"A Very Chilling Mystery" - Midwest Book Review

A Very Chilling Mystery is a children's book written and illustrated by Steve A. Erickson. It tells of a cold, cold place which contains mysteries (yes, it's the refrigerator), and captures the secret world of food in an especially delightful, rollicking rhyme: "If it wasn’t dark in there,/What would the food be doing/Among the Tupperware?/Well, I am here to tell you,/There’s life inside that box./When the door is shut, the light stays on/And that frosty space? It rocks!"

The vivid dance and musical antics of various fridge denizens commands young reader attention both by the fun rhymes and unexpected scenarios they paint and the equally vivid illustrations Erickson uses to embellish his story.

Even the most reluctant of young eaters will find plenty to like in a tale that celebrates hidden lives, mystery, and food facts, all couched in whimsically imaginative description: "Then there is the milk carton/Who becomes extremely grumpy/When it stays past its “best by” date/And turns quite sour and lumpy."

Adults who want to teach the young reader a bit about food but who face resistance to staid nonfiction accounts will find this assessment of the good and the bad in a typical refrigerator to be a fun way of absorbing food facts and fancies. It lends to both adult read-aloud and individual pursuit by youngsters who already have good reading skills.

A Very Chilling Mystery also serves as both an example of poetic prowess with its winningly whimsical approach to food and the mysterious possibilities that lurk behind closed doors.