Danny's First Snow

by Leonid Gore, Leonid Gore (Illustrator)

Overview

"Look at the snow!" says Mommy.

Danny watches the white flakes dance outside his window.

But what is snow? Danny wonders, and he goes out to see for himself.

Snow is friendly, but it can also be fierce. It just depends on your imagination!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781416913306
Publisher:	Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	10/23/2007
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Leonid Gore moved to the US from his native Belarus in 1991. He has illustrated many beloved books for children and is also the author and illustrator of Danny’s First Snow. Mr. Gore lives in Oakland, New Jersey. Visit him online at LeonidGore.com.

Leonid Gore moved to the US from his native Belarus in 1991. He has illustrated many beloved books for children and is also the author and illustrator of Danny’s First Snow. Mr. Gore lives in Oakland, New Jersey. Visit him online at LeonidGore.com.

Editorial Reviews

The exquisite illustrations in this story about a first snowfall will delight young readers. When Danny, pictured as a rabbit, ventures outside after a heavy snowfall, the landscape surprises him: "All the trees, bushes, and grass were gone. And who were these new friends?" Gore's (The Sugar Child) intricately textured acrylic and pastel illustrations isolate the "friends": Danny hops over a chick (a tiny snowdrift), a prickly hedgehog (a small bush caught in snow) and even an ostrich (a taller bush). Eventually, Danny becomes alarmed by the larger forms, imagining them as wolves. Gore's snow creatures are just scary enough without being overwhelming, and when Danny remembers his mother's advice ("When you get scared, run!"), his run home becomes the most suspenseful part of the book. The gentle denouement, as Danny slides down a "sleeping elephant," leads in to a snowy-soft bedtime ending. "Now do you know what snow is, Danny?" asks his mother, and Danny answers, "Yes, Mommy. I know what snow is today," he says, "but I can't wait to see what it will be tomorrow!" Gore achieves remarkable shapes and surfaces, with green pines transformed into bears that gradually melt away as the day advances. His illustrations show what the text need not explain: that ordinary snowflakes can transform the familiar into a world of wonder. Ages 3-7. (Oct.)

Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information

Publishers Weekly

PreS-K-As a young rabbit rushes out to play one wintry morning, he asks his mother, "What is snow?" But Mom leaves it to Danny to figure it out for himself. He sees that the trees and bushes are covered in white and have taken on the shapes of different kinds of animal friends. He leapfrogs over the smaller ones. When he tries to scale "the ostrich," it's too tall, and he trips over the branches. As Danny gets cold and tired, the big white mounds all start looking like wolves. He runs, hops, and zigzags all over, knocking the snow off the bushes in the process. Danny is puzzled as to where all of his friends have gone. At the end of the day, when Mom asks if he discovered what snow is, he answers, "Yes, Mommy. I know what snow is today . . . but I can't wait to see what it will be tomorrow!" The acrylic-and-pastel illustrations in muted colors expertly convey the frosty feel, and the blanketed bushes actually assume the various animal shapes. This is a pleasant romp, but it never does explain what snow really is.
—Ieva BatesCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

An appealing little rabbit named Danny experiences his first snowfall in this delightfully original view of a youngster's introduction to a snow-covered world. When Danny takes his sled outside to play in the snow, he thinks the familiar trees and bushes around his house have been replaced by fluffy, white animals. He plays leapfrog over the snowy shapes, moving gradually into the forest, where the taller trees begin to look like scary wolves. Running back toward home, Danny rides his sled down a snow bank that looks like a sleeping elephant, back to the welcoming sight of his mother waiting in the doorway of his own cozy cottage. Gore's soft-focus illustrations in acrylic and pastels have a dreamy, impressionistic quality that enhances the snowy scenes, and his cover illustration of the charming bunny boy sticking out his tongue to catch a snowflake captures an enchanting moment of childhood discovery. Preschoolers will delight in Danny's misinterpretation of the snow-covered trees and bushes, especially the "wolves," skillfully creating just the right level of dramatic tension. The simple, well-written text, original plot and perceptive illustrations make Danny's story a treat for wintry story times. (Picture book. 2-5)

Kirkus Reviews