THOSE MESSY HEMPELS

The Hempel family is happy living in their cluttered home, until one day when they want to bake a cake and can’t find their whisk. The parents and their two children tidy up the kitchen, and though they don’t find the whisk, they do find a pillow, which they all conclude belongs in the bedroom. Off to the bedroom and another mess with the discovery of another item that belongs in another room with yet another mess, until the entire house and the garden are tidy. The children finally find the missing whisk after the parents collapse for a nap, but when the cake is baked, another mess is created, and in fine circular story fashion, the Hempels are right back where they started. Though the story is smoothly told with some amusing sound effects, the concept isn’t really that funny because the misplaced items aren’t that far out of place or the rooms really all that messy. The edgy illustrations use a flattened perspective, a gloomy palette, and characters shaped like odd rag dolls without much personality. Messes can be fun, out-of-context items can be fun, and circular stories can be fun, but the proportions in this recipe don’t quite add up to a satisfying treat. (Picture book. 3-6)