Tag Snow

Snow

jillrbennett Leave a comment

Snow
Meera Trehan
Walker Books

This story is set in Mistmir, a kingdom which is empty save for the Princess Karina who spends all her time digging Snow. This snow is not the ordinary precipitation, rather it has been scientifically modified to be self-replenishing in response to her wish for ‘perfect’ snow on her thirteenth birthday. As a consequence the Princess has been continually labouring and now she and her father, the King, are the only ones who haven’t fled.

One day as she shovels, the Princess discovers her precious fluttery toy, made by the strangers who created the Snow. A sign of hope surely, but before she’s been able to show her father, she encounters a girl, Ela, who has accidentally entered Mistmir from our world. Ela can hardly believe that this is the Princess from the Snow Princess book that her mother used to read to her every night.

Princess Karina realises that the unexpected visitor is key to saving Mistmir and invites Ela to her castle. Ela travels with Karina, hoping that she will discover the truth that lies behind the Book and the strange mental memory-like images it conjured. As they travel on the look out for menacing hounds on the prowl, the girls form a bond of friendship and work together to find answers and save the snow-immersed kingdom.

Combining magic and science, Meera Trehan has crafted a story with themes of loneliness, belonging and forgiveness that is perfect for the chilly winter months. The world building is throughly convincing and the climax of the tale satisfying. Altogether a thoroughly enjoyable, haunting read.

A Dot in the Snow / Bunny Slopes

jillrbennett Leave a comment

%0a

A Dot in the Snow
Corrine Averiss and Fiona Woodcock
Oxford University Press
Polar bear cub Miki would much rather play with his mother in the soft snow than fish in the icy Arctic waters. Off he goes up the ridge presumably in search of a playmate. That’s when he sees it – a red dot in the snow. Then from out of the blizzard emerges a figure – one that looks, smells and sounds friendly.

dscn9223

And, joy of joys, it wants to play  at first anyway…

dscn9224

Suddenly though, the dot isn’t so smiley and playful; something has gone missing. One of the child’s mittens: can Miki rescue it and save the day? He can; the ice breaks, the two continue playing; more snow falls blotting out almost everything. Two infants bid each other farewell, return to their respective mothers and doubtless each will have much to talk about.
Gorgeous texturing in the illustrations and a suitably spare text combine to create a warm-hearted wintry read with themes of friendship, determination and parental love, albeit with a bit of stereotyping. Snuggle and share.

%0a

Bunny Slopes
Claudia Rueda
Chronicle Books
Following in the footsteps of Hervé Tullet (Press Here, The Dot), Claudia Rueda has created a metabook with a wintry theme – a wintry theme that is, if readers play along. Bunny is ready for a ski day and invites us to join him; but snow is decidedly lacking. Readers have to create it by shaking the book – hard. Oops!

dscn9234

Then tap the top of the book to extricate Bunny but that ground looks rather flat. The book needs a right tilt to set our would-be skier in motion, and again. Yeah! He’s off … but all of a sudden …

dscn9235

(ingenious precipice-gutter moment). A  hasty 180 degree book turn and a page flip will, sort things. Now what?
More manipulating will see a battered Bunny up on his skis again and ready for another run at that cliff. Whoppee! He’s made it right to the opposite side but can he clear that hole? Phew! Just about, but surely not another one; the little fellow’s getting just a tad too big for his boots now but there he goes again …

%0a

Fortunately this leap leads to his very own den where Mummy Bunny is ready and waiting with a warming treat …
Love those rabbitty expressions and the minimal colour palette: with its simple text this is a good bet for those in the early stages of reading as well as individual listeners and book manipulators.

The Snowflake Mistake / The Bot that Scott Built

jillrbennett 1 Comment

%0a

The Snowflake Mistake
Lou Treleaven and Maddie Frost
Maverick Arts Publishing
The latest scientific research shows that what we’re told as children – that every snowflake is different – isn’t altogether true, although there are a great many structural variations. Now here’s a modern pourquoi tale explaining the popular idea that every one is different.
Princess Ellie lives with her mum, the Snow Queen, in a floating ice palace high above the clouds. In that palace is an amazing machine that collects clouds, squishing, crunching and stamping them to make into identical snowflakes.

dscn9243

But when Ellie’s mum has some business to attend to elsewhere, the young miss, (who would much prefer to be out playing) is left in charge of the machine. She decides to speed up the snow production …

%0a

and that’s when things, or rather the machine goes terribly wrong, and with a BOING! BANG! POP! it grinds to a halt.
With the only alternative being no snow for the children to enjoy, Ellie knows she must find another way of making snowflakes. Out comes her scissors and with the help of the birds, she makes snowflakes of all shapes and sizes, not perfect exactly, but every one beautiful, every one different. Hooray!
Full of wintry delight this rhyming story is another invention from the creator of the Oojamaflip – another quirky machine. Maddie Frost’s digitally rendered collage-style illustrations, especially those of the snowflake machine, are great fun and the final page provides information on how to make a snowflake.

dscn9187

The Bot That Scott Built
Kim Norman and Agnese Baruzzi
Sterling
It’s Science Day for Scott and his classmates and it’s Scott’s turn to demonstrate his robot. Things don’t go quite to plan though and that moment of glory rapidly descends into chaos as angry ants rampage, freaky frogs frolic and feast on flies, there’s a big-bellied boa on the loose and a whole lot more besides.

dscn9188

The cumulative rhyme dashes along at a frenetic havoc-making pace; and with lashings of alliteration and illustrations packed with hilarious details as the whole session turns from calm to mayhem, young listeners have plenty to enjoy as the catastrophes cascade into being until finally, a sense of order is restored. PHEW! Now who could have pressed that button in the first place, one wonders.

