The Snow Thief

Squirrel and Bird

by Alice Hemming, Nicola Slater (Illustrator)

Squirrel and Bird are back, and this time it's winter! But squirrel has never seen snow before. Will he like it? You bet he will! Except, just as Squirrel starts to get used to the snow, it disappears. Is there a snow thief on the loose?

With vibrant art and captivating characters, the magic of winter is captured beautifully on each page as readers tag along Squirrel's forest adventure. Is there truly a snow thief on the loose, or is something else going on in Squirrel's forest? A perfect exploration of change―both seasonal, and the anxiety that change sometimes causes. Bonus material explaining about the changing of the seasons. Poised to be a new fall classic.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Storytime, Nature, Friendship, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 3, 2024

About the author

Alice Hemming is the author of over fifty books for children, including the bestselling Dark Unicorns series (Scholastic), and picture book, The Leaf Thief with illustrator Nicola Slater (Scholastic 2020), which has sold across the world and been translated into nineteen languages. Alice lives in Hertfordshire, UK with her husband and two children, and works in a writing shed at the top of her garden.

Reviews

[Jasmine from How Useful It Is · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-read for my toddler as a story time. We loved it.

---::/--:;;/--//---

Read this book for my toddler's bedtime. A great story and illustrations! Squirrel was surprised when he popped his head out of his tree to find the ground was all white and cold. He asked Bird where the grass went. Bird, being calm and reasonable answered Squirrel that it was snow. Bird invited Squirrel to come out to play because snow can be fun. Squirrel wanted to stay in to keep warm. Bird tossed a snowball into Squirrel's home. Squirrel asked what it was and how it got into his home. Bird invited Squirrel to a snowball fight. Squirrel tossed his first snowball at Bird and agreed that snow was fun and came out to play. Squirrel noticed about smoke on his breath and the icy patches of ground. The next day, Squirrel prepared himself to play with snow some more. But when he went down from his tree, he was amazed to find that the snow was gone. He screamed for Bird about the Snow Thief!

A fun book in time for this year's rare snow we recently experienced. Fun illustration as well. The end of the book has nonfiction explanations of how snow occurred, the color of snow, snowflakes, smoke breath, etc..

Thank you Sourcebooks Kids for the opportunity to read and review.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one green bird sipping hot tea and reading a book is so me! Find me there in the book!

This board book describes perfectly the curious nature of a child who experiences snow for the first time and gets curious where it all disappears when the next season begins!

The writing is fun with full of action sounds and words. The illustrations are pure joy!

Just the perfect read that will explain who keeps stealing all the snow!

Thank you, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, for the ARC.

[Inês | Livros e Papel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5*

[Sara Houser · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this through NetGalley for a fair review so here it is. The snow thief was Super cute, sweet, and fun. You follow squirrel who is an on edge squirrel and bird who is friends and teaches his pal squirrel on things that’s happening around them. Bird and squirrel go on a winter adventure in this particular story, teaching squirrel about fun things that happen in the winter time.
Squirrel and bird are lovely characters that play well off each other, like Bert and Ernie. I love how chaotic squirrel is and how chill bird is. The illustrations are bright and vibrant and grab your attention but also simple and direct. They stay true to the text. The snow thief is a very short but to the point story, a child with a beginners reading would be able to follow along. I am not new to this author seeing as I have read the leaf thief which is yet another bird and squirrel story in autumn. I truly cannot wait to see more from bird and squirrel.

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wederom een leuk boek over Eekhoorn en Vogel! Gelezen in de herfst, maar krijg helemaal zin in sneeuw nu haha.

Eekhoorn wordt wakker en al het gras is verdwenen. Alles is wit! Vogel legt uit dat dit sneeuw is. Eekhoorn stelt allemaal vragen, zoals waarom alles wit en koud is. En waarom er rook uit zijn mond komt. Of waarom is de plas opeens zo glad? Maar vooral, waar zijn de verstopte hazelnootjes gebleven?! Heeft de sneeuweekhoorn hier misschien iets mee te maken?

De sneeuwdief is weer een heel leuk seizoensgebonden prentenboek waarin op een toegankelijke en grappige manier de winter wordt uitgelegd aan jonge kinderen. Eenvoudig, maar educatief. Dat maakt dat dit prentenboek zich onderscheid van andere prentenboeken vind ik. Zeker een aanrader om te lezen! En ben nu al benieuwd naar de zomer, want die mist nog in deze boeken!

