The
Messy Garden Mystery
With Otto the Otter and His New Friend, Marta Written by Corey Womack | Illustrations by Ron Wolfe Edited by Elizabeth Dru Yates
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From left to right: Colbie Jones, Director of Keep Arkansas Beautiful; Robyn Taylor, Volunteer Program Manager; Otto the Otter, Awesome Spokesmammal; Michael Barger, Education Coordinator
sincere thank you to all who have been involved in the development of Keep Arkansas Beautiful’s second storybook for early learners. A special thank you to the Education division at Arkansas PBS for their work scripting the book and to artist Ron Wolfe for his delightful illustrations. I’d also like to thank KAB’s Education Coordinator Michael Barger for his leadership in developing this book and enhancing our education program. Thank you to KAB Volunteer Program Manager Robyn Taylor for her tireless work over many years with youth education. Furthermore, I would like to thank our Keep Arkansas Beautiful commissioners and Foundation members for their dedication and support throughout the state, as well as our partners at MHP/Team SI: Chip Culpepper, Julie C. Robbins, Katelyn Myers, Mark Hinson, Paula Eifling and Lizzy Chandler for their professional assistance in producing this book. Last, but certainly not least, I would like to thank the State of Arkansas for supporting our mission to improve livability through litter prevention and education, recycling and beautification.
Colbie Jones Director Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission
Corey Womack is an Emmy winning writer and producer for Arkansas PBS. He is honored to help tell the story of Otto the Otter's next great adventure! Corey grew up in Cave City, Arkansas, and now lives atop Park Hill in North Little Rock with his wife Patricia and their two dogs. When Corey can't be found toiling at his keyboard, he is likely working in the vegetable garden or reorganizing his record collection.
Photo credit: Georgios Telonis
Ron Wolfe is known for his cartoons of dragons and daffodils, frogs, firecrackers and flying saucers, pickles and pumpkins that ran in the state newspaper, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He and his wife, Jan, herd a thundering pack of chihuahuas. Otto the Otter’s never-quit personality, brown-and-gold coloring and bright eyes are modeled after the leader of the pack — Ron’s drawing-board companion and collaborator, Charli Chihuahua. Photo credit: Jan Wolfe
“Today is the day! Hip, hip, hooray!” Otto the Otter sings as he skips away. “A new spring is here. Flower season is starting. I’m off to open our community garden!”
When Otto arrives, he looks on in dismay as his friends call to him, “We can’t garden today!” “My bed is full of junk!” “There is stuff in that tree!” “Our whole garden is covered in trash and debris!”
“Don’t give up now! Don’t give up now!” Molly Mockingbird sings. “You just need some help!” She flutters her wings.
“We’ve got a problem to solve. Who do we ask? Who do we see?” “It’s no problem at all. No problem at all for the Mystery League!”
So Otto calls Marta – a skillful young sleuth. “Can you find out who did this? We need the truth.” “Your garden is a wreck? Trash is all over the place? Not to worry, Otto. I am on the case!”
Marta leads the investigation from beginning to end. Her very first task is to question all Otto’s friends! Their musical friend, Bob, has no answers to mention, and the Boggy Creek Monster was out of town – at a Bigfoot convention!
Next, they find Clyde and his friend Trish Trash. “We didn’t wreck your garden – our litter is in the past!” “These days I recycle. I’m a real planet saver! I have three bins – for glass, plastic, and paper!”
So, the detectives wake Patty. “How can you sleep that way?” “Otto, bats are nocturnal. We sleep through the day. But I didn’t see anything. It was too windy last night! I just hung around. I never took flight.”
“I know someone who knows gardening. She’ll have answers aplenty.” So, they visit Marta’s friend, good ol’ Farmer Jenny. “I haven’t been to your garden. Sorry, I don’t have much to share. I was here, shoveling compost, in the clean country air!”
“Compost?” What’s that? It looks like it stinks.” “Oh! Compost is magic. It’s made of all kinds of things. It feeds happy gardens with old leaves and cut grass. If you want to grow big plants, throw in your veggie scraps!”
“That’s all of our friends. Every person from the list. Let’s head back to the garden to search for anything we missed!”
They return to the garden, but it’s just as they feared! The mystery is unsolved, and the mess isn’t cleared.
“What will we do?” cries Otto. “The trash has to go! If we don’t clear it out, then nothing will grow!” “This case is a tough one. The big clue is buried deep. We’ll look for clues just a little longer,” says Marta, “then head home. To get some sleep!”
The next day is lovely, but the mess still remains. Otto is sad, “Everything looks just the same!” “Not to worry,” says Marta, “I still have some tricks as a detective. We’ll fly my drone, Zumbido, to get a fresh new perspective!”
Zumbido flies high and gets the best bird’s-eye view. Wouldn’t you know it? He finds something that’s new! “Look there!” points out Marta. “Those cans have all spilled.” “They’re overflowing with trash!” Otto cries. “They’ve been overfilled!”
“What will we do? There’s too much trash for the cans!” “Otters never say quit! We just need a plan!” “Some of this is plastic! We’ve got plant scraps aplenty!” “We should recycle!” says Clyde. “Or compost,” says Farmer Jenny!
So, they strap on their gloves, their goggles, and their smiles. Then they sort the junk into four separate piles. “A pile for glass! A pile for plastic! And one for paper. Now one for plant scraps – to become compost much later!”
“Well, I guess that’s that,” says Marta. “What a day! I suppose Zumbido and I will be on our way.” “Not so fast!” calls out Otto.
“There’s one more mystery to solve. It’s right over here! We need you involved.”
“You see, there’s nothing growing. This bed is all bare. But I think a clue is showing. Look now! Look there!” “A bed all my own?” Marta asks. “I can’t believe it! How cool! I’ll grow so many flowers! I’ll garden each day after school!”
Make sure to be careful with your trash. Put it away where it goes. Our state is lovely, and when you care, you’ll be surprised by what grows. We should all do our part, pull our weight, and be dutiful. Don’t pollute and never litter, and you’ll keep Arkansas beautiful!
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t is the first day of spring and Otto the Otter is off to open his community garden. There’s only one problem – there is trash everywhere! Otto calls for help from his friend Marta, a member of Arkansas’s very own Mystery League! Can Otto and Marta rely on their detective skills to interview their neighbors and find out where the trash is coming from? Will they solve the mystery in time to open the garden for spring? Find the answers in The Messy Garden Mystery!
The Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission (KAB) consists of a professional staff of three and a nine-member advisory board appointed by the governor. KAB is a part of Arkansas State Parks, a division of the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism. KAB is a certified state affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, Inc., on a mission to inspire and educate individuals to reduce litter, recycle and keep Arkansas beautiful. KAB is funded through a 1 percent portion of the eighth-cent Conservation Tax, and, by mobilizing volunteers, returns to the state a cost benefit of more than $6 in community service for each program dollar spent.