In the Midwest where I live, it’s a perfect time of year to enjoy Ezra Jack Keats’s The Snowy Day. Published in 1962, it’s the story of an adorable little boy named Peter who, donned in a gnome-like red snowsuit, embarks on a simple yet lovely adventure into the snow on the first snowy day of the year.

Peter engages in the very same things most preschoolers would find interesting to do in the snow. He admires the highly piled snow, crunches his feet in it satisfyingly, experiments with different ways to walk in the snowy powder, uses a stick to explore the snow, makes a snowman and a snow angel, and other activities. Peter even contemplates joining the “big boys” for a snowball fight but knows that he’s just not old enough—“not yet.”

He also pretends to be a mountain climber, climbing and sliding down the snow, and even tries to hold onto these perfect moments by stuffing his pockets with as much snow as he can carry before he goes inside to warm up. His mother gives him a warm bath and when he gets out and realizes that she’s emptied the pockets, he’s crestfallen, not realizing that the snow would have melted anyhow. This triggers Peter’s nightmare about the snow being melted when he wakes.

However, he’s pleasantly surprised to find that the snow is still there in the morning—and not only is it there, it’s falling yet again. He has his breakfast and goes outside to repeat the previous day’s adventures, this time with a friend.

What I love about Snowy Day so much is its simplicity and how sage it makes Peter out to be. He’s not over-bundled up, he’s not chased after by a well-meaning parent, and he knows his limits as if he’s been taught them well. Rather than requiring the latest snow gadgetry—or even a simple sled!—he makes use of the snow itself and a plain old stick—remember those!—and keeps himself not just occupied but happily entertained for a full day. And though he knows the bigger boys are having fun, he also knows that he’s a smaller boy that could get hurt and knows that a snowball fight awaits him in the not-too-distant future.

All of that said, Peter retains his childhood wonder as he tries to take the snow inside to keep it, and is crestfallen when he realizes that it’s gone. The joy on his face is palpable when he realizes that he can go outside yet again to enjoy another day—and as he takes a friend along to share his joy, it ends the story on a very warm note that children will love.