Counting On Snow
Tundra Books
Age 3-5
24 pages
by Maxwell Newhouse
Synopsis from Tundra Books:
Maxwell Newhouse, folk artist extraordinaire, has created a unique counting book. The premise is simple. He invites children to count with him from ten crunching caribou down to one lonely moose, by finding other northern animals – from seals to wolves to snowy owls – as they turn the pages. But as the animals appear, so does the snow, until it’s a character too, obliterating light and dark, sky and earth.
From 10 Caribou Crunching in a wide open plain to 1 Moose, barely visible through the thick falling snow, Counting on Snow adds an Arctic twist to the classic counting book; perfect for the impending winter weather. Each page features an Arctic animal in the quiet, vast landscape they live in. As you turn the page, the animals you just counted, can be seen leaving the scene and a new set of animals appear. As you count down from 10 to 1, the snowfall increases, making it harder to see animals, like the white hares or polar bears, as they naturally blend into the white landscape.
Counting on Snow reinforces the numbers 1 to 10 as they are written numerically on the page as well as being represented visually in the form of the various Arctic animal groups. My 6 and 3-year old enjoyed counting the animals, especially as they got harder to see in the heavier snow images. Although the text is limited, focusing on counting the animals, the visuals have a way of telling a story about the Arctic winter too.
You can add Countiing on Snow to your personal library by visiting your local book store or visiting Tundra Books. Visit our Kid’s Books section for other great book recommendations. What are you reading with your kids?
I have to thank Sylvia at Tundra Books for my review copy.