Four stories, one for each season, feature the same girl, beginning in winter when she sees her first snowfall and wants to go outside. Her mother tells her to put on her boots, her father tells her to wear her earmuffs, the dog tells her to wear her snow pants—even the refrigerator tells her something to put on. By the time she is dressed to go out, the snow is gone. In spring, she pretends to be a fairy princess and her dog plays along as her knight in shining armor, but her cranky cat just wants to be left alone. In summer, it’s so hot that the girl literally melts and her pet purple hippo, Louise, sucks her puddle up using a straw, empties it in a cup, and puts her in the freezer to reconstitute while Louise goes to watch The Can of Beans Show on TV (“starring a can of beans!”). And in fall, there is a conversation between the girl and a tree, who is horrified to learn it will be losing its leaves. Most of the art is sequential, designed to look like comics, but the final story uses a traditional picture book format. This funny, quirky book may not be for everyone, but for those who connect with its bizarre world view, it will be a wonderful year indeed. (Ages 5–8)