Mimi and Bear in the Snow

It’s snowing, and Mimi, a girl rabbit in a woolly cap, embarks on a series of pretend-play adventures in the company of her stuffed blue bear. “When Mimi won the gold medal for best ice-skating, Bear was there,” writes Trasler (the Chickees series), as Mimi confidently glides across a tiny frozen pond while the toy sits attentively on a tree stump. But when Mimi is called inside, she realizes something is wrong, and the book’s refrain changes from “Bear was there” to “Bear was not there.” Will Mimi ever see Bear again? Since readers can see where Bear has been left, there’s little doubt that this separation is only temporary, but that doesn’t make Mimi and her situation any less sympathetic. Trasler skillfully characterizes Mimi as understandably anxious but also resolutely independent, and the story’s wrap-up also underscores Mimi’s ability to solve problems on her own. The softly textured, substantial shapes of Trasler’s illustrations reinforce the subtle emotional narrative—just like Mimi, the pictures have a plainspoken eloquence and an intriguing dimensionality. Ages 1–4. Agent: Jamie Weiss Chilton, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (Oct.)