What do you think?
Rate this book
Little Critter
Just a Mess
Little Critter has made quite the mess in this classic, funny, and heartwarming book.
Whether he’s shoving junk under the bed, cramming toys in the closet, or overstuffing drawers with clothes, children everywhere will relate to this beloved story. A perfect way to teach kids about picking up after themselves!
Mercer Mayer's Little Critter stories, which address all the major issues of growing up, are perennial favorites for generations of readers, both young and old!
Whether he’s shoving junk under the bed, cramming toys in the closet, or overstuffing drawers with clothes, children everywhere will relate to this beloved story. A perfect way to teach kids about picking up after themselves!
Mercer Mayer's Little Critter stories, which address all the major issues of growing up, are perennial favorites for generations of readers, both young and old!
24 pages, Paperback
First published December 12, 1987
16 people are currently reading
1066 people want to read
About the author
Mercer Mayer
774 books788 followersMercer Mayer is an American children's author and illustrator. He has published over 300 books, using a wide range of illustrative styles. Mayer is best known for his Little Critter and Little Monster series of books.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
June 26, 2019
The nephew has gotten a lot better about his room being clear as he is older now. It used to be a terrible mess. Part of that is the niece loves a very neat room and she won’t let anyone mess up her stuff. When they play or have guests over, they always play in the nephews room so the niece keeps her room neat and the nephews room looks like a tornado zone. He is at a place where he likes his room neat, so things are shifting.
This beginning book is what my nephew’s room used to be like. Everything was everywhere and he could pull things out fast. In this story Critter is looking for a baseball glove and its in his room which is such a mess that it has to be picked up to find it. Critter stuffs things under the bed and in the closet and in the drawers willy nilly. I have seen my nephew do this many times, just scoop it under the bed. Then he yells, DONE!. haha
The nephew said that Critter was a mess. We all agreed. He gave this book 4 stars and the niece thought it was funny. The niece is into Tidying Up, the Marie Kondo Netflix show and she also loves to clean up messes. She is always asking me if she can help me organize my room. she gave this self-cleaning book 5 stars.
This beginning book is what my nephew’s room used to be like. Everything was everywhere and he could pull things out fast. In this story Critter is looking for a baseball glove and its in his room which is such a mess that it has to be picked up to find it. Critter stuffs things under the bed and in the closet and in the drawers willy nilly. I have seen my nephew do this many times, just scoop it under the bed. Then he yells, DONE!. haha
The nephew said that Critter was a mess. We all agreed. He gave this book 4 stars and the niece thought it was funny. The niece is into Tidying Up, the Marie Kondo Netflix show and she also loves to clean up messes. She is always asking me if she can help me organize my room. she gave this self-cleaning book 5 stars.
June 27, 2019
Another cute book that loves children. ❤️
June 6, 2018
First sentence: Today I couldn't find my baseball mitt. I looked in my tree house. I looked under the back steps. I asked Mom if she had seen it. She said I should try my room. I never thought to look there. What a mess!
Premise/plot: Little Critter has a messy room. (Anyone caught by surprise there?!) Since he can't get anyone to help him clean his room, he decides to do it for himself...in a way that only Little Critter can. (Well, I take that back. Little Critter's technique isn't all that original.) Will he find his baseball mitt?
My thoughts: Perhaps with the exception of Ramona Quimby (did she have a messy room too?) the character I most identified with as a child was LITTLE CRITTER. I love, love, love, love, crazy love Mercer Mayer's Little Critter.
The rest of the mess could fit under my bed. So I put it there. Then I made the bed. Won't Mom be pleased.
Premise/plot: Little Critter has a messy room. (Anyone caught by surprise there?!) Since he can't get anyone to help him clean his room, he decides to do it for himself...in a way that only Little Critter can. (Well, I take that back. Little Critter's technique isn't all that original.) Will he find his baseball mitt?
My thoughts: Perhaps with the exception of Ramona Quimby (did she have a messy room too?) the character I most identified with as a child was LITTLE CRITTER. I love, love, love, love, crazy love Mercer Mayer's Little Critter.
The rest of the mess could fit under my bed. So I put it there. Then I made the bed. Won't Mom be pleased.
