Thank you to the author, Ivy Kids Eco and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This children's book was so much more than I was expecting, based on the title. Encouraging the reader to dive into the mess of mud - be it as mud pies or otherwise - this activity book imparts lots of nature facts and shares many suggestions for crafts, and activities. The illustrations reinforce the message about caring for the earth - a fun way to help kids discover natural science in a hands-on way.

Book Review: 21 Things to Do With a Mud Pie by Jane Wilsher

Rating: 4 Stars

I recently had the pleasure of reviewing "21 Things to Do With a Mud Pie" by Jane Wilsher, and it was absolutely adorable! This charming outdoor activity book is packed with creative ideas that make getting your hands dirty a whole lot of fun. As someone who appreciates nature and the outdoors, I think this book would be an excellent addition to any homeschooling curriculum.

At its core, this book is all about the wonders of mud. Wilsher encourages kids to embrace their playful side by building towers from baked mud bricks, crafting cozy homes for worms and ants, and decorating massive mud pies with flowers, twigs, and leaves. It’s a treasure trove of activities that blend arts, crafts, games, and science experiments, all aimed at getting kids outside and interacting with nature.

What really impressed me was how Wilsher not only highlights the joy of playing with mud but also educates young readers about its importance in the ecosystem. The book explains how mud contributes to plant growth and serves as a cozy habitat for various animals. With dedicated how-to boxes and step-by-step instructions, kids can dive into these activities easily—whether they’re done solo, with a friend, or alongside a grown-up.

One aspect that stood out to me is the flexibility of the activities. They can be tackled in any order and are perfect for any season. Whether it’s a chilly autumn day or a sunny summer afternoon, there’s something for everyone.

I truly loved how Jane Wilsher emphasized that children can have fun while also nurturing their understanding of the earth and its ecosystems. The instructions were straightforward and complemented by fascinating facts that transform each activity into an interactive learning experience. This book does an excellent job of keeping kids occupied while also instilling knowledge about the world around them.

Moreover, the cute illustrations and informative tidbits about different types of mud and real-life science experiments right outside our doors are fantastic! It’s a wonderful resource for encouraging young people to explore their environment and learn as they play.

Lastly, I have to appreciate Ivy Kids for their commitment to the planet—they print their books on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. This eco-conscious approach is just another reason to love this book!

In conclusion, 21 Things to Do With a Mud Pie is not just a fun activity book; it's a delightful tool for learning about nature while getting your hands dirty. I’d give it a solid four stars and highly recommend it to parents, educators, and anyone looking to inspire curiosity in the great outdoors!

⚠️This review was written based on personal opinions and experiences with the book. Individual preferences may vary⚠️

Who knew that there was 21 things you could do with mud! This book is great for ideas for messy mud play. I liked all of the information and the cute illustrations. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A perfect book for children who love to get messy. Not only does it give you ideas on what they can make out of mud. It also gives the importance of mud, the scientific reasonings behind mud, how mud is one of the main resources of an ecosystem, how mud helps plant growth. There is so much children can learn by going outside and exploring what's on there doorstep. So in other words parents let your children get dirty and discover more about mud.

Thank you NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group – Ivy Kids for this eCopy to review

21 Things to do with a Mud Pie is a fantastic activity book jam packed with nature facts, crafts, and activities. It was great fun, easy to do, and the activities do not cost much to do is is accessible for all. We loved the illustrations and the caring for the Earth message

I great gift or school book

A really fun book about nature, and all the things you can do with mud and dirt. Great to encourage outdoor play.
Great for the classroom.

This book was really cute! It was way more descriptive and advanced than I thought it would be based on the title. It was maybe a little harder for my daughter to understand all of it but she loved learning about the different animals and other parts of the story like growing flowers. They love playing in our outdoor toy kitchen with kinetic sand and maybe next time we’ll use mud instead and revisit this book.

What a FUN book!!! I have four kids, and we are always looking for fun books and fun things to do. And this was it! The illustrations were absolutely darling, the concept and ideas were so fun! I just was amazed and shocked with how darling this book was. Such a fun one!

This is a fun way to get some science to the most reluctant reader. THe illustration are colorful and detailed. The text is rich in facts and fun. I thought it was great that there was even a how-to for creating the mud pie in the first place!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. This will do great at my library.

21 Things to Do With a Mudpie is the perfect book for adventurous kiddos who are not afraid to get messy! My girls enjoy going to the local Nature Center where they have an outdoor kitchen so I knew this book would be a hit. This outdoor activity book is educational and fun. There are ideas for making mud pies among other play food like soup and donuts, making your own fossils, rolling out mud and making animal prints. Some other activities include identifying which type of soil you live near, using mud as paint, observing the creatures that live in the soil, planting, and composting. I didn’t realize how much my kids could actually do just by stepping outside and letting them use the hose pointed at some soil for a few minutes. This book would be a great gift for a child or even an accompaniment to homeschooling and learning about plants, soil, fossils, animals, etc. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to share this one with my children.

Such a fun beautifully illustrated book that teaches kids 6-8 about nature, ecosystems, plant growth, and more, using the medium of mud! A keeper!

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. A fun informative book about things kids can do with mud and how creatures use it too.

Wow! So fun for my 3 year old lover of mud! We read these ideas close to sunfall and my son wanted to try all of them! Great ideas with informative facts about mud and nature! Really enjoyed it. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC

First, I love that this book is on recycled paper!!!

The level of detail in this book is honestly impressive. The author has included so many fun facts and several AMAZING activities that I am so excited to try with my two toddlers! The illustrations are absolute perfection! What a fun way to get you and your kids outside without it costing much of anything at all. Definitely recommend this book!

Highly recommend this for kiddos! An interesting mix of science and fun with great illustrations! I look forward to gifting it to my nieces and nephews!

This book is great. It teaches soil science in a cool, fun way to engage young readers. The illustrations are beautiful. I think most kids who like playing in dirt would really enjoy this book.

This is a really engaging and fun book, full of interactive activities that I'm sure kids will love and even parents might enjoy! I feel like a lot of people are fed up with the whole idea of the "iPad generation" so this could be a great alternative if someone wanted that

An amazing idea and concept that is informative, fun, inclusive and imaginative. 21 Things to Do With a Mud Pie talks about soil, mud, and all things both, kind of. Beautifully illustrated and designed, this book promotes outdoor and creative play, and love for the nature and yourself (yes, for normalising wanting to make mud pies, first of all). I would have picked this for myself even if I were not a parent.

Super interactive and well-written book! All of the activities were doable and not too complex, and all of them were good for kids AND the earth. I loved how the author made a point to accentuate that kids can have fun, while also caring for the earth and the natural ecosystems all around them. This is so, so important and relevant in today's world. Additionally, all of the instructions for the activities were easy to understand, and there were lots of facts that went along with the instructions that makes this book an interactive learning experience. It's perfect for kids because it keeps them occupied AND helps them learn new things. Lastly, the illustrations added a lot to the book with their detail, their colors, and the way they accurately demonstrated, through cartoon children, how to do the activities. It really gives that final to get kids into playing with mud, gardening, and the outdoors.
Bravo!

A wonderful book! Equal parts fun and educational. This would even be a good one for kids who can't read yet because the pictures do such a good job showing what the text is explaining.