White Snow Bright Snow

White Snow, Bright Snow
Alvin Tresselt ~ Roger Duvoisin ~ Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1947

Since I saw snow for the first time in seven years this week and our neighborhood just put up its community Christmas tree (already, can you believe!?!), I thought I'd celebrate with a wee bit of snow love. Winner of the 1948 Caldecott Medal, more than any other book (save maybe The Snowy Day), this one highlights the magic of the first snow, celebrating the wonder of the winter season.

The postman said it looked like snow.
The farmer said it smelled like snow.
The policeman said it felt like snow, and his wife said her big toe hurt, and that always meant snow. Even the rabbits knew it, and scurried around in the dead leaves. While the children watched the low grey sky, waiting for the first snowflake to fall. Then, just when no one was looking, it came.

So sweet the way the whole community (kids, fauna and all) celebrate in the majestic splendor of the new fallen landscape... right through to the moment when spring appears and the wonder is reborn. I doubt there are many out there (adult and otherwise) who don't become kids again when the seasons shift and we all get a second chance. What a wonderful world, no?

Also by:
Petunia, Beware!
The Rain Puddle
A Child's Garden of Verses
Petunia
Veronica and the Birthday Present
Donkey Donkey
The Old Bullfrog