In the North Pacific Ocean
lives a monster made of trash,
A hungry, greedy meanie
with a handlebar moustache.
And though his name is Garbage Guts,
he’s often called Big G.
He blobs about destroying
all the oceans and the seas.

There’s nothing like rhyming verse to get the children excited. And especially when the main character is a huge, horrible mess of garbage. And not only does he look scary but he wants the whole ocean to himself. He devises a wicked plan for a big party inviting all his sea creature friends to share in his ‘delicious’ party food. But we know he can’t be trusted!

The illustrator, Heidi Cooper Smith, has made Garbage Guts such an incredible beast with all sorts of rubbish making up his huge body, that you could feel a little sorry for him. It really isn’t his fault that he’s so full of rubbish as we humans keep feeding him. But, being a children’s book, there’s a happy ending, and a clever one, as a monster full of trash can always be changed into lots of different things.

A fun book with an important message, and a big poster of this scary monster for the bedroom wall.

Reviewed by Merle Morcom
Age Guide 3+