50 ways to get your cartOn Recycle & create milk and egg carton crafts that rock

This flipbook-size collection of ideas for milk and egg carton craft projects includes nifty creations like "Dudley the Deadly Dragon," whose serrated teeth are cut from egg cups and wings are traced onto green felt, and a "Cityscape Play Mat," with buildings constructed from milk cartons. Each of the 50 projects is pictured in cartoon spot art with numbered steps, while stickers feature several of the completed masterpieces. It's a clever little book that will have readers mining the recycling bin. Ages 6-up. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Gr 3-6-Each project in this compact how-to manual opens with a small drawing shaded in color, a brief description of how it might be used, a materials list, and numbered directions to follow. Novice crafters might need assistance digesting these instructions. More illustrations such as diagrams would be helpful in understanding how to construct the "Woven Wonder Pencil Holder" and "Posh Party Purse." Many projects use inexpensive supplies found in the home or local craft store; some instructions call for "a piece of felt" without offering dimensions. A clockworks kit for the "Cow Clock" and set of LED lights for the "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Lamp" are among the more expensive materials. Most items require paint and a glue gun or white craft glue. Proper precautions for seeking adult help are provided when needed. The tiny font may limit the book's appeal. Templates accompany only two projects. In keeping with the recycling theme, the book has been printed using recycled materials. Similar activities can be found in Christine M. Irvin's Egg Carton Mania and Milk Carton Mania (both Children's Press, 2002) and Betsy Ochester's Look What You Can Make with Egg Cartons (Boyds Mills, 2000). They are all larger in format and more fully illustrated. With fewer, less-colorful illustrations, smaller print, and inconsistent supply lists, Warwick's book would be better understood by adults rather than children trying to use it on their own.-Lynn K. Vanca, Akron-Summit County Public Library, Richfield, OH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.