Description
With one big gasp, Mr. Sneezy Snew inhaled all the frigid air. Then with a snort and a sneeze, he blew a blizzard of snow into a large white sack. Not wasting any time, he quickly tied it tight, and flung it on to his back. Then he carried it away in the dark of the night, to a shack high in the mountain out of everyone’s sight. The year Winter Late by Michael Larzelere is a story about small town by a great lake that has its winter stolen by a cranky, mean old snowman named Mr. Sneezy Snew.
The people of Snowtown are upset because their winter is missing, and they don’t know what to do. They go to the mayor, and all can do is put up a bulletin. Just as the people begin to depart, they hear a voice in the crowd calling out she knows who has their winter and she knows where it is. The voice belongs to Lisa, a little girl new to the town. She tells the people if she can get permission to go, she will get this cranky, mean old snowman to bring winter back.
Lisa meets three animal friends (a red robin, a gray squirrel, and a brown bear) on her way to confront the mean old snowman who will eventually help her in her quest to bring winter back to Snowtown. When Lisa finally reaches Mr. Sneezy Snew’s shack high up in the mountain she is told to go away. But Lisa is persistent and tells Mr. Sneezy Snew he has something that he needs to return. Mr. Sneezy Snew knows what it is that needs to be returned and at first refuses. However, Lisa knows a secret about the snowman, that he likes to play games. Lisa gets Mr. Sneezy Snew to agree to play some games and she even leaves the choice of games up to him. He decides to play a game of riddles, because no one has ever solved his riddles. But he will only play if Lisa’s animal friends play too. He agreed to the rule of the game that he can lose and keep going until there are no more challengers to challenge him.
Mr. Sneezy Snew loses the first three riddles and decides to change the rules of the game, though in reality the rules did not change. However, he does give Lisa a different challenge. Mr. Sneezy Snew asks Lisa if she ever played the game of doubles? Lisa tells him no. So he tells her in order to play the game she must understand the rules of the game of doubles. He announces; “In a land of doubles, there are no snowstorms, but there are blizzards. In a land of doubles, there are no winds, but there is a breeze. In the land of doubles, air is never hot or cold, yet it is always cool. In the land of doubles, it will not hail, but it may sleet. In the land of doubles, it will not rain, yet it may drizzle. In the land of doubles, there are no jokes, but there are riddles.”
Lisa takes a lot of time but at the behest of Mr. Sneezy Snew she tells him she has figured out how to play his game and to prove it she gives him a challenge of what board games can you play in the land of doubles; Checkers or Chess, Candyland or Chutes and Ladders, Words with Friends, or Scrabble?”
Realizing that Lisa has outsmarted him at his own game, Mr. Sneezy Snew has a change of heart and attitude. He tells Lisa and her animal friends he is ready to take winter back to Snowtown. On the way back he helps each of Lisa’s animal Friends prepare for the winter season. When Lisa and Mr. Sneezy Snew reach Snowtown winter is all around the town, but Snowtown is still warm. Lisa and Mr. Sneezy Snew meet with the mayor of the town. Mr. Sneezy Snew tells the people of Snowtown he is sorry he took their winter. The mayor, being thankful that Mr. Sneezy Snew brought their winter back, lets Mr. Sneezy Snew have the first blast of the frosty air. Mr. Sneezy opens his sack and lets all frosty air come rushing out and winter is back. The children are most happy because they get a snow day.