Review by New York Times Review
Its time for a fresh batch of holiday stories, sprinkled with tales of snow. GOOD MORNING, SNOWPLOW! By Deborah Bruss. Illustrated by Lou Fancher and Steve Johnson. Don't be fooled by the title - the action takes place over the course of one night, when a rural town is covered in deep snow. That means no rest for the snowplow, whose driver jumps inside, his dog by his side, to get to work. Written in punchy, succinct rhymes, Bruss's text captures the primal appeal of both snow and snowplowing, while Fancher and Johnson's dazzling art makes the book feel special, a celebration of winter nighttime beauty and the people - and machines - who cheerfully rise to the occasion when the going gets snowy. 32 pp. Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic. $17.99. (Ages 3 to 5) LITTLE OWL'S SNOW Written and illustrated by Divya Srinivasan. This lovely third picture book featuring the tiny, giant-eyed Little Owl begins in late autumn and quickly plunges into winter, when many of Little Owl's friends are unavailable thanks to hibernation or migration, and life begins to seem a little dull. Even the thrill of the first snowfall wears off. But with help from Mama Owl's wise advice, Little Owl adjusts to the quiet and solitude and learns to appreciate the snow. Srinivasan paces her gentle story perfectly, and her simple digital art is appealing, with cute, watchful creatures and soft-edged shapes. 32 pp. Viking. $17.99. (Ages 3 to 5) A WHISPER IN THE SNOW By Kate Westerlund. Illustrated by Feridun Oral. Three rabbits and two mice (twins) hear a whisper under the snow. They dig and find a wet, sad stuffed bear, so they pack him in a little wagon and cart him to a friend's house. There they fix him up, get him dressed and enlist some bird friends to find the child who has lost him. Even the truly jaded may melt a bit over this charming, exquisitely illustrated Beatrix Potter-esque Christmas tale, which wears its holiday message and its life lessons (teamwork, compassion, critical thinking) as lightly as the season's first dusting of snow. 32 pp. minedition. $17.99. (Ages 3 to 8) TOUGH COOKIE: A CHRISTMAS STORY Written and illustrated by Edward Hemingway. What if the candy-studded cookie in the classic "Gingerbread Man" tale actually tasted terrible - because he was (spoiler alert) really a tree ornament, baked with glue and salt? That's the clever premise of this entertaining story about a sugar cookie and a fox who spits him out ("Blech! You taste awful.... plus, I think I just broke my tooth"). The book delivers a parable of selfacceptance, as well as recipes for sugar cookies - both the edible and ornamental varieties. 40 pp. Christy Ottaviano Books/Henry Holt. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8) LITTLE FOX IN THE SNOW By Jonathan London. Illustrated by Daniel M ¡yares. Foxes and snow are a picture-book staple, but this one is different: It's both winter-cozy and a realistic hunting story. "Hunger draws you like a bow," the book's narrator says to the little fox. "You must hunt! " A white hare - "no match for a fleet-footed fox" - soon fills his belly. Miyares, whose watercolor art is as stunning as always, shows a bit of red staining the stream as the fox takes a cold drink of water after his meal. 40 pp. Candlewick. $16.99. (Ages 4 to 8) I GOT THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT By Connie Schofield-Morrison. Illustrated by Frank Morrison. This refreshing ode to the Christmas spirit does not (as so many do) lament the lack of it these days. Instead, an ebullient girl with pompom pigtails and a purple parka tells how she feels and shares it: caroling, eating hot candied nuts from a street vendor, donating coins, ice skating: "I twirled and swirled around the spirit." Morrison's felicitous art bursts off each page with a pop of energy. 32 pp. Bloomsbury. $16.99. (Ages 4 to 8) THE BROKEN ORNAMENT Written and illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi. Jack is a kid who sees Christmas as a bottomless goody bag. When he shatters an ornament that meant a lot to his mom, she's crushed, but Jack is clueless until a fairy grants him all his wishes for more, more, more. Then she shows him the moving story behind the ornament, and he changes his Christmas tune. The story can seem as jarringly jam-packed as Jack's Christmas list, but it drives home its message heartily, with a maximalist retro visual style. 48 pp. Simon & Schuster. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8) ONE CHRISTMAS WISH By Katherine Rundell. Illustrated by Emily Sutton. Theo, whose busy parents are out on Christmas Eve, finds a box of old ornaments. He wishes on a shooting star to be "un-alone," and they come to life. Adventures, mishaps and true connections follow. Rundell's ("Into the Jungle," "Rooftoppers") lively, eloquent prose and Sutton's warm, delicate art make for an enchanting chapter-book read-aloud. 64 pp. Simon & Schuster. $18.99. (Ages 5 to 9) maria Russo is the children's books editor at the Book Review.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [August 30, 2019]
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Hemingway (Field Guide to the Grumpasaurus) bakes up a clever case of mistaken identity in this holiday treat-inspired tale. Fox can't resist giving chase when a little cookie, still warm from the Christmastown Bakery's oven, jogs in front of him, shouting, "Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me-I'm the Sugar Cookie Man!" But just as readers think they're in for a certain gingerbread-flavored story, Hemingway flips the script. Cookie turns out to be both a slowpoke and a terrible-tasting tooth-breaker, according to Fox. After several attempts to sweeten up, Cookie learns that he was created to decorate, not be dined upon, and he takes his rightful place on the town tree, relishing that he is "one tough cookie." The smiling, anthropomorphic goodies that populate the streets of Christmastown demand a close look, and the author's snappy pacing and silly scenarios keep the giggles coming. Includes recipes for sugar and ornament cookies. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
This amusing Christmas story begins as a twist on The Gingerbread Man, with a fresh-baked cookie being chased by a fox: You cant catch me / Im the Sugar Cookie Man! Fast, sweet-toothed Fox easily catches this cookie, but BLECH! YOU TASTE AWFUL! An existential crisis is followed by self-betterment (Fox helps Cookie sweeten up and speed-train) until Cookies brethrenassorted Christmas tree ornamentsfind him and clear things up: Youre special. Baked with glue and lots of salt The funny identity comedy is sprinkled with cookie puns (Everything I do is half-baked!) and cinematic compositions in which Christmastowns cartoony residents banter in speech bubbles. Recipes for tough cookies (both the edible kind, and nonedible ornaments) are included. katrina Hedeen (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A modern twist on "The Gingerbread Man," with Fox chasing the Sugar Cookie Man through Christmastown.The Land of Holiday Treats is peopled with smiling cupcakes, cookies, and other sweets that bustle through the festive town. The action begins when out of the Christmastown bakery flies a very cute cookie past Fox, saying "Run, run, as fast as you can! / You can't catch meI'm the Sugar Cookie Man!" Fox gives chase and catches up to him quickly only to discover, to the surprise of them both, that the Sugar Cookie Man isn't sweet at allinstead, he's a terrible-tasting, tough cookie. Fox tries to cheer the distraught baked good up with "sugary sweet Christmas carols" and by sprinkling him with sugar, to no avail. It turns out that the Sugar Cookie Man is actually a tree ornament and not meant for eating. In tone and style, this book is reminiscent of Lane Smith and Jon Scieszka's fairy-tale retellings, though with less wisecracking. The fun is in the size of the round-eyed characters, the icinglike pastel colors, the layout and pacing of the storyline on the page, and the variety of candy and cookie characters, all smiling away. The author, a grandson of Ernest Hemingway, provides recipes for tough cookies (edible) and tough cookie ornaments (nonedible).This sweet and silly story is about friendship and making the best of what you've got. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
