cover image Good Morning, Snowplow!

Good Morning, Snowplow!

Deborah Bruss, illus. by Lou Fancher and Steve Johnson. Scholastic/Levine, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-338-08949-3

“Snow keeps falling fast and deep./ Miles to plow before you sleep.” A snowplow, its driver, and his dog set to work during a nighttime storm in this meditative rhyming story by Bruss (Book! Book! Book!). When the rest of the town says goodnight, the snowplow’s driver puts on the chains, starts the engine, and tests the lights, signals, and brakes. With the plow’s hopper filled with salt and sand, the team makes its rounds amid whiteout conditions, complete with a car spinout. Bruss’s simple seven-syllable couplets depict the nuts and bolts of plowing while emphasizing the solitary aspects of the work: “Lonely plowing all night long./ Tune the dial and sing a song.” Similarly, the illustrators (A Poem for Peter) use deep-hued artwork—created using acrylic paint, colored pencil, pen, and collage—to evoke the storm’s hush and swirl, as well as the bright sparkle as the sun rises on a snow day for delighted kids. Ages up to 3. [em](Oct.) [/em]