Igloo by Ann Kim Ha (Greenwillow Books, 32 pages, ages 4-8). The first big snow is coming, and Chickadee is out in the cold. A gaggle of geese pass by and form a huddle around the bird to keep it warm. As snow starts to fall, a fox and a bear wrap themselves around the birds to form a tight, warm ball. A gust of wind sweeps them away and down a hill, encasing them in a giant snowball when they finally land. The geese pop out through the top, and the bear and fox dig their way through one of the sides, leaving Chickadee inside a snug igloo home.

This reminded me of Larissa Theule’s The Sweater from earlier this year. Read the two books together for a cozy wintertime story hour with a theme of animals helping each other and the importance of home and community.

Bathtime for Snow Monkeys by Maggie Tokuda-Hall, illustrated by Yas Imamura (Candlewick, 32 pages, ages 4-8). In the snowy mountains of Nagano, Japan, a group of nihonzaru, also known as snow monkeys or Japanese macaques, gather to enjoy the hot springs. One of the babies wants to splash and play, but the others calm him down, grooming him, then helping him gently drift off to sleep. The others relax in the hot water, blissfully unaware of the snow falling on them. Includes an author’s note about the Jigokudani monkey park and the hot springs that were created for the macaques after ski chalets crowded them out of their natural habitat.

Written in a series of haiku poems, this beautifully illustrated book induces a Zen-like tranquility that will get you through any snowstorm this winter. I wish there had been a note somewhere about haiku, but this would be a great way to introduce the poetry form to kids.