January 29, 2015
This book always makes me laugh. I have read it with the children in my classroom several times, especially when clean up is becoming an issue. The children think it's quite funny and always have comments on little critters cleaning technique. :0)
Little critter has lost his baseball mitt and his mother suggests he clean his room to find it.
Little critter starts to clean his room by throwing things in the closet and shoving things under the bed. He ultimately finds his mitt in the process losing his pillow, and then finds that as well. It seems Little Critters dumping technique works for him.
Little critter has lost his baseball mitt and his mother suggests he clean his room to find it.
Little critter starts to clean his room by throwing things in the closet and shoving things under the bed. He ultimately finds his mitt in the process losing his pillow, and then finds that as well. It seems Little Critters dumping technique works for him.
February 24, 2012
This is a fun book about a "little critter" who has to clean his very messy room, but does not do it in a way that any mother would accept. He shoves things in his closet and under his bed.
I used this book to prompt a math lesson in which the students had to clean up their unifix cubes, but they had to do it the right way, not at all like the "little critter". The "right way" to clean up the unifix cubes in this lesson was to make tens. The students worked as partners to make tens with the unifix cubes.
I used this book to prompt a math lesson in which the students had to clean up their unifix cubes, but they had to do it the right way, not at all like the "little critter". The "right way" to clean up the unifix cubes in this lesson was to make tens. The students worked as partners to make tens with the unifix cubes.
November 13, 2017
Fun looking for the spider & cricket.
August 28, 2018
I've always loved Little Critter books by Mercer Mayer, but I'm going to be an adult for a moment because I'm talking about my child.
My kid HATES clean up time. Cleaning up ANYTHING is pure torture and takes hours, tears, tantrums, and wears me and husband out. While I appreciate that Little Critter behaved like any normal kiddo, I think there should have been some reinforcement of "If you're going to clean your room, do it right." I have a feeling that closet gave someone in the Critter family a concussion.
Guess what my kid does? He shoves everything without regard into containers. You can't find anything you're looking for. SMH
My kid HATES clean up time. Cleaning up ANYTHING is pure torture and takes hours, tears, tantrums, and wears me and husband out. While I appreciate that Little Critter behaved like any normal kiddo, I think there should have been some reinforcement of "If you're going to clean your room, do it right." I have a feeling that closet gave someone in the Critter family a concussion.
Guess what my kid does? He shoves everything without regard into containers. You can't find anything you're looking for. SMH
March 29, 2015
I think this was super appropriate for situations we go through in the every day life. When little critter has to clean his room to find something is something I relate to. I think every kid cleans the exact same way, with shoving stuff in the closet.He finally found what he was looking for after "cleaning".The illustrations are awesome and they really tell the story as you go along without having to read the words which I think benefits to the younger kids. The book was really cool and really kept you interested.
February 4, 2012
Every child has to learn to clean his or her room. If they do not learn this life skill they will not be able to find any thing and grow up to be unorganized.This little critter decided to clean his room so that he could find his baseball mitt.Children can comprehend what happens first to last in this story.
May 1, 2012
I like this book for many reasons. One, it has a funny, real life story. Second, it uses very simple words for my early readers. Third, it has real-life lessons in it: cleaning your room, finding your toys, being responsible for your own belongings and mess, and one should never 'wash' the bedroom floor with a hose :)
September 22, 2015
This book is great for teaching a concept. I think K-2 would benefit from reading these series's they are great books. This book teaches why keeping your room clean is important and how to do so,and the trouble that come with not keeping your room clean. I read these book in K-2 and they were some of my favorite books to read. These series are definitely going to my future classroom bookshelf.
August 10, 2018
classic
October 20, 2018
I sort of have a thing for books that deal with cleaning and organizing since I love to do so myself. This highlights a child's way of thinking when it comes to "cleaning their room."
November 4, 2021
I wish I did not relate so hard to this story.
September 19, 2024
Cleaning up has never been more of an adventure! 🧹😅 Little Critter proves messes happen to the best of us. 😂🚽
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
July 21, 2008
Little Critter is big here. We pick them up cheap (well, cheaper than they already are) at the local used book store.
This book follows just the plot you'd expect - Little Critter loses his baseball glove and is told by his mother to clean his room. He does a dubious job at that and finally, just when he's almost forgotten why he started, he finds his glove!
