Author and illustrator Sally O. Lee has penned a children’s tale of enduring friendship through the seasons of life. In The Rabbit and the Snowman a group of children construct a snowman in the woods. The snowman is befriended by a rabbit who is shocked at his sudden disappearance come spring. Missing his friend over the summer and fall, the rabbit is reunited with the snowman once again when the children rebuild him. Despite the snowman’s absence and the fact that he now has a new scarf, the snowman and rabbit are able to resume their unlikely friendship as though they had never parted.

The story takes place largely during the winter months, with very brief forays through the other seasons; it seems somewhat odd that it has been released in the summertime. If your children are like mine, they don’t mind reading winter stories in the summer and vice versa. This story can serve as a refreshing bowl of ice cream on a hot summer day.

Lee is a trained artist, and her illustrations are somewhat unique within the children’s picture book market. Full sized 8 ½” x 11” illustrations are executed in watercolour, pen and ink on a richly textured paper. The translucencies of the illustrations enable the texture of the paper to show through, a trait that I’ve never observed in a children’s book. The texture of the watercolour paper adds an additional dimension to the whimsical pictures. While images commonly associated with seasonal celebrations such as Christmas and Halloween appear twice throughout the book, they serve to represent the changing seasons rather than relating to any holiday references in the text. This leaves the story free to focus upon the camaraderie between snowman and rabbit.

Lee explores the themes of friendship that endures throughout the unexpected changes that life brings our way. As an adult I have been blessed to be a part of friendships such as the one depicted in this title. Some friendships seem to fade away in certain seasons of life, only to be renewed with the same degree of intimacy and sharing once enjoyed. These relationships are true gifts, and this book models them for young children, ages 4 to 8, a time when friendships are often fickle.

Lee also tackles the doubts, fears and insecurities felt when a friendship seems to have ended. Was it something I did? Was something wrong with me? My daughter instinctively understood the message that it was no fault of the rabbit’s that the snowman had left.

“Maybe he was too furry,” Followed by my daughter, “No!”
"or his ears were too big,” “No!” she exclaims.
"or his eyes were too small.” “No.” repeated quietly while shaking her head.

Parents may experience the challenge of letting this simple story speak for itself. As adults we so often want to explain the moral lessons behind each tale we tell our children. However, in this case I feel that the story is best left to speak to itself, it’s message ringing out in the hearts of it’s readers without a stilted and forced explanation accompanying it. Some stories speak for themselves, without the need of an interpreter.