Snow Horses: A First Night Story

Gr 1-3–The late, great MacLachlan offers a quiet pastoral celebration of New Year’s Eve. It is the last night of the year and Tim and Tom, two Percheron horses with gleaming black coats, are excited to be a part of the celebration. First, they head to the market where they pull children around the town in a colorful sleigh. Then, they head to the manor house where they pull grandparents, aunts, uncles, and old friends through the snowy fields. The children and adults are varying skin colors, and one woman is shown wearing a hijab. The blue-hued illustrations transport readers into serene scenery filled with snow. While each scene is washed in cool tones, the lights in the illustrations seem to glow. The details of the collage illustrations are fabulously detailed and intricate, with the clothing on the characters showing many unique patterns. The lacy paper details as snow on the trees are particularly beautiful.