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Raczka, Bob

The Power of Snow

32 pp. | Lerner/Millbrook | October, 2023 | Trade ISBN 9781728450919 $20.99 | Ebook ISBN 9798765602089 $34.65
(2) K-3 Illustrated by Bryony Clarkson. A simple rhyming verse remarks on a pattern among some snowflakes: "Two flakes play / Four flakes sashay / Eight flakes twirl / Sixteen flakes swirl." Sidebars on each spread explain the pattern, e.g.: "2[exponent]4 = 2 to the fourth power / 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 16." Painted paper collages of a fenced-in wintry backyard featuring birch trees, a swing set, and various birds and animals are overlaid with the exact number of snowflakes mentioned in the text--which quickly rises to a dizzying multitude (the text stops at 2[exponent]14 = 16,384). The beautifully textured illustrations create visual interest, while the snowflakes, a combination of smudge-style dots and the delicately articulated, folded papercut versions familiar from grade-school arts and crafts, offer a counting opportunity for budding numerophiles. The story progression works on more than one level: not only does the math demonstrate the power of exponential growth (a postscript explains "What Is an Exponent?" and gives the example of a one-celled fertilized egg that divides repeatedly until it turns into a baby and then an adult with trillions of cells), but the increasing number of flakes also mimics the feeling of a storm that begins slowly and soon becomes a dazzling onslaught of snow. The book ends on a more human scale: "One snow day. Two friends play. 2[exponent]1 = 2 to the first power / 2 = 2."
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

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