Stina from Lani Yamamoto, is a beautifully written & delicately illustrated picture book about friendship.
Stina dislikes the cold so much she won’t even eat ice cream. She dreads the Winter coming every year. And so, every year she makes all the plans and preparations necessary to ensure she doesn’t have to face the outside. She knits her warm clothes, hides under her ‘big, white, goose-down duvet’ and sips on mugs of hot chocolate.
However. It’s not long before Stina notices the children outside. They are playing.
‘How did they keep snow out of their mittens and boots?
What did snowflakes taste like?’
They appear to be having fun, plus, their rosy cheeks imply they must be … warm. How can that be?! When a cold, strong wind blows them inside Stina’s house she begins to learn. She learns about friendship. She learns about letting go of her fears.
Stina is so beautifully told. Yamamoto’s illustrations have a wonderful quality to them. Some pages are simply illustrated whilst others contain much detail to pour over. With a recipe for Stina’s hot chocolate together with instructions for hand knitting at the end, Stina is a warm and comforting picture book to huddle around as the nights draw in.
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