Is it Winter Yet?

 A Sled for Gabo 

by Emma Otheguy; illus. by Ana Ramírez González 

40 pages; ages 4-8

Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2021  

theme: friendship, winter

The day it snowed Gabo followed the whistling sound of an old steam radiator into the kitchen.

All the other kids are outside sledding. But Gabo doesn’t have a sled. He doesn’t have warm boots or wool socks or a winter hat, either. But Mami is a problem-solver. With many pairs of socks and plastic bags tied over his sneakers, Gabo is ready to go play in the snow. But first, he wants to find a sled.

What I like about this book: I like how Gabo goes to neighbors to see if they have a sled he can borrow. They don’t have a sled, but offer him other things. Eventually he does get something that will slide down the hill, and in the process makes a new friend.  I also like that the opening spreads show Mami and Papi cooking something on the stove: a can in a pot of water. And at the end, Papi cranks open the can and Gabo and his new friend grab spoons and dive into the Dulce de Leche. 

I also like the illustrations. Ana Ramírez González captures the expression of Gabo’s thrill and joy of riding down a hill perfectly! 

Beyond the Books:

People use all kinds of things to slide down a hill, from plastic saucers to lunch trays. What sorts of things could you use to slide down a hill if you don’t have a sled? Try some of them out and see how they work.

Make some Dulce de Leche (cooked sweet milk). You can do it in a can like Gabo’s Mami. Here’s how.

No boots? Try this. The trick to keeping your feet warm when all you’ve got is sneakers to wear on a snowy day is to insulate. Grandma used to grab bread bags to put over our socks. Here’s how to do it: Get two pair of knee socks (or socks that go up your calf a little bit). Put one sock on your foot. Put your foot inside a bread bag. Now pull the second sock over the bread-bagged foot. Put your foot in your sneaker and lace it up. Now do the same for your other foot. Go. Play in the snow. 

Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy is from my local library system.

Teach your Giraffe to Ski

I wanted to squeeze this review in before the end of winter. In case you need to...

Teach Your Giraffe to Ski 
by Viviane Elbee; illus. by Danni Gowdy
32 pages; ages 3 - 5
Albert Whitman & Company, 2018

theme: winter sports, family

Uh-oh. It’s snowing and your giraffe wants you to teach her to ski.

The illustrations shows her pointing to her skis, which are leaning against the wall by the coat hooks. So of course, you offer alternatives: hot cocoa, making snow giraffes –  but no! She gallops off to the ski slopes.

What I like about this book: it’s SO fun! As a former ski instructor, giraffe reminded me of some of my young charges. We didn’t call wedge turns “pizza” back in the stone age, but we did holler “snowplow!” when kids (and adults) forgot how to slow down. I also love the exclamations that the kid makes: Great spotties! Jumping spotties! I may incorporate them into my family-friendly list of thing to say.

What I really like: when giraffe does get to the Big Scary Slope, her kid – er, instructor – has to take a deep breath, figure out how to get off the scary ski lift, and go after her. Because giraffe needs her!

The ending is fun and surprising – and I won’t ruin it for you. Strap on a pair of skis and schuss to the nearest bookstore/library/bookmobile to get your own copy.

Beyond the Book:

Do some “before skiing” exercises: stand with feet under your hips (wide stance). Reach down to your toes. Then reach up to the sun. Lift your knees like you’re marching. Then do some jump ropes. Now stand on one foot. Then the other. Back to both feet, and bend your knees. Now you’re ready to hit the slopes!

Strap on imaginary skis and let’s go “skiing”.
First thing we have to learn is how to make our skis into a pizza slice – so we can slow down.
Next, make your skis like French fries, going in the same direction. Bend your knees a little.
Now we have to walk up the hill so we can ski down. We walk sideways like a crab.
Make an obstacle course of things to ski around – like a slalom course.
Try “skiing” backwards!
Use your imaginary skis like skates… that’s how you ski on flat roads.

You could make some indoor skis out of cardboard. These are great on kitchen floors and down long hallways. Here’s some directions, but be creative.

Create a ski hill for little people or lego people. Here’s how.

We're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday. It's a weekly event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy shoveled off a shelf at the library.

Snow Ponies!

Snow Ponies
by Cynthia Cotten; illus. by Jason Cockroft
32 pages; ages 3-6
Square Fish (reprint paperback) 2013

Theme: seasons (winter);imagination

"On a cold, gray day, Old Man Winter walks out to his barn and opens the door." Inside are his white ponies, impatient to get outside for a romp. They flow out of the gate and into the woods. The ponies are playful, full of energy.

"In a flurry", they canter... they thunder through the woods and frolic, rear and race. Clouds of snow whirl around them. Their play grows wilder as they gallop and leap over fences. Eventually they tire and drift back to the barn.

What I like: This book is full of wonderful language and imagination - a perfect read for sitting in a big chair with a mug of steaming cocoa. While the wind blows the snow outside, the snow ponies flurry and drift across the pages. In the end they quiet down and peace falls across the snowy landscape.

Beyond the Book :  I've never seen a Snow Pony, but I have heard their whinnies in the wind, and felt them rush by in a hurry. This is a great book for opening creative play or writing some poetry about the snow.

The ponies in this book romp and jostle and canter. Go on a word hunt to find words that express different ways snow ponies could move. Then try out some of those movements. If you've got snow outside, put your boots on and gallop and canter through the snow. Then look at your tracks. Are your footprints spaced farther apart when you gallop than when you walk?

