First Snow

Toddler-PreS—This story captivates from the start with "Shhhh, listen…do you hear something?" In this celebration of a first snow, a tiny girl awakens in the night and quickly dons her boots, coat, scarf, and hat before quietly slipping outside to form a snowball. She rolls the snowball out of town, into the countryside, and past woodland creatures before reaching her destination—an open area where dozens of children are creating snowmen. By this time the ball has become bigger than the girl. After she joins the others in creating snowpeople, magic happens when the page is turned. The simple narrative holds readers' interest while it moves from the familiar to the ethereal. The concise language and dreamy yet understandable images are perfect for toddlers. The artwork, in shades of black-and-white with accents of red, is reminiscent of the visuals in Akiko Miyakoshi's Tea Party in the Woods, although Park's images, mostly depicting nighttime scenes, are darker.