It’s Snow Day

Review

You can practically hear the soundtrack starting as soon as you turn to the first page of this, Richard Curtis’ second collaboration with the wonderful Rebecca Cobb.

Once again, he’s produced a title for the festive season (following the pair’s first work, The Empty Stocking) – and once again, he taps into the romantic, nostalgic, shamelessly sentimental spirit that characterises this time of year in the way that he does so very well, whether as author or director.

All the ingredients for a classic Curtis tear-jerker are here: the grumpy teacher, hiding memories of a joyless childhood; the angry, defiant, ‘difficult’ pupil who is actually just desperate for his dad’s attention; and a thick blanket of snow that changes the familiar school environment into a place where the two of them are able to reveal their real selves.

There’s even a trailer for ‘Snow Day 2’ at the end. Scrooges may be cynical… but this is a book that’s very easy to love.