The Everlasting Snowman by Hunter D. DardenMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Last autumn, I met the author of "The Everlasting Snowman" at the Rag Apple Lassie winery in North Carolina and bought the book. I'm always looking for enchanting picture books about the Yuletide season, love, and service to read as part of my holiday meditations. What first drew me in were the watercolor illustrations (by Tamara Scantland Adams), washed in shades of blue, lavender, pink and white that recalled Michigan winters, but also reminded me that I had entered a fantasy world where snowmen talk and share their view of the world. The story follows the life of a snowman family throughout the year and shares the advice a snow child's parents give when faced with the little one's sadness about the brief span of a snowman's life.
The story works on several levels. At its base is a charming story of talking snowmen that children can enjoy. Taken on a spiritual level, the story may open up discussions for both children and adults. First, the snowman tale illustrates one form of everlasting life, a common theme in Christian theology. From a Buddhist perspective, the story might foster discussion about the impermanence of life and how we humans cope with that reality as well as the rhythms and circles of life that we all experience. Finally, the book presents a way to introduce natural science to children by showing how a natural substance, water, is preserved in several forms on earth and is essential to life on our planet.
I thought I had purchased a simple tale of talking snowmen and got a small treasure of wisdom. "The Everlasting Snowman" is worth adding to your winter reading list.
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