Over and Under the Snow

Over and Under

by Kate Messner, Christopher Silas Neal (Illustrator)

Over the snow, the world is hushed and white.

But under the snow is a secret world of squirrels and snowshoe hares, bears and bullfrogs, and many other animals who live through the winter, safe and warm.

OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW takes readers on a cross country ski trip through the winter woods to discover the secret world of animals living under the snow.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Nonfiction, Nature, Science, Storytime

44 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Kate Messner is an award-winning author, TED 2012 speaker, and former middle school English teacher. Her books for kids include THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z.,SUGAR AND ICE, and EYE OF THE STORM (Walker/Bloomsbury Dec. 2010) the MARTY MCGUIRE series (Scholastic), SEA MONSTER'S FIRST DAY, and OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW (Chronicle, Books). Kate also wrote SPITFIRE and CHAMPLAIN AND THE SILENT ONE, both Lake Champlain historical novels published by North Country Books.

Kate lives with her family on Lake Champlain, where she loves to read, write, hike, swing on birch trees, and eat chocolate. She also hangs out in various places online.
Visit Kate's website: http://www.katemessner.com

Find Kate on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/KateMessner

...or follow her on Twitter - @katemessner

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cross country skiing outing by dad and daughter becomes the occasion for a consideration of all the critters living (mostly) under the snow during the winter. A companion book with the same level of lovely illustration to Over and Under the Pond, which I may even like a bit more, but they're both great, encouraging us to look more closely at the outdoors and ask questions about the unseen. Comes with an appendix with more information about the winter habits of all the creatures featured in the main text.

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love these children’s picture books that are non-fiction and about nature.

This is a wonderful book about various animals and how they survive during winter, those under the snow and those over the snow, and some that utilize both.

The story proper is a lovely daughter-father story and the illustration depict winter and the animals in a lovely way.

I especially appreciated the detailed author’s note at the end, which includes a list of all the animals mentioned in the book, complete with their illustration, and more detailed information about their winter lives.

The author’s book dedication nearly made me tear up; it’s very sweet and apropos.

4 ½ stars

[Carmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Over the snow, the fire crackles, and sparks shoot up to the stars. I lick sticky marshmallow from my lips and lean back with heavy eyes. Shadows dance in the flames.

A girl is skiing in the woods with her parents, and she notices animal life and sometimes discusses it with her father.

This was really good, I was surprised. For a book about subnivean life, it is surprisingly cute and interesting.

The illustrations are great - I especially like the animals. The cute fat rabbit, cute fat little mice, voles, and shrews, the realistic fox - all cool.

The humans are drawn a bit worse than the animals, but okay.

This is the great kind of book where kids are learning stuff but it's not obvious. If you WANT to be more obvious, there are some sections in the back. The Author's Note explains about how subnivean zones work.

Then Messner offers you an index of all the animals mentioned in the book (12 TWELVE, that's a lot!) and gives you a little explanation of what they do in winter. For example:

Red foxes often eat small mammals like mice, voles, and shrews, but finding these animals can be challenging in winter. The red fox has an excellent sense of hearing, though, and will actually listen for the sounds of animals like mice under the snow. When a fox hears a mouse, it will pounce, often with all four feet on one spot, to collapse the snow and trap the mouse underneath. Then it will dig until it finds its dinner.

She even suggests further reading, listing books and websites you can visit with your child to learn more.

But if you think your child will be bored by all this obviously "school" stuff at the end, you can just end the book when the story ends!

Tl;dr - Surprisingly fun, educational, and beautiful.

Ages 4-6.

Available in Russian but not in Spanish.

[Diz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a charming book that teaches how animals live in the snow in winter. It is really effective in promoting a sense of exploration and discovery.

