Snow Friends

Third-person narration centers the perspective of butterscotch-colored corgi Oscar in this energetic winter adventure. When Oscar’s boy, Matt, a pale child with dust-colored hair, postpones his walk, the canine walks himself, exploring the snowy landscape as a dog does—chasing a rabbit, nabbing another dog’s ball—before meeting a gray floppy-eared pup named Daisy at an iced-over pond. After building a snow dog, ice skating, and erecting an igloo, the hounds smell Oscar’s boy and Daisy’s girl (who has brown skin and dark hair) nearby, and they are all united: snow friends. Hillenbrand’s cheery multimedia illustrations—created with, among other media, pencils, chalk, pastel, ink, “watercolor (with a melted snowball),” and collage—feature softly colored comics-style panels that will enhance readers’ enjoyment of the dialogue-heavy text. A seasonal read for doggy devotees. Ages 3–6. [em](Oct.) [/em]