[Victoria Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the ARC of this title. The storyline was sweet and squirrel is so curious and has many questions. Throughout the book his questions are answered and his hesitation toward something new turns into excitement as he begins to enjoy the snow. Super cute and would be fun to read during a Storytime.

[Nadina · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute, I love it. I love how Squirrel just panics and thinks the worst for everything that happens and poor Bird is left to explain to Squirrel that everything is completely normal. Very fun series. I look forward to a story set in summer.

[Supernovae · Rating 5 out of 5]

La mia serie di libri preferita in assoluto. Ormai aspetto un’uscita della Hemming come poche cose. Adoro Scoiattolo!🫠

[Bethe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Squirrel is experiencing his first winter snow with Bird reassuring him at each apprehension of new things. More info about squirrel’s new experience in the back
Usual bright engaging illustrations

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75

[Lucie Coppin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Album très mignon, troisième de la série sur les saisons. Cette fois-ci, notre petit écureuil se demande ce que peut bien être la neige... et pourquoi elle disparaît ! Toujours plein d'humour (et d'explications à la fin), cet album est une mine d'or de mignonnerie et de rigolade dès 3 ans !

[Sheenamy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the german version of this.
Squirrel is very hyper, but this book is super entertaining and explains scientific facts nicely. Squirrel and bird's friendship and the detail-oriented drawings are just too cute.

[Lou Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

The squirrel discovers snow and he is utterly shocked by it. He is learning winter activities with his friend, the bird, and I absolutely love how the squirrel is red in these books, native to Britain. Love that small detail. I think this would be a brilliant winter read and a great bedtime story for nursery/ primary school kids.

The art is humorous and the text works well with the images.

[Edina L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny witty and interesting 🥰😂

[Celeste Zuccherina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Όλη η σειρά αυτών των βιβλίων ειναι μια καταπληκτική δουλειά. Όταν ο γιος μου είδε αυτο το καινούριο βιβλίο, το εσφιξε στην αγκαλιά του και το φίλησε.

[Filipa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um livro muito engraçado que reflete não apenas sobre as estações do ano, mas também sobre amizade. Gostámos muito deste duo :)

[Kayla Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute story about a confused squirrel that teaches some valuable season-related knowledge on the sly ;)

[Nathan Meier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty fun!

[Melanie Dulaney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hemmings “thief” books are wonderful! Such fun with Squirrel and Bird playing in the forest and Bird patiently answering all of Squirrel’s questions about nature’s wonder all around them. In this addition to the series, the wondering Squirrel has no idea what all that white stuff is outside his home, who stole the grass and is especially concerned about where his hazelnuts have gone. As usual, Bird gets his friend exploring new things and shares a wealth of knowledge about frozen water, the uniqueness of each snowflake and how in the world smoke is coming out of their mouths. After the fun, Hemming includes a brief explanation of the science of all those snow and winter-related things. Illustrations by Nicola Slater are a great supplement to the brief text, making this a wonderful selection for readers/listeners in preschool through grade 3.

Thanks for the eARC, Edelweiss!

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still cute but not as fun as "The Leif thief".

[Amy]

not good for read aloud on the board

[Cris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ardilla es única

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay, but not as good as "The Leaf Thief"

[Alyssa Gudenburr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as good as the first one but still funny.

[Melanie Swider Wenz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute book! Would make a great read aloud!

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Snow Thief (A Squirrel & Bird Book)
by Alice Hemming (Goodreads Author)
like the kindergarten students this book was found in, the book shows the wonders of the changing cycle of nature. Squirrel learns that snow does not always stay and with its loss the world makes wonders. A cute story showing the playful nature of the world.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Squirrel has Sooo many questions and his friend bird helps out.

[Alessandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

In questa nuova avventura (pubblicata in Italia da Emme Edizioni col titolo "Il ladro di neve"), scoiattolo e il suo amico uccellino scoprono il freddo e la prima neve.
Il manto bianco ha i suoi pregi (giocare con le palle di neve) ma anche i suoi pericoli (attenzione al laghetto ghiacciato!).
Per i più piccoli.

[Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

2ns book in the A Squirrel and bird book. Love the illustrations. Cute story.

[Relyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great follow up to The Leaf Thief. I think kids will love it!