School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Little Squirrel is playing with his siblings when a glimmering snowflake alights on his nose. The others present different ideas as to what to do with it, but Little Squirrel wants to keep it all to himself. He collects several twigs, scrambles up a tree, and builds a large nest to keep his prize hidden. The next day, he hears a bird singing but the sound is muffled by the nest's twig wall. Later, he peers through the twigs to see his siblings playing in the snow and he begins to feel a bit melancholy. He soon becomes hungry and knows that his family will be sharing a meal. He drops the snowflake, which rolls into an enormous snowball that is headed toward his family and they all share it. The illustrations are mostly painted in warm, autumn tones, making the glittery, silvery-blue snowflake stand out. Children who have been torn between hoarding favorite things or sharing them will certainly relate to Little Squirrel's dilemma.-Donna Atmur, Los Angeles Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Hawcook's instructive, if not particularly inspired, debut employs a rowdy family of squirrels to tackle the topic of sharing. Little Squirrel is thrilled when, "[o]ne cold winter's morning," a giant snowflake lands on his nose. But his siblings grab the supersized snowflake, which is overlaid with silver glitter, for some enthusiastic play. Little Squirrel's initially timid response escalates to an angry "MINE!" and a dash up a tree where he savors the snowflake alone-until he misses his family. Little Squirrel pushes the snowflake out of the tree, where it rolls into a big snowball that explodes into many snowflakes for them all to share. For kids in the shadow of bossy older siblings or those in need of sharing skills, this book may fit the bill. Using tempera and acrylic on cotton paper, Pasqualotto paints friendly, rust-colored squirrels with amber eyes and sweeping tails--an even-handed mix of realism and cuddliness. While some may stumble over the implausibility of a huge, nonmelting snowflake, many will identify with the challenge of sharing with overzealous playmates. Ages 2-5. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
