A few years ago I read a tip I have since embraced: store holiday books with the holiday decorations. Last week while packing away the Christmas books I realized we had a few that aren’t actually about Christmas, focusing instead of snow and snowmen. The stories about snowmen cover how snowmen come to be and what they do at night, while the wonders of snow are praised in two very different ways.
Before Hallmark came out with their recordable storybooks, they started publishing the Hallmark Holiday Series. We received Snow Happy to be Here!, written by Cheryl Hawkinson and illustrated by Mike Esberg, from some cousins a couple of years ago. Snow-Ellen and Snow-John Snowblatt, both snowkids, want to know where they come from. Mama and Papa Snowblatt tell them all about snow falling from the sky, some of which becomes snowballs or forts, or gets skied on or slid on. There are wonderful descriptions of how snowmen are built and accessorized, and then how they are brought to life with just a smile. While researching the series I found new books are still being published and I look forward to next Christmas and picking up the new book.
After learning how snowmen come to be, we find out what they do while we’re sleeping, in Snowmen at Night by Caralyn Buehner, pictures by Mark Buehner. In case you were wondering, snowmen sip cold cocoa, participate in snowman races, play baseball with snowballs and have other great fun. Adding to the fun are images hidden throughout the book – a bunny in the snow, a dinosaur in the moon, Santa’s face here and there. If you’ve read any of Brian Lies’ bats books you’ll find Snowmen at Night in the same vein.
Moving on from snowmen, When Will it Snow? by Marty Crisp and illustrated by Viv Eisner is a fun read aloud all about Peter Petrosky MacGregor O’Toole, and that name alone should give you an idea of the book’s whimsy. Peter comes up with all of the fun things that can be done in the snow, until his mother reminds him it’s the middle of June. The artwork, done in gouache and colored pencil, matches the verse quite well.
The final book, Snow by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Lauren Stringer, is my favorite of the four, partly because of the gorgeous illustrations done in acrylic paints on watercolor paper. Something about the textures of the brush is perfect for illustrating snow. Rylant’s prose is also beautiful; non-rhyming which is actually quite refreshing in a picture book, and with enough imagery that the illustrations compliment the story but aren’t required:
“Some snows fall only slightly,
just enough
to make you notice
the delicate limbs of trees,
the light falling
from the lamppost,
a sparrow’s small feet.”
If you’re not quite ready to let go of the winter books but can’t bear to read The Night Before Christmas yet again, check out these snow-related books.
Nancy likes to watch the snow fall from inside where it’s nice and warm. She writes about her 2 boys and life in Colorado at Life With My Boys.
Some great selections, to be sure! We love The Snowy Day, of course, but also Uri Shulevitz’s Snow.
You know I don’t know if we’ve ever actually read The Snowy Day, I should check it out.
Oh, we love Snowmen at Night! Winter books can be such fun. Winter snow is also fun. I wish we would get some!
One of my favorite “snow” books is the beautiful edition of Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening that is illustrated by Susan Jeffers. It’s such a lovely way to introduce even small children to Frost. I usually do read it before Christmas though; I should remember that it’s still plenty relevant now (especially right now – we’re having a snow day here on the east coast)!
That sounds wonderful, I’ll have to check it out! I do love Frost.
Oh, those look like great books! I don’t have any children yet, but I’ve been a collector (and a picky one) of children’s books for many years now. I’ll have to look at the ones you mentioned.
Like Mrs. N, one of my personal favorites is the illustrated version of “Stopping by Woods.” Absolutely beautiful!
I’m a new Facebook follower. 🙂
(I’m hopping to every blog linked up to last year’s Ultimate Blog Party! Have a beautifully blessed day!)
These books look good–and I haven’t read them. I’ve been a preschool teacher for almost three years and haven’t come across these books. (Well, there are so many winter and snow books around.) My fave is The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. I’ve also reviewed some winter books on my site since we’re talking Winter all month. Yay! 🙂
These look fun and very topical for us right now as lots of snow on the ground.