[KC · Rating 4 out of 5]

This tale is about a boy and his father cross country skiing while discovering the wonders of what's under the snow and what's over of the snow. A bit long for a picture book though.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully told, beautifully illustrated and (bonus!) informative story about the animals that live under the snow (and some that live over it) in the winter time. It's a great introduction to the "subnivean zone" -- the network of tiny open spaces and tunnels between the snowpack and the ground. The back matter tells more about each animal--the only thing I would have liked is information about the parts of the country in which the animals can be found (for example, white-tailed deer are highlighted here--but we have mule deer in my area). All in all, a charming story and fine educational tool for exploring the "secret kingdom under the snow." I especially liked it because one of my favorite things about the ocean is knowing so many wonderful creatures live beneath the waves. Like the little girl in this story, I will enjoy knowing about all the creatures under the snow next time I am out in a winder wonderland.

[Andria Potter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so cute and wholesome! Beautiful artwork and a quick read I really adored this. Beautiful! 5 ⭐

[Manybooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Both lyrically sweet and factual (and primarily presenting a father and daughter on a bracing, exhilarating and also educational winter wonderland cross-country-skiing excursion through the fields, meadows and woods of a Northeastern continental USA or indeed als an Eastern Canada winter scene of snow and ice), Kate Messner's Over and Under the Snow should be considered as both a glorious family-themed reading pleasure and also an informative, enlightening educational teaching and learning tool and experience for both the young narrator and also for us as readers (as during the depicted and described cross-country-skiing journey over white snowy paths, up and down various hills, the father continuously but never preachily takes the opportunity to point out how in winter over and under the snow, various animal species survive the long months of cold, of darkness and icy, snowy precipitation, with his young daughter eagerly learning, eagerly absorbing her father's imparted information and knowledge and then passing it on to us, to her readers).

And as someone who has always loved and adored winter as a season (and considerably more so than the hot and often humid months of summer), Over and Under the Snow with its wonderful and magical combination of Kate Messner's informative and caressingly tender narrative and Christoper Silas Neal's accompanying snow inspired and imbued illustrations is truly what I would consider a perfect picture book introduction to winter as a season and to how twelve specific animal species live and survive during the winter months (a both visual and reading for pleasure, as well as an enlighteningly informational feast and treat, with the back materials, with Kate Messner's author's note, supplemental information on the presented and depicted animal species, and that for her suggestions for further reading, both books and two academic and official seeming websites are included being the absolute icing on an already very delicious and sweet cake).

Five shining and glowing stars (and I guess the only aspect of Over and Under the Snow that has once or twice made me grumble a bit is that I do find the loving father/daughter relationship portrayed by the author a bit envy-producing on my part, which is actually and in truth not at all meant as a criticism, but actually very much the opposite, very much as a compliment, but indeed, I cannot help but feel a wee bit jealous, as the few times we did go cross-country-skiing as a family during my childhood, skiing as fast as possible, keeping up and maintaining silence were basically more or less the order of the day, and questions about winter habitats, about the winter habits of any local animals and such would most definitely not have been either answered or even in amy manner and way really welcomed).

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little girl goes cross-country skiing over the snow with her father, while he points out the various animals that live under the snow. Knowing that little animals are burrowing around in the area between the snow and the ground makes me hesitant now to walk out into my yard or into a field for fear of stepping on something unseen! What interested me the most was the picture of the queen bumblebee hibernating in the snow. I didn't know that queens survive alone until spring, when they start a new colony. Maybe that's why all those bees in my garage died over the winter... An author's note at the back of the book tells us that this area between the snow and the ground is called the subnivean zone, and provides further information on all of the animals described in the book. This book would pair nicely with Melissa Stewart's Under the Snow and Jennifer Berry Jones' Who Lives in the Snow?. Highly recommended especially for kids who live in snowy places.

[donna backshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

What fun exploring the secret kingdom under the snow! I knew bears hibernated, but I never thought about all the animals that "eat, sleep, hide and play over and under the winter snow". This is an excellent book to introduce children to the magic of nature that stays mostly hidden in the winter.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 3 out of 5]

My least favorite in this picture book series
However, it's still quite informative and fun to read. The artstyle isn't what I had expected but it matches the writing.

[La Coccinelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our library had all three books in the Over and Under series, so I thought I'd check them out. While I can't say I absolutely loved this first one, I still think it's a strong picture book.

