  | Full Text Reviews: Booklist - 09/15/2017 On the night before Christmas, Squirrel is baking cookies, Hare is decorating the tree, and Mouse is going out to find a present for Hare. But it still doesn’t feel like Christmas in their cozy house. Suddenly, Mouse returns and calls for help. She has found a swallow lying in the snow, alive but ill. They take the bird home and try to warm her with coneflower tea (Hare’s gift to Squirrel) and a knitted cap (Squirrel’s gift to Mouse). Nursed through the night, the swallow wakes at dawn and begins to sing, bringing joy to the kindly animals. The story has a sturdy structure as well as a central dilemma that will engage children. A Malaysian artist evidently making her picture-book debut, Chan offers illustrations featuring fine black lines that define the settings, while shorter lines shape the characters’ forms; it’s a pleasantly dizzying effect. The color palette, meanwhile, is restrained and pleasing. A quiet picture book with a certain seasonal charm. - Copyright 2017 Booklist. School Library Journal - 10/01/2017 PreS-Gr 1—In a little burrow in the woods, three animal friends are preparing for Christmas. Mouse still needs to find a Christmas present for Hare, so she ventures outside and comes upon a sick swallow lying in the snow. Together the friends carry the bird back to their burrow and take care of her using the Christmas gifts they had intended for each other. Watercolor-and-ink illustrations in a pleasant wintry palette exude coziness; while the scale of the animals is somewhat puzzling (Swallow is far bigger than even Squirrel and Hare), this does not detract from the overall appeal. VERDICT A sweet holiday tale about caring and sharing.—Teri Markson, Los Angeles Public Library - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
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