Old Winter

Old Winter

From Booklist Ages 3^-6. The night before he plans to fly south, Old Winter overhears the townspeople complaining about the dirty snow, heavy clothes, and rotten winter. Incensed, he holes up in the meat locker of the supermarket and hibernates, while outside the increasingly short-tempered citizens stagger through two more months of snow, ice, and slush. Spring arrives in a daffodil-yellow car and urges Old Winter to leave for Chile, where all nature longs for him to come again. Children will delight in the details of Alley's lively ink-and-watercolor illustrations: a bird skis along a telephone wire, a homeowner climbs up to the television antenna to melt the ice off with a hair drier, and two people desperately lunge for the last shovel at the hardware store (marked $62). The many teachers hunting for picture books depicting the change of seasons will find this a refreshing choice for reading aloud. Carolyn Phelan When the townspeople complain about the cold weather, Old Winter's feelings are hurt and he takes a very long nap in the meat locker of the P&J Supermarket