The Christmas Snow Globe by Sibylle Delacroix

translated by Polly Lawson from the original French.

It’s Christmas Eve, and young Lucy and Noah are disappointed that there isn’t any snow on the ground outside. In an effort to distract them, Papa offers Lucy one present to open before bed. Lucy is pleased to unwrap a Christmas snow globe, especially since the house inside looks rather like their own. The difference, ofc, is that the house inside the globe has plenty of snow, whereas theirs does not.

Off Lucy and Noah go to bed. She gives the snow globe just one last shake before turning in. Imagine her surprise, then, to feel a cold, featherlight touch on her cheek. Somehow it is snowing inside her house! She wakes Noah, and the two embark on a delightful winter adventure, made all the more comical for being entirely indoors.

I will never not appreciate when publishers like Floris make it plain that all the art inside a book is done by real people. In this case, Sibylle Delacroix has worked with graphite pencil and colored pencils on watercolor paper to create the charming illustrations that accompany her delightful story. Of particular note is the expressiveness of the characters: Noah is depicted as being quite a cheerful little boy throughout, whereas Lucy is subtly but clearly fighting disappointment in the first few pages of the book. The pictures quietly but perfectly illustrate her journey towards pure glee, making for a surprisingly cathartic picture book, even for a reader like myself who is far less enthused about snow than these characters are.

This is the perfect kids book for the upcoming holiday season, especially if you have kids who long for a White Christmas (but particularly if you have a forecast for snow on the date itself.) It’s a wonderful addition to the Christmas canon, with a lovely cozy feel and the reminder that imagination can be just as fun and powerful as the real thing.

The Christmas Snow Globe by Sibylle Delacroix was published September 10 2024 by Floris Books and is available from all good booksellers, including