Mess: The Manual of Accidents and Mistakes [Paperback]

Keri Smith (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 7, 2010

Your whole life you've been taught to avoid making a mess: Try to keep everything under control, color inside the lines, make it perfect, and at all costs, avoid contact with things that stain.

This book asks you to do the opposite of what you have been taught. Think of it as your own personal rumpus room. A place to let loose, to trash, to spew, to do the things you are not allowed to do in the "real world." It's time to make a mess.

The only three rules you'll find in this book:
1. Do not try to make something beautiful.
2. Do not think too much. (There is no "wrong.")
3. Continue under all circumstances.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Keri Smith is the author of the popular weblog Wish Jar Journal, which attracts 8,000 readers daily, Living Out Loud, and Tear Up This Book. She’s illustrated for the Washington Post, New York Times, Ford Motor Company, People, The Body Shop, and Hallmark. She lives in Canada.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Perigee Trade; 1 edition (September 7, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399536000
• ISBN-13: 978-0399536007
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,346 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #30 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Reference

More About the Author

Keri Smith is an author/illustrator turned guerilla artist. She is the author of several bestselling books about creativity including This is Not a Book (2009 Perigee), How to be an Explorer of the World -the Portable Life/Art Museum,( 2008 Perigee), Wreck this Journal (2007 Perigee). Her newest book, Mess: A Manual of Accidents and Mistakes will be released fall 2010 by Penguin Books. She is the author of the popular weblog the Wish Jar, and writes on occasion for a variety of magazines. Keri spends her days playing with her husband and son, and divides her time between upstate New York, and the countryside of Canada.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 50 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars an extension of wreck this journal September 12, 2010

By Susan M. Unupi

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Manual of Accidents and Mistakes arrived in my mail today! I have been anxiously waiting for it, as I love Keri Smith's books. As I looked through it though, I saw that it seems to be an extension of Wreck This Journal. Some of the activities are basically the same, just worded differently. I was hoping for something diferent, something novel; but I am dissapointed that there's nothing "new" in this book.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Therapeutic and Explorative April 20, 2011

By Christine Bucher

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an excellent book. I am a musician and I sometimes have trouble letting go of the expectations I have of myself. Self-criticism can be incredibly debilitating. When you approach anything with a fear of failure, you give up on yourself before you have even started. If you are a little OCD or a perfectionist this book might be of help. Smith encourages her readers to let go and make a mess. This is also a great book for anyone who needs to get their mind off of something upsetting. With Mess, you will want to get out, live, spend time with your friends, experience and explore your own creative self and the world around you. And you can do so indefinitely because Mess is incredibly long lasting. There are several exercises in this book which I find myself returning to frequently to make additions to. So, you should buy one for yourself or for the person you know who has been told so often to color in the lines that he has lost all interest in coloring. Enjoy.

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Such a fun book! October 19, 2010

By Sarah

Format:Paperback

I've admired Keri Smith's work for a little while now but I'd never tried any of her books. Someone convinced me to check this one out, and after just a few of the activities I was hooked! Sometimes you forget how much fun it is to get down and dirty and make a mess.

I particularly loved taping a marker to the end of a long stick and trying to draw with it, as well as the writing mess (write a sentence of each line; cut out strips; recombine sentences to create new poems). It really got me thinking more creatively, sparking more ideas and helping me to get into a more artistic mindset. (Sometimes you need a little push to get the gears turning.) Which I think is the whole point! Some of the activities do get pretty messy (cover the page with something sticky; splatter, drip, and fling; etc) but that's part of the deal.

And of course Keri's illustrations are lovely. It's a really beautiful book! (Until you splatter stuff all over it, haha.)