If you can't go outside, then cut paper snowflakes and decorate them with glitter. Or make some popsicle stick snowflakes.

Make your own snow ponies! If you have some toilet paper rolls (or gift-wrap rolls) and yarn and string - and some nuts or bottle caps for hoofs, you can make a snow pony marionette. Directions at Red Ted's Art Blog (his is a unicorn). Or if you have a horse cookie cutter, bake up a herd of snow ponies and decorate them with frosting and sprinkles.

Today's review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copy provided by publisher.

Waiting for Winter with Big Snow

Big Snow
by Jonathan Bean
32 pages; ages 3-6
Farrar Strauss & Giroux, 2013

If your kid can't wait to skate/ski/slide down the hill in the neighborhood park, you will appreciate Big Snow. Also if you live any place where schools have "snow days"...

Themes: seasons, family

The book opens with a wordless spread: a boy all dressed up in his parka and cap, pulling a plastic toboggan across the dried grass of his front lawn.

"Mom," said David, "when will it snow?" "I think soon," said Mom. "Why don't you help me make cookies while you wait."

David helps Mom make cookies... but the fine, white flour makes him think of snow. So he races outside to check the weather. Only a few flakes falling. He bugs Mom again: "Will it snow taller than the grass?" In response, Mom asks him to help clean the bathroom. But the bubbles and foam from the cleaner spray (he gets a little exuberant) make David think of snow, so he races outside to check the weather.

What I like about this book: the creative imagination of a child. Making a bed? White sheets over pillows make great ski slopes for your action figures... 

Beyond the Book: Why wait for snow when you can make your own snowflakes? All you need is white paper and scissors and a bit of imagination. Remember that snowflakes have six sides. Paper-folding directions and design ideas here.

Make an indoor igloo by draping a white sheet over a table or a couple of chairs. If it's still not snowing, make some snowmen out of marshmallows. You need large marshmallows, some frosting to "glue" them together, chow mein noodles for stick arms, and candy for decorating: tic-tacs, m&m's, cinnamon dots, chocolate chips, raisins...

You can make your own snow globe. You need: a small glass jar with a good lid that's leak-proof (baby food jars work well); glitter; small plastic items or figures to put in the jar; water; glycerin or mineral oil; and a hot glue gun. Glue the figures for the scene onto the lid of the jar & let it set. Then fill the jar 3/4 full with water (add a bit of glycerin if you want) and add a pinch or two of glitter. Screw on the lid and watch the snow fall. Hint: if your lid isn't leak-proof, use some pipe thread tape to line it.  Check out Archimedes Notebook for ideas on how to turn your snow globe into a science experiment.

Today's review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copy provided by publisher.

Twelve Kinds of Ice

Twelve Kinds of Ice

by Ellen Bryan Obed; illustrations by Barbara McClintock

64 pages, ages 6 & up

Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2012

One winter I remember grabbing skates and kids and heading over to my friend Raili’s. After days of rain, the run-off had flooded her field and a couple days of very cold temperatures had turned the surface hard and glassy. We skated up and down the gentle swells… who knew you could skate uphill?

We haven’t had any freezes like that lately – our winters seem to be warming up – so it was with great pleasure and anticipation that I snatched Twelve Kinds of Ice from the “just arrived in the mail” satchel and started reading.

“The first ice came on the sheep pails in the barn – a skim of ice so thin that it broke when we touched it.” First ice is special – it covers the mud puddles at the bottom of the road and tricks kids who are waiting for the school bus into testing it – and heading to the school office for a pair of dry socks.

Second ice…. you can pick that out of the tops of the pails “like panes of glass,” writes Ellen Obed. Third ice you can hit with the rake handle and it won’t break. There’s field ice and stream ice, black ice, garden ice and best of all – hockey ice.

Obed describes ice season through a series of vignettes, which Barbara McClintock accompanies with pen-and-ink drawings that add a touch of nostalgia. This is a fun book to read, especially when paired with hot cocoa and fuzzy slippers. Longer than a traditional picture book, but not quite a chapter book… lyrical and literary to the last ice.

Review copy provided by the publisher.

The Schmutzy Family

The Schmutzy Family

by Madelyn Rosenberg; illus by Paul Meisel

32 pages; ages 3 - 5

Holiday House, 2012

“First thing Sunday morning the Schmutzys rolled up their jeans and went wading in the malodorous Feldman Swamp.” What’s not to like about a book that starts like that?

With a name like Schmutzy, you expect the kids in this family to get muddy. Even Mama Schmutzy and dad get in on the mud-pie baking, painting, makeup experimentation, wallpaper redecoration and cow-pie leaping. But come Friday, Mama Schmutzy raises her eyebrows and smacks her forehead.

“Oy! Look at this dirt! You’re Farshtunken, all of you!” It’s nearly Shabbos … can the family clean up and get ready for the Sabbath dinner before the sun sets?

I love the language – the sprinkling of Yiddish words – and the combination of India ink, watercolor, acrylic, pencil and pastel illustrations that are integral to the story. And I love the freedom Mama Schmutzy allows her family to explore, discover, create and be messy. But most of all, I love the frogs in the kitchen sink!

Theme: preparing for the Sabbath

 

Beyond the book: Stomp through icy puddles. Slide down the driveway on your butt and toss snowballs at the tree. Fill spray bottles with colored water and paint the snow. Then dry off, clean up and make some Raisin Challah , a yummy bread specially baked for the Sabbath.

This review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review F&G  provided by the publisher.