Fridge-opolis

by Melissa Coffey, Josh Cleland (Illustrator)

Overview

This debut picture book is a humorous introduction to recycling and composting for young readers!

"A playful introduction to the serious topic of food waste. . . . Don't waste time: Pick up this fun, ecologically minded read." —Kirkus Reviews

There is rioting, rotting, and reeking.
Please send us your Lemon Fresh group!
Bring all your top sponges and cleaners.
Our city smells worse than . . .
pea soup!

In the jam-packed city of Fridge-opolis, Swiss cheese has turned moldy and bleu. The broccoli is in a bad mood downtown in the crispers. And the Eastside high-rises are full of dressings cloudy with gloom. With the city in chaos, Mayor Mayonnaise calls on Doctor Baking Soda at Undersink Labs for help. Will they be able to save Fridge-opolis from utter rancid ruin?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781499812541
Publisher:	little bee books
Publication date:	09/06/2022
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	476,213
Product dimensions:	8.25(w) x 9.75(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Melissa Coffey spent years writing professionally for grown-ups before discovering her love writing for kids. She hopes her first picture book will inspire readers to become food waste warriors and planet-saving superheroes. Melissa lives with her food adventurous family in Austin, Texas. Visit the author at melissacoffey.com and on Twitter @CoffeyCreative.

Josh Cleland is an illustrator working out of his home studio just outside of Portland, Oregon, where he resides with his wife, Rayna. You will find his work in various children's magazines, including Highlights and Storytime, and in other media such as greeting cards, websites, billboards, and more. His recent illustrated children's books include TAD and Portland Baby.
joshcleland.com.

Editorial Reviews

2022-06-22
A playful introduction to the serious topic of food waste.

As this picture book opens, the city of Fridge-Opolis has a serious pollution problem caused by rotting and expired food. Cartoon-style illustrations use wavy lines to indicate the malodorous stench emanating from the foods while also employing color, perspective, and crowding of forms and shapes to create a messy, chaotic setting. Meanwhile, rhyming text with a singsong cadence reads, “Lettuce had long ago wilted. / Rhubarb was bitter and rude. / The overripe pineapple prickled. / Even broccoli was in a bad mood.” Wordplay abounds as the untenable situation unravels, and after a food fight breaks out, anthropomorphic, mustachioed Mayor Mayonnaise resolves to clean things up. He enlists the help of Doctor Baking Soda, who scrubs the refrigerator clean and gets rid of spoiled food, leaving “only food safe to eat.” At book’s end, Recycling Ridge and Compost Town are introduced as new additions to the kitchen community, pointing toward ongoing efforts to reduce and responsibly deal with waste. Accessible, well-designed backmatter includes statistics and information about food waste in the United States to offer a sobering and inspiring call for readers to help “reach our national goal of cutting food waste and loss in half by 2030.” (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Don’t waste time: Pick up this fun, ecologically minded read. (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews