Book Description
for Mittens and Mukluks! Winter in Alaska by Joni Spiess
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
A quartet of inviting board books perfect for small hands celebrates the four seasons in Alaska and diverse, rural Alaskan Native families. "Where I live, we love to be outside," begins Mittens and Mukluks!, the statement paired with a photograph of a small child holding a grown-up's hand while pulling a bright red sled across a snowy gray-white landscape, the moon hanging above in the daytime sky. Brief statements about winter outdoor activities (ice fishing, a snowman under the northern lights) and indoor activities (a warm bath, cooking, a holiday table with traditional foods) are featured on the pages that follow, each paired with an engaging photograph. Spring (Bye-Bye Ice!), summer (Let's Play Out!), and fall ( Button Up! ) all get a similar treatment across the other three volumes in a series that deftly celebrates both universal and unique elements of rural Alaskan life for these children and families as it showcases things most children can relate to (exploring nature, engaging in favorite activities, spending time with loving adults) while also featuring food, activities and other elements that are culturally distinct, and incorporating occasional words in several Alaskan Indigenous languages, including Inupiaq and Yupik. (Ages 1-3)
CCBC Choices 2021. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2021. Used with permission.