100 Snowmen

A Look Inside 100 Snowmen Click to enlarge Click to enlarge Click to enlarge From School Library Journal K-Gr 2—Arena shows children how to count to 100 (and back again) in this humorous, seasonal concept book. She accomplishes this clearly and simply by cumulative addition of 1+2=3; 3+4=7 snowmen, and so on, using rhymed couplets to move the story along. Gilpin adds his adorable illustrations, showing almost every snowman with a traditional carrot nose and stick arms, yet each sports a different winter hat and/or accessories. Readers will be looking in the details for sneaky variations, such as a hot dog nose. Especially notable for eliciting smiles is the spread on which "Three more snowmen playing hide-and-seek./Two more snowmen trying not to peek. 3+2=5." The snowmen, try as they might, cannot conceal themselves among the dark green conical evergreen trees. Snowflake endpapers set up the frozen theme. Older children might even want to double-check the author's addition at the conclusion of the tale, while younger readers can simply count the snowmen on each page. This winter offering should have broad appeal.—Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA From Booklist “One lonely snowman has a carrot nose. / Two other snowmen join him when it snows.” Underneath the second line of text is the equation “1+2=3.” And so it goes as more snowmen join in the fun (snowball fights, sledding, hide-and-seek). Kids can count along as the snowmen appear, and then tally the spread’s total. The text counts up to 10 snowmen and then moves backwards from 9 to 1, with further addition problems. The end result is that “every single snowman wants to play again!” and that’s a grand total of 100 snowmen. (Ambitious kids can count ’em all.) This is kept simple by the fact that no cumulative addition is required until the very end and that the snowmen are big and easy to count. Also, these are some snappy, expressive snowmen. One has a hot dog nose and one wears a hard hat, while another has got a feather in his cap. Adorable and educational, too. Grades K-3. --Ann Kelley “Adorable and educational, too.” ― Booklist “This winter offering should have broad appeal.” ― School Library Journal Jennifer Arena has written more than 20 children’s books and is an executive editor of a children’s books department at a large New York publisher. She lives on Long Island, New York. Stephen Gilpin has illustrated more than 30 children’s books, among them Sneezy the Snowman by Maureen Wright and The Three Cabritos by Eric A. Kimmel. If he’s not drawing, he’s hanging out with his lovely wife Angie and their kids. He also likes to putter around, fix things, play the bagpipes, and write. He lives with his family and an uncomfortable number of pets in Hiawatha, Kansas. Read more