Is That You, Winter? Book

This book won the Minnesota Book Award, and, as the title may suggest, it's a Minnesota kind of book. Old Man Winter is an beligerant old bloke in a rawhide hat, a kind of anti- Santa who spreads the fluffy white stuff across the land from the back of a magical flying truck. Stephen Gammell has won the Caldecott Medal and twice more been on the Caldecott honour list. His pastel-and-watercolour illustrations are richly coloured, with a spiky quality that fits his grumbling hero perfectly. Purple and blue predominate--and white, of course--with the occasional smear of pale green. The text is extremely brief--rarely more than four or five words per double- page spread--and most of it is done by hand in a scratchy, irregular style which, like the illustrations themselves, are reminiscent of Ralph Steadman's deliberate messiness. Some will be amused, others perplexed by the surprise ending--Old Man Winter is no more (or less) than a young girl's doll! Either way, this exuberant romp is a vivacious, visually glorious tribute to winter.Read More