The narrative tells the story of a child and their father who are cross-country skiing. Along the way, they see many signs of animals. Some live above the snow, and some live in the subnivean zone, which is a pocket formed between the snow and the ground. Each animal is illustrated in a simple, bold style.

I don't love the illustrations, but they're adequate and showcase all of the different creatures in their snowy homes. The book also has some fairly extensive endnotes (for a picture book, anyway) that talk about how each of the creatures featured in the book actually spend their winter.

Overall, this is a strong picture book with a non-fiction flavour. I can see it being a great addition to classroom libraries.

Quotable moment:

[Kaethe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know any of this! It's so happy-making when that happens. Interesting art: the under-snow world seemed more vivid to me somehow

Library copy

[J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

...the secret kingdom under the snow...

This was beautiful!!

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bullfrogs hibernate? Never too old to learn something new!

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young girl enjoys a night-time skiing trip with her father in this gorgeous picture-book, while underneath the snow, in the subnivean zone, a host of wildlife is occupied with their own concerns, from sleeping to foraging for food. The snow-bound world seems still and quiet to the girl, but in reality, there is a wealth of activity taking place, just beneath her feet...

A simple but informative text (augmented by an excellent afterword that discusses the animals mentioned) is paired with breathtakingly beautiful artwork in Over and Under the Snow, making for a book that is both entertaining and educational! Christopher Silas Neal's mixed-media illustrations are simply enchanting - I was reminded of Julie Flett's work, in Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer: L'alfabet di Michif / Owls See Clearly at Night: A Michif Alphabet , which is a high compliment indeed - and I came away very impressed that this was his first book. I certainly hope that there will be many more to come! Kate Messner's text encourages young readers to appreciate the beauty of the winter woods, and to look more closely at the world around them. All in all, an excellent work of natural history for the younger picture-books set, and a beautiful work of art. Recommended to young animal lovers, and to anyone who appreciate lovely illustrations!

[P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the art - it has elements of collage, screen print, and papercut, as well as pencilled parts adding accents. Each page has an animal living under the snow and the design makes great use of the wide open space above and the cozy space below the ground - we follow a girl and her dad as they ski across the country over the snow, talking about what lives under the snow. Snowflakes fall, and little touches of color are everywhere, although the palette remains largely blues, whites, beiges, blacks and browns (but what a variety of those!) It could be just read for the pictures, but the words have their own fun, and were obviously carefully chosen for sound and effect: "Over the snow I glide, past beech trees rattling leftover leaves and strong, silent pines that stretch to the sky. On a high branch, a great horned owl keeps watch. Under the snow a tiny shrew dodges columns of ice; it follows a cool tunnel along the moss, out of sight."

[Margaux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part nonfiction, part narrative about a girl and her father on a cross-country skiing adventure, this book discusses the hidden life in winter's subnivean zone, or the area right above the ground and below the snow.

I loved the cool illustrations and the feeling of calm that the white space in each picture provides. There's also a helpful index in the back that talks about the subnivean layer and gives a brief infobite on the animals mentioned.

[jennyreadit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated and written of what happens "over and under the snow." The Author's Note explains more about the animals in the "secret kingdom under the snow."
A great way to teach about hibernation told from a child's perspective. Sure to become a classroom must-have.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a children’s book. A father and child go skiing into the forest and it tells the tale of all the woodland creatures’ activities both above and under the snow. I felt that it was slow and went on for too long.

[Shiloah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful

[Erin Osbourn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh to be a frog sleeping under a frozen lake

[Joannah Keats · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Over the snow I glide, past beech trees rattling leftover leaves and strong, silent pines that stretch to the sky. On a high branch, a great horned owl keeps watch. Under the snow, a tiny shrew dodges columns of ice; it follows a cool tunnel along the moss, out of sight.” So goes this unique picture book following a child and her father as they cross-country ski through the woods in the middle of winter. The pair makes observations about the world they see around them, and inferences about the world beneath them, or the subnivean zone, as Messner later explains in the author’s note. From scratching voles and snoozing bullfrogs to gnawing beavers and hungry foxes, these lyrical pages explore the secret activities of animals going about their business despite the harsh cold of snow.

