I was sent a copy of John Rocoo’s book, Blizzard. I knew one thing about John and that was that he wrote and illustrated this book about the Blizzard of ’78. I was four when that happened and we lived right over the Rhode Island border, close to where the story takes place. I remember being in our house with no electricity, a two year old sister and a brand new puppy. I’m sure that my Mom remembers that blizzard much more vividly than the rest of us because she had to deal with the new puppy and two kids under 5. My Dad was out helping to plow the snow. I remember being told that if I even step out of the house I’d get lost in a snow drift.
Reading this book to the kids made me think back to that Blizzard as much as my four year old self remembered. Mostly it was things that people told me and no so much what we did during that time. I can’t remember it all that clearly. John is older than me and when the Blizzard of 78 hit he was old enough to be outside and help. Blizzard is a story of how a young boy helped his neighborhood during that Blizzard.
One more thing about John Rocco. He does all the cover art for the Percy Jackson, Kane Chronicles, and Heroes of Olympus series. We love those and have them all in hardcover. The art is spectacular. The art of Blizzard is also spectacular and the story is entertaining. I plan to read this on each snowfall to the kids.
You can also learn more on RoccoArt.com and find John on Facebook and Twitter.
There is a Blog Tour happening around this book and I am one of the last stops. Check out the rest of the stops.
Thursday, November 6 – Mundie Kids
Friday, November 7 – Kid Lit Frenzy
Monday, November 10 – The Children’s Book Review
Tuesday, November 11 – The Kids Did It
Wednesday, November 12 – OC Mom Media
Thursday, November 13 – As They Grow Up
Friday, November 14 – Curling Up With a Good Book
Monday, November 17 – BenSpark – This Site
Tuesday, November 18 – Mr. Schu Reads
Thursday, November 20 – Elizabeth Dulemba
BLIZZARD
By John Rocco
Based on John Rocco’s childhood experience during the Blizzard of 1978, when forty inches of snow fell on his Rhode Island town, BLIZZARD (Disney-Hyperion; On-sale: November 18, 2014) tells the story of how one intrepid explorer helps his family and neighbors. It is a worthy companion to his Caldecott Honor-winning picture book, Blackout, about a neighborhood power outage during the summer.
BLIZZARD opens with a boy’s excitement upon seeing the first snowflake fall outside his classroom window. It ends with the neighborhood’s immense relief upon seeing the first snowplow finally break through on their street many days later. In between the boy watches his familiar landscape transform into something alien, and readers watch him transform into a hero who puts the needs of others first. John cleverly uses increasing amounts of white space in his playful and nostalgic images, which include full-bleeds, comic panels, and a glorious gatefold spread of the boy’s circuitous expedition to the store.
Whether readers are all-too-familiar with blizzards or have never experienced the wonder of a winter storm, John Rocco’s BLIZZARD is as delicious as a mug of hot cocoa by the fire on a snowy day.
About the Author
John Rocco (www.roccoart.com) studied illustration at Rhode Island School of Design and The School of Visual Arts. In addition to writing and illustrating his own picture books, including the New York Times best-selling and Caldecott Honor-winning Blackout, he has created all of the cover art for Rick Riordan’s best-selling Percy Jackson, Kane Chronicles, and Heroes of Olympus series. He also illustrated the New York Times #1 best-selling Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods. Before becoming a full-time children’s book creator, he worked as an art director on “Shrek” for Dreamworks, and for Disney Imagineering. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter.
BLIZZARD
By John Rocco
Disney-Hyperion; ISBN: 978-1-4231-7865-1
Price: $17.99; Ages: 3–5; released: October 30 , 2014
You can win a copy of Blizzard. Enter Below.
Yes, I remember that blizzard. Power was out to our house. Thank goodness we had a fireplace and plenty of firewood.
nothing about it
While this particular blizzard was 5 years before my time, I do remember the blizzard of ’96. Not quite 40″ in Maryland, but the most I think I’ve ever seen!