The textured pages are fascinating to my almost 4 year old, and we had a good talk about staying in one spot if you get lost from your parents. ( )

A little white bear has lost his mother. To keep him company while he waits for her, the forest friends build a snow-bear. But as darkness falls, their mothers call them home, and the cub is left alone again.

“The Snow Bear” by Miriam Moss was an endearing read for K-2nd grade readers. I really enjoyed reading this book. Some big ideas referenced in the story are teamwork and friendship. The little bear receives help from all of the animals in the environment—a hare, wolf, snow goose, moose, fox, and musk ox. This book is a good example of modern fantasy because the animals are able to communicate and work together to create a false “snow mom”. The illustrations in the book really stuck out to me because they are very visually appealing and would likely be engaging to young readers. I also really liked the language used because it is very rich and would serve to enhance the vocabulary of the reader. The wording used to describe the Hare was impressive—“dark, liquid eyes” and “neat, narrow paws”. The other animals were also described vividly—“quick, curved claws”, “frisky whiskers”, “wide, webbed feet”, and “big, bushy tail”. ( )

A little bear has lost his mother. As the story unfolds each page has textures. His friends help him to make a snow mommy to cuddle with..... in the end the mommy finds him. A happy reunion! This would be great for a kinestetic reader or a sensory dysfunction for therapeutic reasons. Small children would love the textures as they help to carry the story. Sweet book. I would use this book to talk about friendship, teamwork, safety, winter, and to hook a reader. Grades preK-2 ( )

This is a great example of modern fantasy becasue the bear and other animals in the story can talk, problem solve, and work together as a team to create an image of a bear in the snow for little bear to not be so lonely while his mother is gone. Every animal adds something to the sculpture based on a unique feature that they can contribute. It is not realistic in that the animals talk, but it is not so far fetched that the students cannot follow and relate to the story because of the relationships between the animals and with the bear and his mother.

Media: pen and ink, watercolor ( )