The art here is a major component of what makes this book stand apart from others in its category. On the artist’s website, www.redsilas.com, visitors can read a back and forth discussion between the author and Christopher Silas Neal, in which they talk about the entire process of creating the illustrations for this book. The team even consulted a nature expert to ensure the accuracy of the animal depictions! The final product is a mix of drawing, painting, print making, and digital art that creates mystery and a sense of serenity throughout the pages.

Teachers will adore this book - it practically gives away its own curriculum. Messner has included not only a detailed explanation of the subnivean zone, but a glossary providing a paragraph with information about each animal she writes about and a Further Reading section containing related books and websites for a deeper dive. Did you know that only queen bumblebees hibernate in the soil and they can produce their own antifreeze if temperatures drop too low? That’s just one of the facts you’ll learn by reading the poetry contained in Over and Under The Snow, by Kate Messner and with art by Christopher Silas Neal.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lyrical and informative text combines with serene and evocative illustrations for a compelling package. As the narrator and her father ski slowly through the woods, they see evidence of animals above the snow. When the father tells his daughter of the "secret kingdom" under the snow, the reader is presented not only with the goings-on above the snow, but with pictures and text that show how other animals adapt to the winter season. From the shrew and the vole making their way through tunnels, to the queen bumblebee and the bear drowsing in their underground spots, children learn how populated the seemingly quiet winter woods are. The muted palette of Christopher Silas Neal's somewhat retro illustrations adds to the peaceful and rhythmic text. The story on its own beautifully meshes with FCPS's kindergarten and first grade science program of studies, and Messner's backmatter, including notes on each of the featured animals and further reading, is icing on the cake. This title will be enjoyed by children, teachers, and parents.

[Carol Royce Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My only complaint with this book is it took me too long to get it. What a treasure! It was unavailable for a while, but it finally came yesterday. I had to laugh though, because I had checked on it so often, and thought maybe the order wasn't coming, so somehow I ended up ordering three copies. I usually get angry at myself when I do this, but not this time. I know this will be a book that many of my colleagues will want to borrow for their classes. There is so much it can be used for, between it's seesaw format, rich descriptive language, alliteration, similes, alliteration and so much more, but above that it helps children to see what is going on in nature when snow covers the world. Beautiful!

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful story about animals found over and under the snow during the Winter time which opens up the discussion to animals that hibernate. I also learned that the layer between the snow and ground is called the "subnivean zone". Full of fascinating facts and chalked full of usefull links to other books on the subject.

[Kelly (Maybedog) · Rating 3 out of 5]

So so. Words don't feel like a child's voice. Interesting info about the animals but kind of dry. Illustrations are fine but nothing special.

[Nadine in NY Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful and simple look at how animals get through the winter - some live under the snow, some live over the snow, some come up now and then, and some hibernate. The art was not my favorite style, but it matched the words.

My only quibble is that on one page, the snow rabbit is described living under the snow, when the art very clearly shows the rabbit over the snow.

[امیرمحمد حیدری · Rating 4 out of 5]

منتشرشده توسط نشر مهرسا با عنوانِ «بالا روی برف پایین توی برف». مجموعه‌ی جالبی که پدیده‌ی حاضر در عنوان را به کودک در قالب یک ماجراجویی می‌شناساند. از خود پدیده تا موجوداتی که زیستگاه‌شان در آن است، اما تمرکز بیشتر روی موجودات است. در انتهای کتاب نیز نمایه/دانش‌نامه‌ی کوچکی از تمام موجودات و موضوعات حاضر در داستان به همراه توضیحات به دست می‌دهد.

[Katinas Čiobrelis | knygos, kelionės ir kiti įdomūs dalykai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Puiki knygutė apie žiemojančius gyvūnėlius. Gražios ir nepakartojamos iliustracijos