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The Shortest Day

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The Shortest Day
By Susan Cooper
Illustrated by Carson Ellis
Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press, 2019. Picture book.

Long before we had calendars or clocks, our forebears celebrated the Winter Solstice to mark the passing of seasons. Even though the shortest day of the year is the coldest and darkest there is reason to celebrate - since the passing of seasons means that soon there will be warmer and brighter days.

Newbery Medalist Susan Cooper evokes all the feelings of dismay and hope that come in the darkest nights of winter - and reminds us that there is always a promise of sun. Meanwhile, Caldecott Honoree Carson Ellis fills this beautiful picture book with gouache illustrations that are both modern and ancient and perfectly reflect the rising and setting of the sun. This may not be the most scientific way to teach about the Winter Solstice, but it is certainly the most atmospheric.

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