Mud Book

Starred review from February 1, 2017
This petite publication takes mud pies seriously.A 5-inches square book, reminiscent of Beatrix Potter's "little books for little hands," this guide for making mud pies feels as handmade as the pies in it. The book's dominant color, the greenish-brown of mud, permeates the pages, heavy stock that not even muddy fingers will rip. Several elements give the (correct) impression that the artists made the book while constructing mud pies: its hand-lettered, penned text, pages on which colors have bled onto unillustrated parts of the paper, and penciled outlines that did not get completely erased in the final draft and so still appear faintly behind the finished images and words. The fine print reveals the reason for this handmade feel: "Lois Long and John Cage" (who died in 1992 and 2005, respectively) "created the original Mud Book on a kitchen table with newspaper, mud, and dandelion blossoms." Young readers will enjoy this title's cookbook format, complete with two recipes and troubleshooting instructions if the cook finds the mud too runny or too solid for making proper pies. A reissue of the limited-edition 1983 publication, this picture book by a world-class musician and a textile artist will find as eager an audience now as it did in the 1980s--though happily, a much larger one as well. Multigenerational mess makers will delight in this little book and the messes it encourages. (Picture book. 3-7)

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May 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 2-First printed in 1983, this combination concept book and cookbook playfully encourages readers to use easily found "ingredients" (dirt, water, pebbles) and household materials, such as pie pans and cardboard, to create scrumptious mud pies and cakes with messy abandon. Two "recipes" are included, one for a mud pie and the other for a mud layer cake with a dandelion candle-topped birthday variation. The final page sagely reminds readers, "Mud pies are to make and to look at/Not to eat." Just bigger than a drink coaster, this small, square book strikes a sincere tone, deftly avoiding sentimentality or pretention. Long employs a limited palette of black ink, brown mud, and yellow paint and unassuming flat shapes to illustrate the bare-bones instructions to pound, sift, and mix dirt into deliciously messy mud pies baked under the hot yellow sun. The thick off-white paper and hand-lettered text contribute to the handmade feel. It's even possible to see the faint, ghostly outlines of first sketches done in brown pencil. VERDICT Whether shared with a grown-up or discovered independently, this quick read will inspire much imaginative play. A first purchase for school and public libraries.-Amy Seto Forrester, Denver Public Library

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