Blizzard by John Rocco

Blizzard by John Rocco

This companion to the Caldecott Honor winning picture book BLACKOUT is the story of how one intrepid boy embarks on an expedition and becomes the hero of his neighborhood.

Blizzard is based on the author's childhood experience during the now infamous Blizzard of 1978, which brought fifty-three inches of snow to his town in Rhode Island. Told with a brief text and dynamic illustrations, the bookopens 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 break through on their street. 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. 

Caldecott Honoree John Rocco uses an increasing amount of white space in his playful images, which include a gatefold spread of the boy's expedition to the store. This book about the wonder of a winter storm is as delicious as a mug of hot cocoa by the fire on a snowy day.

John Rocco is the author and artist of many critically praised children's books, including! Rocco also did the covers for Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Kane Chronicles, The Heroes of Olympus, and Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard series, as well as Whoopi Goldberg's Alice. Percy Jackson's Greek Gods and Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes were both #1 New York Times Bestsellers, and he was the illustrator for both. Rocco's debut nonfiction book, How We Came To The Moon, was recently named to the National Book Award longlist.