Here's the thing. You can buy these books for $4 anywhere (or, if you get them used, probably under a buck). You could stock your child's library primarily with these. Don't expect great literature, but they're good standbys, short for bedtime and "just one story" times.
The one really attractive feature they have is that they are a great example of the unreliable narrator. Whatever Little Critter *says* he's doing, you can be sure the picture shows just the opposite. This is a good narrative convention, and it's never too early to have your kid learn about it through blatant demonstration.
And kids like them. Little-little ones can sit through them, and older-little ones, just learning to read, still find them interesting enough to sit down for.
This book follows just the plot you'd expect - Little Critter loses his baseball glove and is told by his mother to clean his room. He does a dubious job at that and finally, just when he's almost forgotten why he started, he finds his glove!
Here's the thing. You can buy these books for $4 anywhere (or, if you get them used, probably under a buck). You could stock your child's library primarily with these. Don't expect great literature, but they're good standbys, short for bedtime and "just one story" times.
The one really attractive feature they have is that they are a great example of the unreliable narrator. Whatever Little Critter *says* he's doing, you can be sure the picture shows just the opposite. This is a good narrative convention, and it's never too early to have your kid learn about it through blatant demonstration.
And kids like them. Little-little ones can sit through them, and older-little ones, just learning to read, still find them interesting enough to sit down for.
September 27, 2019
Just a mess by Mercer Mayer
Mercer Mayer is approaching the topic of staying neat and keeping your stuff in check. Little Critter is desperate to find his baseball mitt, and when he doesn’t, he is devastated. But when he sees his room, he is told to clean it, and by that point he has forgot about the baseball mitt. Little Critter wants help to clean his room because how dirty and cluttered it is. Little critter is the main character to teach the lesson the author is going at.
I would recommend this book to teens although it is in a little kid format it can still send a message to teens. Teen’s shall be a bit messy and unorganized sometimes so I found that little critter might be able to help. This book has inspired me to stay clean and straight, and now that I've read this book my room is neat, and I don’t lose things anymore (well for the most part).
Mercer Mayer is approaching the topic of staying neat and keeping your stuff in check. Little Critter is desperate to find his baseball mitt, and when he doesn’t, he is devastated. But when he sees his room, he is told to clean it, and by that point he has forgot about the baseball mitt. Little Critter wants help to clean his room because how dirty and cluttered it is. Little critter is the main character to teach the lesson the author is going at.
I would recommend this book to teens although it is in a little kid format it can still send a message to teens. Teen’s shall be a bit messy and unorganized sometimes so I found that little critter might be able to help. This book has inspired me to stay clean and straight, and now that I've read this book my room is neat, and I don’t lose things anymore (well for the most part).
December 9, 2014
Just a mess by Mayer Mercer
Genre: humor and comedy Reading kevel: P-3 grade Format: good
Just a mess is a book about a little critter who is trying to look for his baseball mitt. He looks outside and he finds nothing. So then he asks his mother if she can help him find his mitt but she tells him to look for it in his room because she knows he has a mess in his room. So he tries looking for his mitt in his room and doesn’t know where to start because he has a lot of mess. So he tries to stick everything in his closet and under his bed. Until he notices his pillow is missing so he looks around his bed and finally finds his mitten. This book was funny because it reminds me when I was a little girl and would always have a mess whenever I played and couldn’t find my toys. This book would be nice to share with the students to relate with the character.
Genre: humor and comedy Reading kevel: P-3 grade Format: good
Just a mess is a book about a little critter who is trying to look for his baseball mitt. He looks outside and he finds nothing. So then he asks his mother if she can help him find his mitt but she tells him to look for it in his room because she knows he has a mess in his room. So he tries looking for his mitt in his room and doesn’t know where to start because he has a lot of mess. So he tries to stick everything in his closet and under his bed. Until he notices his pillow is missing so he looks around his bed and finally finds his mitten. This book was funny because it reminds me when I was a little girl and would always have a mess whenever I played and couldn’t find my toys. This book would be nice to share with the students to relate with the character.
