Names for Snow

CATALOG COPY DESCRIPTION: "Mama, what is snow?" asks a curious little bunny on a crisp winter day. Just as every snowflake is unique, so are the names used to describe snow and its ever-changing nature. Sometimes snow is like the white wings of butterflies, other times it's like a clever magician who makes the landscape disappear! Poet Judi K. Beach's first picture book was inspired by Inuit culture (which has a very precise terminology to describe different kinds of snow), as well as her childhood memories of winters spent in Kentucky and Ohio. Loretta Krupinski breathtakingly renders Judi's sparse, lyrical text in paintings of serene landscapes and bustling borders. This young picture book is perfect for curling up to and sharing on any snowy, winter day.

PreSchool-Grade 2--Beach takes readers through the season as an adorable rabbit family cavorts in the snow, bakes cookies, and engages in wintertime activities. "Mama, what is snow?" a young rabbit asks at the beginning of the story. The narrator switches from "We call it…," as in "We call it Welcome in November," to "Call it…," as in "Call it Kitten when it sleeps in the crook of a window," which changes the tone of the text. Some of the images, both verbal and visual, are quite sweet--for example, "…Magician when the landscape disappears" or "…Trickster when it appears April First"--but others are not so satisfying. "Call it Mother when it dusts" is confusing. Is it the snow that "whistles through the trees" or does the wind make the noise? Krupinski's charming gouache illustrations are warm and comforting. Border pictures of the endearing creatures, clad in wintry clothes, alternate with gorgeous farm expanses with hardly a rabbit in sight. However, the inconsistent use of borders and spreads makes this title seem as if it wants to be two books. Not a first purchase.--Bina Williams, Bridgeport Public Library, CT
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PreS-K. A mouse child asks its mother, "What is snow?" The answer comes in this quiet mood piece as the mother describes a season filled with endless possibilities for naming snow. From the first welcome flurries of November through a surprise April snow, Beach's evocative, poetic text is accompanied by lush paintings of winter landscapes and farm life, with charming borders depicting the mouse family skiing, sledding, getting ready for Christmas, and enjoying the comforts of home. Krupinski combines the naturalistic illustration style of her earlier Dear Rebecca, Winter Is Here (1993) with the whimsical mice found in A Visit from St. Nicholas: And Santa Mouse, Too! (1998). This will work well as a starting place for imaginative word play and an introduction to metaphor. Louise Brueggeman
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