Review - Mother's Day with Snowman Paul

Mother's Day with Snowman Paul (Snowman Paul)
by Yossi Lapid
illustrated by Joanna Pasek
Date: 2018
Publisher: Yosef Lapid
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 38
Format: e-book
Source: author

Dan and Snowman Paul are getting ready to celebrate Mother's Day in grand style! But who is Snowman Paul's mother and how can they both celebrate Mother's Day together? Join Snowman Paul and Dan in this charming new adventure where they explore the meaning of Mother's Day and Earth Day and in the process they learn new things about how families and nature work.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This rhyming picture book combines Mother's Day and Earth Day. It sounds a little unusual at first, but it actually works. After Snowman Paul tells Dan what a great mom he has, Dan asks the snowman about his mother. Snowman Paul's answer is a little bit educational, quite a bit philosophical, and a whole lot cute. The interconnectedness of everything is highlighted, which is a great message for Earth Day... but the importance of mothers is showcased, too, which also makes this a nice Mother's Day book.

The rhythm of the text is fairly good. I did have a few issues with the punctuation, but I'm a stickler for that sort of thing. (It's not something you'd notice if you were having the book read to you, so it won't be an issue for most kids.) The illustrations are a perfect complement to the text. I particularly like Snowman Paul with his tree necklace and funky twig hair. The overall message is a good one, and it's interesting to see how the author combined the two holidays to make a sweet picture book about nurturing and nature.

If you're looking for a Mother's Day book that's a little bit different, you might want to give Mother's Day with Snowman Paul a try.

Thank you to Yossi Lapid for the e-book copy of Mother's Day with Snowman Paul.

Premise: 4/5
Meter: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 4/5
Originality: 4/5

Enjoyment: 4/5

Overall: 3.71 out of 5