Book Review: Light Bulb Baking Tour: A History of the Easy-Bake Oven

I received a complimentary copy of Light Bulb Baking to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.

This first definitive retrospective of the Easy Bake® Oven celebrates its journey from children’s toy to pop culture icon and inductee to The National Toy Hall of Fame. The book explores the innovation, history, economics, commerce, advertising, and marketing behind the toy’s 50 year history. This book is a must read for vintage toy collectors, nostalgia buffs, foodies, and anyone who has ever peered through the oven’s watch it bake window, eagerly anticipating the moment they will be able to serve and enjoy their very own culinary concoction.

When I was a kid, I desperately wanted an Easy-Bake Oven. I remember asking for it for a few years in a row. I got everything on my list but that. My mom claims she doesn’t recall me asking for it. I finally got my Easy-Bake Oven when I was in my 20s. My ex-husband (we were married at the time) got it for me sort of as a joke, because I said I never got one. When the chance to review Light Bulb Baking: A History of the Easy-Bake Oven came up, I jumped on it. Here is a chance to relive my childhood! I wasn’t sure what to expect, as it’s a topic I never really thought I see turned into a book. It’s much better than I thought it would be! Not that I thought it would be bad or anything, like I said, just wasn’t sure what to expect.

Light Bulb Baking is a gorgeous hardcover book full of vivid pictures chronicling the history of the Easy-Bake Oven. It’s a coffee table style book and definitely makes an interesting conversation piece! Todd Coopee has expertly covered everything from the inspiration for the Easy-Bake Oven to the many places it has appeared in pop culture over the years. My personal favorite Easy-Bake Oven appearance was in Fringe, where Walter used it to help solve a mystery.

It’s fascinating to see how the Easy-Bake oven has evolved over the years. This is the model that I would have received if I got it when I first asked for it. Can you guess what year it was from?

If you want to take a trip down memory lane, I highly recommend checking out Light Bulb Baking! It’s such a fun, unique and informative book. Purchase it on Amazon now for $30.