Review: Delightful Christmas Tale in the Deep and Snowy Wood
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 8, 2013
"The Deep and Snowy Wood" by Elwyn Tate is a superbly illustrated poem for children, which leads up to the revelation that it is Christmas time. Various woodsy wildlife are going somewhere, but nobody seems to know where they are going. In the end, of course, they end up on a piece of high ground 100 miles from the North Pole, where they are in a position to see Santa and his sleigh, pulled by his 8 tiny reindeer across a full moon.The poetry is not bad; not at all contrived like so many poems are in childrens' books. But the big sales point in this book is the marvelous collection of wonderful illustrations which accompany each line of verse. Some of the illustrations would make very suitable Christmas cards, although others include wildlife not normally associated with Christmas, such as a bat or a mole. One cute component of each illustration is the mufflers worn by each of the animals in "The Deep and Snowy Wood". After all, it IS the middle of winter in the deep and snowy wood.This is a book your pre-schoolers and younger grade school children will enjoy year round, in spite of - or perhaps because of - its Christmas theme. I really think this is one book your kids will wear out. Definitely a well-deserved 5-star recommendation. Just in case you're interested, Elwyn Tate has written and illustrated a few other childrens' books, too.