BELLA BROWN’S MESSIER THAN MESSY ROOM by J.W. Zarek – Children’s Practical Skill Books, Picture Books, Children’s Responsibility Books

Bella can’t wait to visit a new butterfly garden, but in Bella Brown’s Messier Than Messy Room by J.W. Zarek, she has to tidy up some overwhelming clutter first.

Initially, Bella’s excitement for painting at the butterfly garden makes her too impatient to clean her chaotic room. But with encouragement from Grandma Yetta over the phone, Bella finds the task isn’t nearly as daunting as she worried.

Well suited to young readers, the writing will engage children in both structure and style.

Short, rhythmic sentences create an exciting, tumbling pace throughout Bella’s room. Although the prose can be a bit repetitive, certain words—especially the great variety of motion verbs—pop onto the page in bubbly magenta letters, making for a fun vocabulary teaching opportunity.

Grandma Yetta speaks in calm blue, which contrasts well against Bella’s lively pink. New readers will have an easy time telling dialogue apart.

Illustrator Anastasiia at GetYourBookIllustrations perfectly complements the book’s eager tone with vivacious use of color.

She makes Bella’s messy room into a delight of scattered visual details. Those who look closely will notice the appearances of Pip the Domovoi, an adorable fluffy companion in the wilds of laundry and toys. Pip adds a little game to nearly every page spread, rewarding curious young readers.

Anastasiia captures childlike whimsy and creativity, making a towering clothes monster from Bella’s pile of laundry. Bella’s toys and games become a crashing wave, and her stuffed animals pillow fight on her unmade bed. Bella’s long hair, adorned with flowers and tiny hearts, flows wildly behind her as she leaps around her room, adding to the energetic feeling of the book even as the backgrounds become clean and organized.

With a color scheme focused on pinks and blues, these illustrations match the two main characters—Bella and Grandma Yetta respectively. Giant pink butterflies cover Bella’s walls, and when she finally goes to the vibrant butterfly garden, she draws a special blue one on a thank-you card for Grandma Yetta’s help.

Bella Brown’s Messier Than Messy Room teaches valuable lessons about taking care of chores rather than putting them off for later.

Grandma Yetta guides Bella to clean her room one step at a time, organizing both her thoughts and her space alike. For children who struggle with cleaning, or focusing on other important tasks, this story shows that getting help from someone can make all the difference in handling things that seem hard.

This colorful, comforting book will help young readers keep their spaces clean and take on other challenges. With pages full of energy and fanciful illustrations, Bella Brown’s Messier Than Messy Room provides both useful examples to follow and an engaging little tale.