Little Owl's snow

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.

The same senses of wonder and discovery that charge Little Owl's Night (2011) and Little Owl's Day (2014) animate this tale of autumnal bustle and wintry delight. Something is happening! Little Owl realizes as leaves change, temperatures drop, geese fly off, and wild friends prepare for winter naps -except for Raccoon, that is, who whispers, Bear sleeps through all the fun. You'll see. And fun there is, when snow falls to blanket the forest, and Little Owl all big eyes in the simply composed illustrations sees red berries on leafless branches, fish swimming in the pond beneath a layer of ice, and other seasonal marvels. After some time, Little Owl misses his friends and longs for spring. Snow is like a special secret not everyone can know, his mother says. Are you ready for it to melt away so soon? Indeed, a glimpse of a dripping icicle hints that the new season will come in due time . . . but for now, snowy pleasures beckon. Seize the day, owlets!--John Peters Copyright 2018 Booklist

The whimsical little owl with the huge eyes is back (Little Owl's Day, 2014, etc.), exploring the joys of a new and unfamiliar season.Feeling a chill in the air, he thinks, "Something is happening!" The leaves are changing color and beginning to fall, geese are flying away, and many animals are preparing to hibernate. "Bear sleeps through all the fun," Raccoon explains. As he flits through the silent forest, Little Owl sees the magic of winter. Snow begins to fall, and the forest is transformed into a crystalline fairyland. Tracks appear in the snow, fish swim under the frozen pond. Little Owl starts to miss his hibernating friends, especially Bear and Hedgehog, but Mama encourages him to enjoy the snow, "a special secret not everyone can know." Little Owl finds he can still have fun playing in the snow with everyone who is awake through the winter. Srinivasan's stylized illustrations are colorful tapestries on black backgrounds depicting a realistic variety of fall and winter foliage and animal life. The forest floor is rich with mushrooms, nuts, leaves, and berries. Bear's paws and mouth are stained with the blueberries he is gorging in preparation for his long sleep.A gentle encouragement to explore and get the best out of unfamiliar situations. (Picture book. 2-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.