The Snowman (Step-Into-Reading, Step 1) [Paperback]

Raymond Briggs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 7, 1999 | Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Step into Reading

Based on Raymond Briggs's classic, this beautiful illustrated Step into Reading book describes the exciting things that happen to James and his magical snowman.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Who needs words to tell a story? In Raymond Briggs's charming tale, told with 175 softly hued, artfully composed frames, a little boy makes friends with a snowman. He wakes up on a snowy day, tells his mother he's going outside, then begins a flurry of snowman-building. That night, he can't sleep, so he opens the front door and lo! the snowman has come to life. The amiable yet frosty fellow enjoys his tour of the boy's cozy home; he admires the cat, but is disturbed by the fire. The boy shows him other wonders--the TV and a lamp and running water. Predictably perhaps, he is disturbed by the stove, but likes ice cubes quite a bit. Soon it is the snowman's turn to introduce the boy to his wintry world. They join hands, rise up into the blizzardy air--presumably over Russia and into the Middle East--and then safely back to home sweet home. The boy pops into bed before his parents get up... but when he wakes up the next morning he races outside only to find his new buddy's melted remains, scattered with a few forlorn lumps of coal. Since the book is wordless, you can make up any ending you want... like "Then, in a puff of pink smoke, the snowman recomposed himself and went to live in the boy's garage freezer." Or you could just resign yourself to a peaceful "And that was that." Raymond Briggs's The Snowman won the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, and this wintertime classic continues to win the hearts of kids every year. (Preschool and older) --Karin Snelson --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-K-- For some reason, Briggs has added words to his immortal wordless picture book about a small boy's nocturnal adventures with an all-too-mortal snowman. The result, to say the least, is disappointing. It features fewer pictures described in simple declarative sentences that relate the action but lose the potency of the narrative. Further, the story has been trimmed, and incidents adding texture to the original have been lost. Much of the snowman's characterization is gone; his gentle meeting with a cat has been cut, as have his telling fear of a lighted stove, his wonderment at the TV, and his bemusement at a pair of false teeth. All of his slapstick adventures with James's toys are gone; half of the flying journey has been eliminated. The bittersweet ending remains as Briggs allows James to make his discovery of his melted friend without comment, but much of its resonance is missing with the lost pictures. What is left is a simple, rather ordinary story of an adventure with a flying snowman suitable for preschoolers who might well have waited a bit longer until they were old enough to enjoy James's magical interlude in its fullest glory. --Christine Behrmann, New York Public Library
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers; 2nd edition (September 7, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679894438
• ISBN-13: 978-0679894438
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.1 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #378,340 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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