With the latest nor’easter slamming the eastern seaboard of Canada and the States, Toronto in a continued state of extreme cold weather, and western Canada going between -45°C and +4°C in a matter of days and then back down again – we are in the midst of wicked winter so here are some books to make staying inside more tolerable. Make some hot chocolate, start up the fire and cover yourselves with blankets – it’s going to be a long one.
This is the second book of Savage’s vehicle series and George absolutely adores it. Big bonus: I don’t get sick of reading it.
The text is really simple and the illustrations are sweet. Various hard working trucks across the city are hard at work including the lowly garbage truck who is only collecting trash. Then the city (clearly New York) gets hit by a blizzard and everyone is stuck in the snow.
Who digs them out? Supertruck! The garbage truck’s alter ego.
His identity remains a mystery to the other trucks who would never suspect the garbage truck of having suck super saving skills. The lesson is great (although it might go over George’s head) and he requests this over and over again. It may have something to do with the “da da da na: SUPERTRUCK” sound effect I do – he’s taken to copying it and saying it to all his trucks – but I think it is mostly due to the skill of a great story and great pictures.
What did we learn?
Never judge someone by how they look on the outside.
Why I like it:
As stated above, Savage always has really clear & clean pictures which resonate with kids and it’s a fun, fast read.
George is very into yetis right now and we read this one over and over again.
We learn that the thing about yetis is that they love winter. They love drinking hot chocolate with their favourite stuffed toy, they love sliding down hills on their bums, and they love building snow castles. But on those days when the windchill is just too much, and the wind is biting and you can’t open your eyes because your eyeballs are freezing, even yetis miss summer.
So what’s a yeti to do? Make a summer day inside!
What did we learn?
Even yetis can’t handle this horrible arctic front (seriously – when will this deep freeze end?).
Why I like it:
Although I am a bit sick of winter right now, I do like all the fun things the yeti and his friends do in the snow – it’s a good reminder. Also this yeti is very cute.
The illustrations in this book are stunning – sort of dark but colourful and a bit of a vintage feel. Plus the story is very sweet.
Field mice go way below the ground when winter comes – it’s far too cold for them up above. Except for Lucy. Lucy loves the winter. She loves the crunching of the snow below her paws and wearing her pom-pom hat. She can’t convince her mouse friends to come out of their hole and tries to bring winter to them but her snow cones and icicles melt. One day, she discovers skating and knows it’s far too wonderful for her friends not to experience.
Can she entice them?
Her love of winter is infectious – both in the mice and the reader.
What did we learn?
To see the good in everything.
Seriously, winter is the hardest season for me. It’s difficult to be positive when you are scraping off your car at 7AM. But I like to skate. And catch snowflakes with my tongue. And make snow angels. With or without my kids.
Why I like it
Like I said above, I love the illustrations. Plus Lucy is a lovable character who makes winter whimsical.
And there are some very clever cheese puns. You can never go wrong with cheese.
Hope you enjoy these picks! And as always,
Happy Reading,
Curious in Wonderland
Recent Comments