So Much Slime by Jason Lefebvre & Zac Retz

Matty is a grade-schooler who loves making homemade slime with his parents. When he gets permission to demonstrate how to make slime in art class at school, he’s super excited! He packs enough ingredients so that all his classmates can get some slime to take home with them, and repeats to himself the simple recipe his parents taught him: glue, baking soda, saline — and pizzazz!

His art teacher is at first a little perturbed by the sheer amount of slime Matty is planning on making. But Matty assures her that he knows what he’s doing… until he doesn’t. Examining the waves of sticky goop he’s unleashed in class, he realizes that he’s forgotten the saline! His classmates try to come up with creative ideas to sop up the mess that’s threatening to drown poor Matty, but their attempts to help only make the waves of slime get bigger. Will anybody be able to figure out how to fix things before it becomes an uncontrollable disaster?

This was an absolutely adorable picture book about making that toy? material? that so many kids (and their parents!) adore. Personally, I like slime for how it helps clean irregularly shaped items, but that’s neither here nor there. The enthusiasm of Matty and his parents is infectious, and even tho the demonstration goes a lot more haywire than planned, all’s well that ends well. Matty and his art teacher might be a little traumatized by the experience, but it’s clear that all the other kids had a blast as they tried to help solve the problem. Plus, the coda reinforces the fact that while not all experiments (or demonstrations) are successful, making notes of both what worked and what went wrong are valuable, scientific learning experiences.

Zac Retz’ digital art throughout is truly phenomenal, as he captures expressions at their utmost. Matty’s joy turns to a horror that’s almost perfectly mirrored by his poor art teacher, while his classmates’ faces run the gamut from sympathetic sobriety to sheer chaos goblin glee. Mr Retz’ background in animation shows in both his artistry and the adorableness of the characters and situations depicted, making his illustrations the perfect accompaniment for Jason Lefebvre’s charming story.

The only thing I wish this book included was an actual recipe for slime. My digital copy didn’t have one, so I’m not sure what the actual proportions are for the three main ingredients. Perhaps that’s for the best, else I’d be tempted to make some at home, without even needing to be spurred on by my kids (for a change.)

So Much Slime by Jason Lefebvre & Zac Retz was published September 3 2024 by Flashlight Press and is available from all good booksellers, including