November 17, 2014
Mercer Mayer, Just a Mess (Golden Press, 1987)
Like many kids, Critter will go to any lengths to avoid cleaning his room. When his mother finally puts her foot down after Critter goes to her complaining that he can't find his baseball mitt, he finds inventive, if not too effective, ways to hide the stuff and make it look like he cleaned up. Some parents will take offense to the book's conclusion (spoiler alert: he gets what he wants without actually doing any cleaning), but it felt more like a punchline than a moral judgment to me, so I took it for what I figured it was and ran with it. Enjoyable. ***
Like many kids, Critter will go to any lengths to avoid cleaning his room. When his mother finally puts her foot down after Critter goes to her complaining that he can't find his baseball mitt, he finds inventive, if not too effective, ways to hide the stuff and make it look like he cleaned up. Some parents will take offense to the book's conclusion (spoiler alert: he gets what he wants without actually doing any cleaning), but it felt more like a punchline than a moral judgment to me, so I took it for what I figured it was and ran with it. Enjoyable. ***
February 7, 2017
This book is about how the main character was going to play baseball but he couldn’t find his mitten. He looked everywhere from inside to out. One thing he didn’t notice was he didn’t look hard enough. He looks one last time and …… I recommend this book to kindergartners and first graders because there are smaller words for them to read.
September 22, 2017
This book was a good one too. There wasn't a hugely noticeable lesson in the book but it could be used to talk about many things in the classroom. In this book he cant find his mitt in his messy room and eventually ends up cleaning it and finding his mitt. It would be a good lesson for younger kids to keep their rooms clean.
August 26, 2023
LC learns how helpful it can be to keep your room clean---you just might be able to find your missing things.
September 18, 2018
It was a good book.
November 30, 2018
This is a great book that many kids can relate too with messy rooms.
October 3, 2019
A good book to tell kids to clean up after themselves.
December 9, 2019
Can definitely help kids be more organized!
April 2, 2020
Read by Puyallup Police Officer "Obie" Soooooo Funny he used a snapchat filter that altered his face and his voice!
May 29, 2020
So much fuss to find a catcher's mit! :-)
Read
September 26, 2019Book Review of Just a Mess By Mercer Mayer
The book Just a Mess by Mercer Mayer approaches the topic of kids being messy and lazy. In this book the main character of the book is a little boy whose name is Little Critter. The mother, sister, and the baby make an appearance in the book. In the book, Little Critter couldn’t find his baseball mitt. He went to go check in his room, and soon found out that his room was an absolute mess; in order to find his baseball mitt, he had to clean his room. He started cleaning by shoving things places and not entirely caring where things went. While he was cleaning, he ended up finding his baseball mitt.
I would recommend this book to any child who has a hard time understanding the importance of keeping everything clean and not being lazy. It helps us remember that cleaning isn’t a bad thing and that it can help you in the end. Just as Little Critters mom said, “You made the mess, so you can clean up the mess.”.
The book Just a Mess by Mercer Mayer approaches the topic of kids being messy and lazy. In this book the main character of the book is a little boy whose name is Little Critter. The mother, sister, and the baby make an appearance in the book. In the book, Little Critter couldn’t find his baseball mitt. He went to go check in his room, and soon found out that his room was an absolute mess; in order to find his baseball mitt, he had to clean his room. He started cleaning by shoving things places and not entirely caring where things went. While he was cleaning, he ended up finding his baseball mitt.
I would recommend this book to any child who has a hard time understanding the importance of keeping everything clean and not being lazy. It helps us remember that cleaning isn’t a bad thing and that it can help you in the end. Just as Little Critters mom said, “You made the mess, so you can clean up the mess.”.
March 20, 2023
My grandson really liked this book and we ended up reading it at least 3 times through. Little Critter wants to play baseball but he can’t find his baseball mitt so off he goes, to find it. After searching in a few spots, he asks his mother if “she had seen it” and she tells him to check his room. His room could have anything in it, as its chucked full! “What a mess!” Mom tells him to clean his room which he does and it’s funny, how well he cleans it. It’s a cute book to read together with little ones as Little Critter tackles the big job of cleaning his room. His room is almost perfect (everything is hidden away) when Little Critter notices his pillow is missing from his bed. While searching for his pillow, Little Critter makes the perfect discovery. 4.5 stars.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews