Claymates

by Dev Petty, Lauren Eldridge (Illustrator)

Meet the claymates: two balls of clay that can become anything—even best friends!

What can you do with two blobs of clay? Create something amazing! But don't leave them alone for too long. Things might get a little crazy.

In this photographic friendship adventure, the claymates squish, smash, and sculpt themselves into the funniest shapes imaginable. But can they fix a giant mess before they're caught in the act?

Genres: Picture Books, Art, Humor, Friendship, Childrens, Animals, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published June 20, 2017

About the author

Dev writes books for kids which are also often enjoyed by immature adults.

She was a senior visual effects artist in film and is now- thanks to her husband, daughters and pets, fully recovered from her chronic workaholism.

She is also good at word jumbles. Really good.

Dev was born in Berkeley, California and now lives pretty much in Berkeley, California.

Reviews

[La Coccinelle]

I love this.

Despite the impression the somewhat lacklustre cover gives, this is a hilarious book about creativity. Two lumps of clay wait in a studio to be molded by an artist. They wonder what's going to happen next. Suddenly, a pair of hands comes along and molds them into shapes. The grey clay becomes a wolf, and the brown clay becomes an owl. When the artist leaves, however, the fun really begins. The claymates start playing with their own features, becoming all sorts of different things. But... they hear the artist returning! Quickly, they try to put themselves back the way they were. They don't quite succeed...

I was giggling to myself while I was reading this. The characters' expressions are absolutely priceless. It's amazing what the artist managed to do with just clay and doll eyes. The text is sparse and simple, more like speech balloons in a graphic novel than anything else, but it perfectly captures the essences of the characters' personalities.

I really, really hope that there's going to be a sequel or something, because the premise is just too good to be left as a standalone. I want more from the claymates!

Quotable moment:

[Earl]

One of my favorite picture books of the year and also one I want to win a Caldecott. Great fun concept of what two balls of clay can be. I would love to see a behind the scenes video of this book was made!

[Scott Fillner]

Oh My...I love this book! It had my children and I laughing out loud multiple times! I can't wait until June!!!

[Julie]

This is a fun book about two friends who can literally become anything they want to be! The pufferfish is my favorite with his big cheeks, spikes and tools sticking out all over!

[Julie]

I loved the creativity of this book when I first read it months ago. But I adored it when I shared it with my second graders over the past week. They laughed out loud and applauded at the end. They had great questions about modeling the clay (which I couldn’t really answer!) and were reflective on how much effort must have gone into each illustration. Now I need to get my hands (literally and figuratively) on some clay! Great book!

[Gigi]

I had to read this one again after I finished. So much to look at. Kids will LOVE it!

[Carol]

This book is laugh out loud funny and beyond creative. I hope it is eligible for the Caldecott. I can't wait to read it to my 3.5 year old twin grandsons although older children would love it as well and want to rush out and find some clay. I love the artist/illustrator's note in the back where she says she focuses on three important words: emotion, movement and connection. She also says that "Art and stories can be made out of anything! What will you create today?" Hope it inspires others as it did me.`

[Deborah]

Two delightfully subversive blobs of plasticine dare to try on different selves when no one is looking. Warning: when this story is over, kids may not want to re-read right away; they are more likely to drop this book and look for their own ball of clay. Great fun.

[Danielle]

This is truly wonderful. Action, emotion (those facial expressions!), creativity, camaraderie, plus lots of laughs. Yet somehow at the end I was crying too. That ending! This picture book is pure joy.

[June]

2 balls of clay get sculpted into a wolf and an owl. They then decide to have some fun...

I have a real soft spot for claymation.

[Peacegal]

Wonderful! Brings to mind an especially vibrant Pixar short. This book made me want to get sculpting clay for myself, which I imagine was its intent!

[CaseyTheCanadianLesbrarian]

Funny, with a cool twist on plasticine/clay illustrations in that it's acknowledged that they're balls of clay constantly changing into different things.

[Jessica Calaway]

age 4 to 8

[Kathryn]

So fun and creative! I smiled as I read this. The author’s note is a nice insight into her creative process. Note: my library copy had a “books that can talk” feature attached — I’m guessing to play an audio recording of the story — but it was not working so I can’t speak to that feature.

