Published: 2022
Author: Greg Pizzoli
Illustrator: Greg Pizzoli
Genres: Non-fiction, Cooking, Food, History, Childrens, Humor, Historical, Storytime, Italy
Audience (Grade Levels): K-4
Number of Stars: 5-Stars
Goodreads Link: Pizza: A Slice of History
Triggers: None
Review By: Allison Earl
Publisher’s Summary
From Geisel Award-winning author Greg Pizzoli comes a hilarious and mouth-watering history of pizza.
Do YOU like PIZZA? Because right now, somewhere in the world, someone is eating it. Did you know that in the United States we eat 350 slices of pizza every second? Or that in Sweden they serve pizza with bananas and peanuts? All over the world, people love pizza—but where did it come from? And who made the first pizza?
Join award-winning author and illustrator Greg Pizzoli as he travels through time and around the globe to discover the mouth-watering history of pizza. Bursting with color, flavor, fun facts, and a family-friendly English muffin pizza recipe, Pizza! : A Slice of History reveals the delicious story of the world’s best food.
Review
Books that are written and illustrated like this are what makes non-fiction books engaging and fun. Readers will love to learn about how pizza came to be and how it became popular in the United States. One of the best parts of this book includes learning how pizza is created in different parts of the world (cold fish on pizza is popular in Russia). With this, readers are able to learn more about how pizza is made in other countries and to be open-minded. The illustrations are a delight and are so colorful to help draw the reader in the book. After reading this book with my first-graders, many of them asked to check this book out and said they were hungry for pizza. This book made an excellent read aloud to interest students in non-fiction and or for aspiring chefs to experiment with new pizza recipes in the kitchen.
Classroom & Curricular Connections
- Social Studies / World History: This book serves as an excellent introduction to chronological history and geography, tracking pizza’s origins from the Ancient Greeks and Persians to Naples, Italy, and its eventual migration to the United States.
- Social-Emotional Learning (SEL): The exploration of unique pizza toppings in different regions (like cold fish in Russia or bananas and peanuts in Sweden) provides a fantastic opportunity to teach open-mindedness, curiosity, and respect for cultural differences.
- Science / Life Skills: Incorporating the provided English muffin pizza recipe can help teachers introduce basic measurements, kitchen safety, and instructions-following in early childhood classrooms.
- Extension Activity: Plan a “Design Your Own International Pizza” library craft activity. After a group read-aloud, provide students with paper plates (to serve as the crust) and a variety of colorful construction paper “toppings” representing different ingredients mentioned in the book. Encourage students to create either a traditional pizza or a globally inspired pie, presenting their creations to the class to practice public speaking and share what unique ingredients they would dare to try.
Diversity & Representation:
The book offers an inclusive and globally conscious look at culinary traditions, helping young readers understand that “normal” looks different depending on where you live in the world. By celebrating the diverse ways different cultures adapt and enjoy the same basic dish, the narrative promotes global awareness and cultural appreciation.
Readalikes
- The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli
- How to Party Like a Snail by Naseem Hrab
- Pizza, Pickles, and Apple Pie: The Stories Behind the Foods We Love by David Rickert
- How the Cookie Crumbled: The True (and Not-So-True) Stories of the Invention of the Chocolate Chip Cookie by Gilbert Ford
- Who Ate What?: A Historical Guessing Game for Food Lovers by Rachel Levin
- Yummy: A History of Desserts by Victoria Grace Elliott
