THE SNOWY DAY

Bibliography

Keats, Ezra Jack. 1962. THE SNOWY DAY. New York, NY: The Viking Press Company. ISBN 140501827

Plot Summary

The setting takes place in a snowy city with a little boy named Peter. He looks out the window and realizes it snowed a lot during the night. Peter puts on a red suit and heads outside. He has all sorts of adventures, like making a snowman, snow angels, and even pretends to be a mountain climber. Peter also comes across some older boys and wants to join their snowball fight, but once he gets hit with a snowball he realizes he probably is still too young to play with older kids. He heads inside and tells his mom all about his day.

Before going to bed he becomes sad when he realized that the snowball he had saved in his pocket wasn’t there anymore. He dreams that the sun had melted the snow. When he wakes up he sees that it was snowing again! So, he went out again into the snow, but this time he invited a friend.

Critical Analysis

The Snowy Day book is a fiction picture book appropriate for 2 years old and up.  It's uniqueness involves an African-American main character.  It is very realistic and is easy to read. It involves family life, from simple pleasures to the tough problems kids experience.  The readers can feel the pleasures of playing in the snow. For example, when he goes outside and makes a snowman, snow angles, and slides down a mountain. The character is innocent and wants to keep the snow forever.
The title "The Snowy Day

The illustrations are simple and show soft hues of browns, pinks, whites and that red that just pops at you when you turn the pages. The way the illustrations are represented seem like they are paper cutouts neatly glued to create a story. It’s refreshing to see an illustrator use different tones of skin color on his characters.

I enjoy reading this book to my students because it teaches how snow melts in your pocket and when you’re inside your warm house. I had a seven-year-old student tell me, “Ms. That boy is the same color as me.” That just proves that kids notice everything and relate to even the skin color of a book character.

Review Excerpts

- Caldecott Medal Award 1963

- School Library Journal (#5 on Top 100 Picture Books List)

- “The book is notable not only for its lovely artwork and tone, but also for its importance as a trailblazer. According to Horn Book magazine, The Snowy Day was “the very first full-color picture book to feature a small black hero”” — Amazon.com editorial review

- “…he did what very few can: quietly and intimately engage with the way children experience the world—the small excitements, the tiny heartbreaks, the bright newness of all five senses, and the unparalleled elation of snow on a school day.” — John Hodgman, author.

Connections

Spanish version:
Un Dia de Nieve. ISBN 0590937723

Other books by Ezra JackKeats:

- PETER’S CHAIR. ISBN 9780140564419 (sister, family life)

- A LETTER TO AMY. ISBN 9780670880638 (friendship and love)

For more snow day adventures read:
Yee, Wong Herbert. TRACKS IN THE SNOW. ISBN 9780312371340