Book excerpt: A producer of NPR’s All Things Considered takes readers on a culinary adventure in “this eclectic but cohesive cookbook” featuring 50+ cake recipes (Publishers Weekly, starred review). Melissa Gray started as a baking novice, but soon became National Public Radio’s Cake Lady. Every Monday she brought a cake to the office for her colleagues at NPR to enjoy. Hundreds of Mondays (and cakes) later, Melissa has lots of cake-making tips to share. Following the more than fifty recipes in this book, readers can develop their cake-baking skills alongside Melissa—and enjoy irresistible treats like Brown Sugar Pound Cake, Peppermint and Chocolate Rum Marble Cake, Lord and Lady Baltimore Cakes, Dark-Chocolate Red Velvet Cake, Honey Buttercream and Apricot Jam Cake, and more.