Ten Ways to Hear Snow

Lina wakes up one winter day to find that the world is covered in white. Concerned for her sitti, or grandmother, with whom she is supposed to make warak enab (stuffed grape leaves), Lina sets out through the snow, discovering many different ways to hear that cold substance as she walks to her grandmother's house. Once there, she discovers that sitti, whose eyesight is failing, has her own ways of hearing and appreciating snow...

A delightful story from Arab-American author Cathy Camper is paired with beautiful artwork from Korean-American illustrator Kenard Pak in Ten Ways to Hear Snow, which emphasizes the importance of both family love and having a mindful and appreciative approach to the natural world around us. The central idea show more embedded in the title here, of finding different ways to hear snow, as well as the fact that snowfall hushes everything, both really struck me, as I woke up this morning to find my house enveloped in a snowstorm. I liked the depiction of a modern, everyday Arab-American family in text and artwork here, and appreciated that, while the cultural details are specific, the human experience in the story - the love of grandparents and grandchildren, the awe at nature's beauty - is universal. Recommended to picture-book readers looking for lovely winter-time tales, as well as those seeking children's books featuring Arab-American families. show less

A lovely evocation of snow and the love shared between granddaughter and grandmother. Waking to a snowy morning, Lina is excited to share the storm with her Sitti, her grandmother. Lina's parents are a bit worried about her walking through the snow by herself, but allow her independence. Outside, the bright sun on the white makes it hard for her to see, and Lina wonders if this is how her Sitti, who is losing her eyesight, experiences the world. She tunes in to sounds instead of sights, counting nine ways to hear snow: the scrape of a shovel, the scritch of skiiers, the crunch of her boots. At Sitti's they make stuffed grape leaves and pretend the warak enab are cocoons and mustaches. After sharing a meal, Sitti shows Lina the tenth way show more to hear snow on "the late blue afternoon [that] was completely still." I love Lina's empathy for her grandmother and her eagerness to help her. I love Sitti's quiet. This is a peaceful, comforting story, perfect for a winter day. Kenard Pak's warm illustrations complement the story's tone. show less

As I awoke today to snow, it was a good day to read a book with this title. This is another illustrated story that is very well told, and the accompanying illustrations are lovely! I'll look for additional books in the hope this team continues with their exceptional work.

Lina has a date with her beloved grandmother to make stuffed grape leaves. As Lina travels through the lovely snow, she observes the beauty as she walks to her house.

This is a soft, lovely, well-written story of the love of family, and their Lebanese culture. Lina looks out the window to snow, and the lack of sound on the street was the prompt to understand the quietness.

However, Lina wisely finds ten ways to hear snow. This oxymoron continues throughout. There is the show more sound of wiping the extra snow from a lovely snowman. Then, the sound of a snowball which finds the target of Lina. The sound of people removing snow from their cars is yet another way to appreciate the quiet sound of snow.

I read this book three times, continuing the enjoyment of a new discovery each time I turned the pages.

Highly recommended!! show less

I dunno if this is a five star book as in So Amazing that Everyone should read it. But there's so much to love about it. First thing that came to my mind even before I opened it is the poem by [a:Wallace Stevens|42920|Wallace Stevens|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1208891582p2/42920.jpg], [b:Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird|15809766|Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird|Wallace Stevens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1392233327l/15809766._SX50_.jpg|21534461].*

But I also love the subtle 'multi-cultural' aspect, which another reviewer revealed to me is Lebanese. I love the humor and joy and respect in the family. I love the community that the grandmother lives in and want to move there show more myself if/when I'm on my own. And most of the descriptions of the sounds of snow brought me right back to my childhood in NW Wisconsin - spot on. And the ending is lovely, too.

Highly recommended to families and other educators.

*I could have sworn I read this illustrated as a children's picture book... about a decade ago... shelved in Juv NF poetry, not Easy picture-books... Can any of you find it please? show less

Lina wakes to find her neighborhood covered in snow. Last night’s blizzard left everything quiet and white. As she walks to her grandmothers to make a special meal of warak enab, Lina encounters new sounds in the snow-covered neighborhood. Lina knows her grandmother cannot see very well and asks about the snowstorm. She realizes that her Sitti has heard the snow rather than seeing it. Lina discovers 10 diverse ways to hear snow.

Wonderful, clean illustrations take the reader with Lina as she travels to Sitti’s house, and the onomatopoeia of the story heightens the sounds Lina is experiencing. This quiet book celebrates the sounds and feel of Lina’s journey, but also her strong familial relationships and Lebanese culture.

One winter morning, Lina wakes up to silence. It's the sound of snow -- the kind that looks soft and glows bright in the winter sun. But as she walks to her grandmother's house to help make the family recipe for warak enab, she continues to listen.

As Lina walks past snowmen and across icy sidewalks, she discovers ten ways to pay attention to what might have otherwise gone unnoticed. With stunning illustrations by Kenard Pak and thoughtful representation of a modern Arab American family from Cathy Camper, Ten Ways to Hear Snow is a layered exploration of mindfulness, empathy, and what we realize when the world gets quiet.

Sure it can be a counting book
Sure it can be a book about someone with impairments
Sure it can be a book about winter

How do you want to use it?