The Snowy Day

The Snowy Day is, at its heart, a beautiful book about playing alone.

When I was reading this book to my kids, we had just moved to the mountains of Ketchum, Idaho and my son had started third grade at a new school. He spent a lot of time playing alone in the snow and could relate to Peter’s solo adventures in the book.

The bright, graphic collage illustrations add a liveliness that reflects the joy of discovery, while the cool snow tones bring a silent reflectiveness. The book’s history is rich as well: It was published in 1963 and… show more.

After reading this story (I was 5), I felt an overwhelming desire to meet Peter. It was as if I already knew him.

Intrigued, I stepped outside my house and followed the snow prints that led me to the branch library. Not surprisingly, I found Peter on the pages of The Snowy Day. I even found Peter there on warm summer days, too. The way Peter embarked on adventures in the snow enchanted me. How he embraced a snowy day's joy resonated deeply within me.

I couldn't help but be captivated by his spirit. This encounter left me eagerly… show more.

I have always been a fan of Ezra Jack Keats and have purchased every one of his titles for my local library. This is his most famous story (and a Caldecott Medal winner) that teaches a lesson all children should learn at a small age – we all experience the same feelings of disappointment, exclusion, loneliness, joy, anticipation, connectivity – no matter what we look like or what color our skin is. A beautiful story of acceptance with simple, yet impactful, illustrations. 

A Caldecott medal recipient in 1963, this is one of the most loved and celebrated children’s books. In this simple story, Peter wakes up to a snowfall and spends the day playing and experimenting with this outdoor wonder. I remember seeing this book as a child and being fascinated with the patterns in Ezra Jack Keats’ collages, but also with Peter, who, as an urban child, lived a much different life than I, in my neighborhood where neighbors had orchards and there were no sidewalks. Yet the sensory descriptions resonated; the crunch of the snow underfoot, the wetness of the… show more.

This book goes all the way back to my childhood. It is one of the few books that I can remember being read to me in my earliest years. I resonated with all of Peter’s adventures in the snow. Like Peter, I understood how important snowballs, snow angels, and snow mounds were! Yet even though much of the book takes place outdoors in the snow, it is also a cozy book, a book about home, a book about mom.