Little Beach Street Bakery

By: Jenny Colgan

Narrated by: Anne-Marie Piazza

Polly Waterford is recovering from a toxic relationship. Unable to afford their flat, she has to move miles away from everyone, to a sleepy little seaside resort in Cornwall, where she lives alone above an abandoned shop. And so Polly takes out her frustrations on her favourite hobby: making bread.

But what was previously a weekend diversion suddenly becomes far more important as she pours her emotions into kneading and pounding the dough, and each loaf becomes better and better. With nuts and seeds, olives and chorizo, with local honey (courtesy of local bee keeper, Huckle), and with reserves of determination and creativity Polly never knew she had, she bakes and bakes and bakes.... And people start to hear about it. Sometimes, bread really is life...and Polly is about to reclaim hers.

©2014 Jenny Colgan (P)2014 Isis Publishing Ltd

Great Book, Narration ... not so much

If you could sum up Little Beach Street Bakery in three words, what would they be?

Magical, Affirming, Gentle

What didn’t you like about Anne-Marie Piazza’s performance?

Her accents were honestly terrible. So bad that I cringed. Overall she's not a bad narrator but accents are tough, and this book has Americans and English in it...she probably wasn't the best choice.

Who was the most memorable character of Little Beach Street Bakery and why?

Polly. I love a woman who's finding her feet after difficult circumstances.

Feelgood love story

I love a feel good love story that also involves food.. I'm a sucker for the cook, eat, love, live type stories and this is one of those with all the ingredients for the perfect storyline. Broken marriage, broken heart, move to another town, a new fling, a new job, a new business built on little money, then a broken heart and a rekindling of a new love.. Ooh yes! Put on your swimsuit, grab a towel, sun cream, hat and a deck chair.. Holiday listening couldn't get better than this.

Easy listening with an entertaining story

Would you consider the audio edition of Little Beach Street Bakery to be better than the print version?

I enjoyed the different accents, thus think the audio book may have been more entertaining (although I thought the US accent was not so authentic, it was still fun)

Who was your favorite character and why?

Poly Waterfold - a sweet person but still human!

What about Anne-Marie Piazza’s performance did you like?

well read - fun, interesting - keeps the audience listening

Who was the most memorable character of Little Beach Street Bakery and why?

The owner of the bakery - she's rude and mean and you kind of hope that she turns out to be a nice person in the end - or perhaps the crazy rich American, although he's a bit annoying and perhaps that's why he's memorable.

Any additional comments?

nice audio for easy listening

Perfect for Pandemic Times

I loved this delightful audiobook. So gentle and sweet with delightful characters and the puffin especially. The narration is very good although cannot do a New Zealand kiwi accent. Sorry we are not the same as an Australian accent. Minor detail though.