4 out of 4 stars
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One otherwise-ordinary day in winter, three children decided to build a snowman. They gave him a carrot nose, a scarf, twigs for hands and beads for buttons, but they also gave him three additional special gifts. First were sparkly marbles, they were given to him for eyes. Next, a rosebud was gifted as a heart. Finally, a big yellow apple was given for a brain. These gifts brought Ice Dream, the snowman, to life!
Ice Dream couldn't move from his spot, though, and was very lonely when the kids went to play. While looking at passing clouds, he wished that he would be given the ability to move. A Cloud Angel heard his wish, even though he didn't even speak it aloud, and she granted his wish, but warned him a very big change would be coming in his life.
Ice Dream's Wish by Nasrin Mottahedeh is a very endearing, sweet story of a snowman coming to life. Once granted the ability to move he ends up doing kind things for others, like giving a hungry rabbit his carrot nose. These actions are great lessons for anyone that doing kind things for others, even when it means giving up our own things, can inspire happiness in everyone. The story also manages to sneak some humor in, like when the Cloud Angel grants Ice Dream's wish - he asks how she could have heard it since he didn't say it aloud, then goes on to list other potential ways to wish, such as sending her an email!
The story's 30 pages alternate between text and full page images, although there are also some that use both at once. With only one word as an exception, the font makes the words easy to read even on top of the images on my iPhone. Since the book is typically only available in physical form, I have no doubt that even the one trouble word would be easy to read. The physical book must also be quite the sight as the artwork is fantastic even on my small screen as well! Mehri Dadgar does an excellent job livening up pages of the sincere story with what look like hand-painted images. The way the brush strokes lie I'd almost wonder if the paint was still wet if I were flipping real pages! The art style is one I've never seen before, and while some of the images seem a bit odd at first I really enjoyed it!
The book has won 6 literary awards, and I can certainly see why now that I've read it. It captures the magic of the holidays and the joy of giving to others. While it's not another award technically I'm still happy to give the book 4 out of 4 stars.
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Ice Dream's Wish
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