Beautiful Junk

A delightful story about community and the three Rs, Beautiful Junk by Melissa Assaly and Samantha Lucy Haslam will inspire young treasure hunters to take a little walk on garbage day.

Rowan and his mom love neighbourhood walks. One day they see their neighbour putting out a whole bunch of stuff at the curb. They call it the big pile of junk. Slowly, day by day, the pile gets smaller as neighbours find treasures among the junk, including Rowan. A story to encourage readers to think twice about the things that end up in the trash.

Melissa Assaly’s story feels very Toronto, or at least my neighbourhood. Garbage day or the days leading up to garbage day are often filled with treasure seekers looking for things that can be repurposed. I have done my share of placing things on the curb as well as taking things from the curb. This story illustrates the beautiful way in which readers can rethink the things that are put in the garbage. I love that this story will inspire neighbourhood walks with friends and family and will encourage readers to be a little bit more conscious of the ways in which they are disposing of their items.

Samantha Lucy Haslam’s illustrations bring colour and vibrancy to the story. Reading this book on a cold winter day made me feel the warm spring sun and the fresh greenery that will come in a few months time. I appreciate the large scale illustrations making this a perfect book to share as a read aloud. The pages are filled from top to bottom with colour and bold faces.