Dream Snow

Amazon.com
It's almost Christmas and it hasn't snowed yet. As the farmer naps on his small farm, he dreams of being covered in a gentle blanket of new snow. Then, one by one, he dreams of each of his five animals (aptly named One, Two, Three, Four, and Five) being covered as well. When he awakens, he discovers that real snow--not dream snow--has fallen. And "Oh my! Oh my! I almost forgot," the farmer shouts, and, bundling up, hurries out to his tree (named Tree) with a box and a sack, looking remarkably familiar in his white beard and red suit. After decorating Tree, the farmer shouts "Merry Christmas to all!" and pushes a button for a surprise Yuletide jingle.

FROM OUR EDITORS

Uncover a world of snowy wonders in Eric Carle's first Christmas book ever; it's a visual -- and musical -- delight! In this gorgeous, joyous book, an old farmer settles down for nap on December 24th, wondering how Christmas can come when it hasn't snowed yet. In his dream, he imagines snowflakes covering him and his animals, and when he awakens, it really has snowed. When he puts on his red suit and goes outside to put some gifts under the tree, it's a truly magical Christmas. By pressing a button near the tree, kids can hear a surprising musical treat.

ANNOTATION

In this musical and sound effects book, a farmer celebrates Christmas after the first snowfall.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Few in number are the parents who have made it through their toddler's years on just one copy of Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Dream Snow has similar ingredients: a simple story, lively collage-like illustrations and a fun gimmick for little hands..." (Time)

"This is a simple, well-told story about a simple farmer.... Viewers...will want to get their hands on it." (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books)

"Carle fans and toddlers learning the basics will...enjoy the gentle text and creative design features." (Booklist)

"The pictures are in Carle's trademark richly colored and textured collages that capture the snowy magic of Christmas." (Kirkus Reviews)

FROM THE CRITICS

Children's Literature

Eric Carle claimed that he would never write a Christmas book, but the idea for a story pushed its way into his consciousness and resulted in Dream Snow. A farmer lived a very quiet life with his animals named One, Two, Three, Four and Five. He cared for them and then spent his evenings relaxing with a cup of hot tea and honeyed bread. One Christmas Eve he fell asleep and dreamed that he and all of his animals were covered with a blanket of snow. Acetate overlays with snow flakes and a blanket of snow cover each of the animals as the story progresses. When he woke up the world was indeed covered with snow. The farmer dressed warmly in his red jacket and black boots and proceeded to set out presents for his animals under a tree that he had decorated. On the last page, kids push a button and get a little tune to accompany the visual feast. A charming story filled with plenty of wonderful signature Carle collages. 2000, Philomel, $21.99. Ages 2 to 6. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot

Richard Corliss - Time

Dream Snow has similar ingredients [to Carle's other books]: a simple story, lively collage-like illustrations and a fun gimmick for little hands.

Kirkus Reviews

The venerable and prolific Carle (Hello, Red Fox, 1998, etc.) offers a quiet Christmas story with a little music at the end. A farmer lives alone on a small farm with so few animals that he calls them One, Two, Three, Four, and Five. Oh, he also has a tree named Tree. One night near Christmas he falls asleep in his favorite chair after his peppermint tea, and dreams that he is covered in a white blanket. On successive pages, One the horse, Two the Cow, Three the sheep, and so on are each covered in a snowflake blanket, accomplished by an acetate page of flakes and an amorphous shape that when turned reveals the animal. When the farmer awakes and finds it has snowed for real, he dresses himself warmly, decorates Tree, and strews gifts for all five animals under it. When he shouts "Merry Christmas to all!" he pushes a button that children can push, producing a lovely Yuletide tinkle. The pictures are in Carle's trademark richly colored and textured collages that capture the snowy magic of Christmas. Adults may be charmed to see that Carle dedicates the book to Barry Moser, who modeled for the farmer, although from the photo on the back cover Carle and Moser could pass for brothers with their shiny pates and neat white beards. Cotton candy. (Picture book. 4-7)