A heartwarming new holiday mystery for families,
30 years in the making…
For generations, stories like ’Twas the Night Before Christmas, A Christmas Carol, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas have lit up holiday traditions. This Christmas, a new tale joins their company: Snowball: A Christmas Dilemma by Ian White, a rhyming whodunit about Santa’s famous red hat going missing late on a cold Christmas Eve.
For more than 30 years, Ian carefully honed this playful holiday mystery — tinkering with every rhyme, beat, and twist until it shone. The result is a charming story filled with humour, heart, and a clever surprise ending that children and adults alike will enjoy.
For many holiday seasons, Ian delighted audiences at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children by reciting Snowball beside a handmade cardboard hearth, with the story broadcast to children who were too ill to leave their rooms. In 2019, he recorded the tale as an audiobook — in his warm, Michael-Caine-meets-Morgan-Freeman voice.
Now, with the help of his lifelong best friend’s son, editor Tim Gentle, and the hand-coloured illustrations of B.C. artist Sarah Cowan, Snowball: A Christmas Dilemma is finally available as a beautiful, 40 page illustrated softcover book — a gift to be treasured by families with Santa-aged children for generations to come.
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Ian White grew up in East London in the 1930s, developing a lifelong love for words, jokes, and storytelling. After immigrating to Canada, he spent more than 40 years at The Globe and Mail. Known for his quick wit, generous spirit, and Santa-like warmth, Ian has delighted children and families for decades with his rhyming tales.
His signature story, Snowball: A Christmas Dilemma, is the result of more than three decades of careful crafting. For many years, Ian shared it live at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, creating a beloved holiday tradition. Today, with the support of illustrator Sarah Cowan and editor Tim Gentle, his dream of publishing his story as a Christmas classic has become a reality.
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Sarah Cowan is an illustrator based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Sarah has been fascinated by children's literature and illustrations since her own childhood. Before she learned to read on her own, she would spend hours looking at the pictures in books, and make up stories that she thought would fit.
Her goal as an artist is to create illustrations that will make children love to read. She hopes that she can help young readers and artists unlock their imaginations in the same way that she was able to, thanks to artists such as Jan Brett, H.E. Stewart, and Michael Martchenko.
Sarah's preferred medium is coloured pencils, which were used exclusively for Snowball: A Christmas Dilemma.
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