Winter/A Bird Like Himself

jillrbennett 1 Comment

DSCN6191 (800x600)

Winter
David A. Carter
Abrams & Chronicle
This small pop-up is full of wintry delights. As the sun goes down and snow begins to fall one chilly day, we see a white-tailed deer and follow deer tracks across the white covering and there’s a cardinal perching in a pine tree. Turn the page and make the snowflakes dance in the air, the snow geese too, take to the air while from behind a fir tree peeps a bear…

DSCN6192 (800x600)

yes there’s something to see at every level on each spread thereafter.
Turn over once again: holly berries deck the tree, a stoat stands stark with its tail aloft, a snowshoe hare hops by and mice are snuggling together to keep warm.
Next we see long-eared owls perching on an oak, long-tailed weasels as they are herein named, face us looking startled and red foxes are huddling from the cold (look behind the sandstone).

DSCN6194 (800x600)

Look on the next moonlit spread and find Orion above, a bobcat, snowberries glowing and creatures peeking and finally …

DSCN6195 (800x600)

Everything is still, everything is waiting under the milky way …

DSCN6185 (800x600)

One year old Jenson investigating the delights of WINTER

Some of the creatures are American but this adds interest for non-US readers rather than detracting from the charm of the book.

DSCN6200 (800x600)

A Bird Like Himself
Anahita Teymorian
Tiny Owl Publishing
When a chick emerges from a seemingly parentless egg, the animals living around take on the role of carers.

DSCN6201 (800x600)

They do their very best and if nothing else they give their new infant plenty of love.

DSCN6202 (800x600)

With such a variety of carers though, it’s not surprising that Baby – so called because he became everyone’s baby – has something of an identity crisis.
But with the winter fast approaching, it’s time for birds like Baby to be flying south to warmer climes and try as they might, none of the animals is able to demonstrate the techniques of flying …

DSCN6203 (800x600)

So what will be the fate of Baby who as yet isn’t really like those other birds? Can he finally spread those wings of his and take flight? Perhaps, with the help of a special friend …

DSCN6204 (800x600)

With its inherent themes of acceptance, parenting and caring, friendship and finding a place to fit in, this lovely book will resonate with adults as well as the many children I hope it will be shared with especially  with refugees from Syria being made to feel welcome in the UK as I write.
Author/illustrator Anahita Teymorian’s densely daubed illustrations are sheer delight. I absolutely love the final double spread whereon is revealed the significance of the chequer board design that appears on every spread – brilliant!

Use your local bookshop        localbookshops_NameImage-2

Snowy Frolics

jillrbennett 2 Comments

DSCN3495 (800x600)

Snow
Sam Usher
Templar Publishing
We all, adults and children alike, relish those first footsteps in virgin snow so it’s natural that when the boy narrator of this lovely story wakes to discover snow is falling, he can’t wait to get off to the park – before anyone else if possible.

DSCN3496 (800x600)

He’s ready in no time but he has to wait for Grandad who does everything in his own good time. It’s no surprise then, that despite his constant urging, “… the others will get there first, Grandad. DON’T FORGET THE SNOW”, the two are last on the scene.
When they eventually reach the park however, it becomes evident that Grandad’s throw away remark that the whole zoo was probably out there, is in fact true and they throw themselves wholeheartedly into the wintry fun and frolics.

DSCN3497 (800x600)

Was it worth the wait? ‘Definitely’ is the decision of both Grandad and small boy.
This heart-warming wintry tale, which has at its core the loving relationship between a Grandad and his grandson, is beautifully portrayed with gentle humour in watercolour paintings large and small. I see echoes of Bob Graham and Quentin Blake in Usher’s illustrative style and I love the balance of text and illustrations within the taller than usual pages, in particular the large white expanses used to depict the freshly fallen snow and the sheer exhilaration of the snowball fight spread .
Buy from Amazon

bear reading 012 (800x600)

Bear and Hare SNOW!
Emily Gravett
Macmillan Children’s Books
We had the superb Bear and Hare Go Fishing wherein they shared a pastime loved by Bear. Here the friends delight in one of Hare’s favourite activities, romping in the snow. They catch snowflakes on their tongues, make footprints in the snow, create snow angels, build snow creatures – a hare

 

hare

and a bear …

 

bear reading 014 (800x600)

Then comes some snowball making, followed by a spot of sledging, the sheer exhilaration of which finally brings a smile to Bear’s face – YIPPEE!

bear reading 016 (800x600)

Time for a mug of hot chocolate guys …
So simple, so clever and absolutely brilliant for beginning readers to relish for themselves once it’s been read aloud again and again and …
Full of warmth, gentle humour and those wintry activities loved by young and old alike. Sheer genius for the chilly season.
Buy from Amazon
Use your local bookshop: http://www.booksellers.org.uk/bookshopsearch