[Tasha]

Two balls of clay meet one another and then are formed by an artist into an owl and a wolf. The two are left alone and quickly discover that they are able to change their own shapes as they like. They rapidly change from one form to another, elephants and peanuts, things big, small, flat and sharp. As the artist returns, the two balls of clay try to remember what they had originally been shaped as but don’t quite get it right. So back they go into a wolf and an owl and then eventually into balls of clay. But they aren’t done playing yet!

The text of the book is entirely done in a dialogue between the two characters, so it is simple and easy. The result is a book done in photographs that reads much more like a comic with speech bubbles. There is a delight in the photos and the clay shapes, evoking claymation movies and the joy of childhood play with clay.

Throughout the book, there is lots of humor both in the dialogue and the shapes that the clay takes. The illustrations also incorporate the tools the artist uses to shape the clay, and the early pages of the book show an image of the set and photography equipment. The clay shapes are clever and funny, inviting readers to explore clay themselves and start to make friends through play.
A joyful look at friendship and creativity. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

[Turrean]

Wonderful! In her studio, an artist (whom we don't see) sculpts two creatures from clay. When she (finally!) leaves, they decide to make a few little changes, to hilarious effect. The photo illustrations, created with clay and some seriously mad eyeballs, are just delightful. Perfect accompaniment to other stories that play with characters' self-awareness, or how characters create their own settings:
Chloe and the Lion, Be Quiet!, even Harold and the Purple Crayon, and so on.

[Margaret]

There are days when you crave great gulps of it. It's an elixir for your soul. You need it like your body needs air. It can come over you spontaneously or build until it bursts out in the open.

Whether it's a snicker or a shriek, laughter is contagious. It's a rare person who hears it and does not feel at the least, a hint of a smile forming. Claymates (Little, Brown and Company, June 20, 2017) written by Dev Petty with illustrations by Lauren Eldridge is certain to send spirits soaring. There will, without a doubt, be a great deal of roaring...with laughter.


My full recommendation: http://librariansquest.blogspot.com/2...

[Lesley Burnap]

This book is a creative tour-de-force! Creatures made from clay begin to experiment with their self-image once "the artist" leaves the room and all heck breaks lose! Dev Petty's dialogue is a witty, fun banter between these 2 creatures of clay. Lauren Eldridge seems to have WAY too much fun molding Deb's words into action! Hilarious book for all ages! The only problem I have is whether or not I can wait that long for my own hardcover book! Spectacular!

[Kyra Nay]

In a studio, two lumps of clay are transformed into a wolf and owl by the hands of the artist. When left to their own devices, the two fast friends playfully begin to experiment, changing into elephants, aliens, cyclops, peacocks and more. But what will happen when the artist returns?

This is an excellent choice for elementary students, who will appreciate the visual humor. It’d would also make a good book paring for any clay-based art programs.

3.5 stars.

[Becket]

Story-wise, this is a fairly typical metafiction picture book, but the completely bonkers 3-D clay illustrations bump it up a level. Some kids might be a little freaked out by the gleeful body modifications of these two clay pals, but lots more will be fascinated (and possibly inspired to do some sculpting of their own).

[Melanie Hetrick]

A darling book starring 2 balls of clay who are molded into a wolf and an owl. When the artist walks away the clay models start reinventing themselves with hilarious results.

Best for one-on-one sharing.

[Beth]

Sooooo cute! I laughed out loud at this book more than once. It is pure genius!!! It isn't really a read aloud book, and I think first through third 3 grade kids would enjoy it the most. What am I saying? First grade through adults are going to love it!!!

[Susie]

Hilarious and clever! I wonder how long it took to do all of the carving. I read this because it was on Mr. Schu's Mock Caldecott list; he has additional background information on his blog post. I then saw someone mention whether photography was eligible for the Caldecott.

[Katie Dicesare]

This books is super creative and hilarious! I know my kids will want to be creating with clay as soon as they see it. So many possibilities for kid thinking throughout and after reading this.

[Riley]

Oh. My. GOSH. So cute!! And super meta

[Niki]

So CREATIVE!! I can't wait to read this book aloud to students!!

[Miss Sarah]

This book features real life pictures of two clay balls that continually change their appearance throughout the book. Very imaginative and told in speech dialogue. preschool and up.

[Donna]

Cute story told by the two clay pieces. Would make an interesting intro to a maker unit or art unit about creativity and making change. The pieces have great facial expressions.

[Serine Majid]

I LOVE IT!!!!!

[Harper]

It was friends that were clay and love to turn into anything.