Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2--One frozen winter day, a young girl, her dad, and their dog set off for the local skating pond. Together, they try many different activities, falling down and getting back up along the way. After a pause to warm up with some hot chocolate and treats in the snack hut, they are ready for more fun. The cadence and presentation of this story are ideally suited to bedtime reading. Short, rhyming phrases pair beautifully with the artwork. Created using watercolor and colored pencil, the images are detailed and varied, showcasing many of the activities that can be done on and around a frozen pond. Readers will relish the detail captured within the images, from figure skating to building a snowman. A small note on the copyright page reminds readers to always be careful when skating on an unfamiliar pond. VERDICT Readers of all ages will enjoy the quiet calm that descends upon them while sharing this story as they, too, wind down from a day of winter fun.--Mary Lanni, formerly at Denver Public Library
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A child and their parent enjoy a wintry skating outing while other skaters of varying degrees of ability and expertise surround them.When the child takes a few skating steps, slides, turns, and promptly falls, the parent moves in to help and gently assure that falling is part of learning. A break taken in the snack-bar hut provides warmth, hot cocoa, and sandwiches. Later, another whirl around the pond together comes to a close with skates coming off and a ride home to a bath and cozy bedtime routine. The lively, brief rhyming text outlines the story's sequence as it depicts the adjoining scenes. "Good friends gliding in a row. / Holding on and letting go. // Hockey sticks go clatter-clack. / Figure skaters stay on track. // Couples waltz. Children race / Happy people. Happy place." Lovely drawings with simple details, done digitally and using watercolors and colored pencil, move the verse from a brisk, snow-covered day scene to the deeper purple hues of a winter dusk and a final, deeper blue when nighttime creatures enjoy the frozen pond. Though the protagonist and parent present white, multiracial representation is evident throughout the skating community.This winter sports portrayal is a fine and attractive addition to the season's preschool collection. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
