Jolly Snow

As always, Hissey's ( Old Bear ; Little Bear's Trousers ) endearing cast of stuffed animals are rendered with photographic clarity and seem ready to leap off the page to be cuddled. On a winter afternoon, Jolly Tall the giraffe, Little Bear, Rabbit and the rest of the playroom menagerie long for snow. Since there is none on the ground, the resourceful animals decide to create some of their own. After cutting out snowflakes, Old Bear generates a small blizzard by throwing his paper scraps into the air. Bromwell and Duck ride a cardboard sled down a snowy slope fashioned from a bed sheet. When they land on a cushion, a cloud of ``feather-snow'' emerges. Finally, as the real thing falls from the sky, the furry pals huddle at the window, nibbling on snowflake biscuits. Though the tale has the animation and allure that Hissey fans have come to expect, it lacks the emotional charge of her original Old Bear . Ages 3-6. (Nov.)