In the soothing, compassionate Igloo by Ann Kim Ha (A Friend for Eddy), a band of increasingly large animals wraps around one another to keep winter's chill at bay.
The first big snow is coming and "all the woodland creatures" are settling into their "cozy winter homes." Chickadee, however, has no lodging. As she curls her wings around her tiny body, a gaggle of geese offers to keep her toasty. But soon the huddle around the chickadee begins to shiver. "You look so cold," says a fox as he wraps himself around the geese. When the "flurries" turn into "heavy snow," the fox, too, starts shivering. Luckily, a passing bear decides to hug the whole bundle of animals close to her chest. A strong wind sends the animals rolling down a hill, picking up snow with every rotation. The mighty snowball hits flat ground and stops, becoming a pear-shaped mound. The bear makes an exit, and the fox and geese follow her out. Left behind is a perfect igloo, more than spacious enough for Chickadee and some new friends to inhabit for the winter.
Ha uses watercolor and digital collage to depict the barren cold of a frozen winter. Her chickadee protagonist is the kind of cute that can subdue a fox in winter, her giant eyes those of a Disney princess. All the animals have gentle facial expressions and thin white lines describing their soft fur and rounded bodies. Simple text and a neutral palette make this picture book a comforting story for a blustery day. --Siân Gaetano, children's and YA editor, Shelf Awareness