A review by engpunk77
The Mess That We Made by Michelle Lord

5.0

WOW. I'm ordering this picture book for our elementary, ms, and hs picture book collections, and I'm personally buying one for home. The haunting and stunning illustrations accompany the classic "This is the house that Jack built" structure that takes the reader under the surface of the ocean to see "the mess that we made," and I was aching and crying. Lord shows children that our waste goes to landfills that spill its contents into the water and the chain reaction of misery that ensues, but in an age-appropriate way for children who probably will not cry to the extent that I did. Then, Lord uses the same rhyme and structure to turn the narrative around to the "ocean that WE save." She transforms this devastating book into one about hope and empowerment, and I am IN LOVE. Can I please make every child read this? Can I please, please, please put this in every classroom, every park bench, every boardwalk wall, every camp rec room? Of all of the books about the The Great Pacific Garbage Patch and landfills, recycling, and planet preservation that I've read geared toward our youth, this is the most powerful.
The appendix info at the back is perfect, concise nonfiction factual info about the issues brought forth in the book. I recommend this to EVERY one, every library, and every elementary school classroom and every ELA class in every middle school and high school nation/world wide.