This engaging young adult book is about Henry, taking care of his younger brother, and why Eugene needs garlic bread for a school festival and doesn't have any. In New Jersey the foods are varied and tasty, and the fourth-grade class each year brings home-made local food for all to enjoy. Henry brought special garlic bread made by their dad, but Dad died of a heart attack last year and since uncle Billy is delayed at work, and Mom's off on her early shift, there is nobody to make GARLIC BREAD FOR EUGENE. Henry realises that he can't let his kid brother down even though he doesn't have the fresh ingredients and can't handle the giant backyard grill. But that will mean missing out on his perfect attendance prize....

Skipping school after delivering Eugene, Henry trails around the barely-known neighbours and shopkeepers to buy fresh-grown garlic and farm butter and seven loaves of French bread. They all ask why he isn't in school, and then they want to help. At school however young Eugene has to explain to the teacher why he doesn't have any food yet, and when the teacher understands that Henry is absent and nobody knows where he is, it looks as though Henry will be in real trouble.

The style is easy to read and little dilemmas crop up and are resolved one by one. The lesson Michael Heath conveys is to do one small step at a time and that way we can accomplish something that looked big and complicated at the outset. The community is an important aspect of this tale and many people are involved in making GARLIC BREAD FOR EUGENE. While the younger teens will be best suited to this warm-hearted book adults may enjoy it too.

Book Summary

Michael Heath brings us the heartwarming and uplifting story of Henry and Eugene, all wrapped up in the foil and memory of their late father. Garlic Bread for Eugene focuses on Henry’s courageous decision on the last day of school to sacrifice his perfect attendance award to help younger brother, Eugene, make garlic bread, Dad’s specialty, for the school picnic. As Henry pedals away from school and the bell rings, his epic journey begins. What ingredients go into garlic bread? A little garlic, a pinch of oregano, a dab of neighborly help—all buttered with stories teaching Henry about his father, his neighborhood, and himself. Henry learns that making decisions with conviction in an effort to “do the right thing” holds merit, and may be just what was needed to help his brother and himself come to terms with the death of their father.