“Over the snow I glide past beech trees rattling leftover leaves … Under the snow, a tiny shrew dodges columns of ice; it follows a cool tunnel along the moss, out of sight.” As a girl skis through the woods with her dad, she reflects on the many creatures that are busy—or not—beneath the snow: a vole searches for food, a bullfrog sleeps, a mouse scuttles along under a drift while a keen-eared red fox above the ground gets ready to pounce. These and other revelations in Kate Messner’s exploration of the often unseen activity of the winter world are set against Christopher Silas Neal’s lovely mixed media illustrations showing both the human and nonhuman activity the girl describes. Neal beautifully evokes the winter woods with his subdued palette and stylized images that are reminiscent of woodcut prints. (Ages 3–7)

Over the snow, the world is hushed and white. But under the snow exists a secret kingdom of squirrels and snow hares, bears and bullfrogs, and many other animals that live through the winter safe and warm, awake and busy, under the snow. Discover the wonder and activity that lies beneath winter's snowy landscape in this magical book.