cover image Snow Bears Never Lie

Snow Bears Never Lie

SAID, trans. from the German by David Henry Wilson, illus. by Marine Ludin. North-South (Ingram, dist.), $17.95 (32p) ISBN 978-0-7358-4137-6

A small girl named Lily heads into a winter day intending to pick berries and instead makes an unexpected friend in this story from Iranian-born author SAID. Lily discovers an icebox in the middle of the forest; stranger still, there’s a giant snow bear “all squashed up” inside. The two have only a bit of time before the snow bear flies back to the North Pole, and the bear uses it to grant a few of Lily’s wishes. Sweeping, expressive brushstrokes and elongated shapes characterize Ludin’s artwork (Lily’s enormous red scarf nearly has a life of its own) in this offbeat, dreamlike tale. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)