Can Mud Be THAT?!

From elephant sunscreen to a delicious drink for a butterfly, mud is one of nature’s most versatile materials.
Each spread in this nonfiction picture book explores a different way animals use the gooey stuff: A mama mud dauber wasp molds it into a nursery for her babies, while warthogs roll around in it to keep insects from biting them. Serviceable, expository language that uses repetition encourages anticipatory page-turning and helps readers discover mud’s many surprising uses in the natural world. Colombo’s colorful illustrations featuring loose brushwork pop against a crisp white backdrop. Exaggerated, energetic depictions of endearingly cartoonish, wide-eyed animals offer a contrast to the mottled, earthy textures of the ever-present mud. The book wraps up by highlighting human uses for mud, including skincare, pottery, and construction—a missed opportunity for an acknowledgment of the Indigenous origins of many of these traditions. The backmatter offers a few interesting mud-related facts, though they stray from the animal-focused text, along with suggestions for muddy play and crafts. Human characters feature varied hair color and skin tones. A lighthearted introduction to the many ways animals interact with mud, this is a book that packs a playful punch.
A muddy good time.
—Kirkus Reviews

Following the footsteps of Kimberley Knutson’s Muddigush and other celebrations of the glories of mud, Markle looks at the many ways animals use mud in this informational picture book. Butterflies suck up mud as a nutritious “slushie” rich in salts and minerals. Elephants spray themselves with mud as sunscreen, while hot hippos find mud to be an effective “cool pool.” Colombo captures these busy, muddy animals at work and play in a series of nature scenes featuring googly-eyed wild creatures with animated expressions. Text is brief, informative, accessible, and interesting to a younger audience. A final spread depicts a racially diverse group of adults and children using mud for making bricks, ceramic pottery, and having a muddy good playtime. Reinforcing the concept that mud exists in several consistencies from “thick” to “sloppy,” each texture with different qualities and applications, a hands-on project is included. Young mess-makers will be excited to employ a bucket, bagged topsoil, and controlled amounts of water to explore the physical properties of mud.VERDICT A valuable introduction to animal behavior and natural science for younger audiences that presents mud as equally useful as it is fun.
—School Library Journal

Sandra Markle is an award-winning author of more than two hundred books for children, including Thirsty, Thirsty Elephants, What If You Had Animal Teeth?, Toad Weather, Little Lost Bat, and A Mother’s Journey.

Alexandra Colombo has illustrated more than two hundred books in countries around the world, including So Many Books! and Ellie the Eggspert. She lives in Milan, Italy.

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