Beautiful Oops! - by Barney Saltzberg (Hardcover)

About the Book

Saltzberg ("Good Egg") offers a one-of-a-kind interactive book that shows young readers how every mistake is an opportunity to make something beautiful. Pop-ups, lift-the-flaps, tears, holes, and smudges demonstrate the magical transformation from blunder to wonder. Full color.

Book Synopsis

A spill. A smear. A smudge. A tear. When you think you have made a mistake, think of it as an opportunity to make something beautiful!

A life lesson that all parents want their children to embrace: It's okay to make a mistake. In fact, hooray for mistakes! A mistake is an adventure in creativity, a portal to discovery. A spill doesn't ruin a drawing--not when it becomes the shape of a goofy animal. And an accidental tear in your paper? Don't be upset about it when you can turn it into the roaring mouth of an alligator.

An award-winning, best-selling, one-of-a-kind interactive book (now with 650,000 copies sold!), Beautiful Oops! shows young readers how every mistake is an opportunity to make something beautiful. A singular work of imagination, creativity, and paper engineering, Beautiful Oops! is filled with pop-ups, lift-the-flaps, tears, holes, overlays, bends, smudges, and even an accordion "telescope"--each demonstrating the magical transformation from blunder to wonder. A paint smudge becomes the face of a bunny, a crumpled ball of paper turns into a lamb's fleecy coat--celebrate the oops in life.

Review Quotes

A pleasingly tactile exploration of the possibilities inherent in mistakes. "A torn piece of paper... is just the beginning!" Spills, folded paper, drips of paint, smudges and smears--they "all can make magic appear." An increasingly complex series of scenarios celebrates random accidents, encouraging artistic experimentation rather than discouragement. The folded-over paper can be a penguin's head; a torn piece of newsprint can turn into a smiling dog with a little application of paint; a hot-chocolate stain can become a bog for a frog. Thanks to a telescoping pop-up, a hole is filled with nearly limitless possibilities. The interactive elements work beautifully with the photo-collaged "mistakes," never overwhelming the intent with showiness. Saltzberg's trademark cartoon animals provide a sweetly childlike counterpoint to the artful scribbles and smears of gloppy paint. A festive invitation to creative liberation. - Kirkus Reviews