Cold Paws, Warm Heart http://www.fishpond.co.nz/Books/Cold-Paws-Warm-Heart-Madeleine-Floyd/9781406301908

By Madeleine Floyd

About the Author

Madeleine Floyd divides her time between illustration and painting. Her first picture book, Captain's Purr, was published in 2003. Her work has also been used on greetings cards, egg boxes and billboards, and she often exhibits her paintings. Madeleine lives in London.

Reviews

Cold Paws is a warmhearted polar bear so huge he scares away all potential animal friends. Just when it seems that he's doomed to always feel "cold inside," with only his silver flute for company ("he played [it] each day to forget his troubles"), a girl named Hannah appears, lured by the bear's music. After several visits, Hannah warms to the fellow and his hulking vulnerability; she pledges "to play with [him] every day." The story's wrap-up proclaims, "Now that he had a friend, Cold Paws didn't feel cold anymore." While the narrative retains a rather wooden literalness, the watercolor, ink and pastel pictures are quite another matter. With subtle striations of grays, blues and whites, British author/artist Floyd immerses readers in the daunting chill of the polar landscape; in one remarkable scene, Cold Paws, while playing his flute, seems enveloped by the night sky, a canopy of billowing, foreboding slate blue shot through with the shimmering green of an aurora borealis. Floyd's characterization of her gigantic ursine hero is every bit as striking as her depiction of his environment: Cold Paws is sweetly sad but never pitiful, and endearing from the first page. Children will immediately sense that while Cold Paws is very much at home in his enormous body, Hannah's chipper, stylishly Nordic presence is the very connection he seeks. Ages 4-8. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

"Children will embrace the analogy and adore the illustrations which conjure up images and memories of winter fun. On a deeper level they will be moved by the notion that genuine friendship is the most effective radiator of all. Fittingly, Floyd dedicates the book to her own superhero - and anyone out in the cold." www.writeaway.org.uk"

PreS-Gr 1-Cold Paws, a polar bear, is cold and lonely; his chilly condition comes from inside and not from his surroundings. Attempts to play with other animals haven't worked because they're all intimidated by his large size. So, he plays his silver flute in an attempt to forget his problems. One day, a girl from the nearby village follows his music and discovers the reclusive animal. Assuming he is cold, Hannah gives him her long striped scarf and begins to build a friendship that ultimately warms Cold Paws up on the inside. While this gentle, fanciful story doesn't offer anything new, the watercolor, ink, and pastel illustrations, done predominantly in the blues, whites, and grays of the Far North, are noteworthy. An additional purchase.-Maryann H. Owen, Racine Public Library, WI Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.