as indeed delicious (the characters make more for dinner), but for readers, they're really just icing on the cake of witnessing characters who make each other feel cozy and welcome. A pancake recipe concludes. -Publishers Weekly The art is the star of the show here as Tatsukawa's handmade textures create an overarching softness complemented by a soothing, pastel color palette, and stippling lends the scenes depth and liveliness. This picture book is brimming with mouthwatering, fluffy flapjacks, and adults should be prepared to utilize the recipe at the back of the book after reading it (regardless of the time of day). -BCCB