IT'S SNOWING!

Cosgrove begins with what seems a flat attempt to be poetic, referring to snow as a ""cloak of warmth,"" a ""garment of white,"" a ""cloak of snow,"" a ""white quilt,"" and, over and over throughout, a ""snow blanket."" In the process she states what readers will already know about snow: It muffles noises; it can sound ""hushy, slushy, or squooshy"" or ""like lots of little feet tap-dancing on windows""; it makes problems for cars, trains, and boats (but the salt spread on roads can cause problems too); it can trap people in their houses ""out in the country."" Cosgrove ends with similarly predictable lists of ""please do's"" (make a snow angel, snow man, etc.) and ""please don'ts"" (get lost in it, throw hard snowballs). There are a few pages on animals in winter, small ones snug under the ""real blanket"" of snow while predators run about on top. But overall this is as soft and insubstantial as snowflakes, without their fragile beauty--more like a head full of cotton.