The Snowy Day
Ezra Jack Keats
The Snowy Day was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1963 for its colourful collage design, which features cut outs of fabric ranging from a rare Belgian linen to oilcloth. The character of Peter was inspired by a Life magazine clipping from 1940 of a black boy playing in the snow. Keats wrote the photo,
began an experience that turned my life around - working on a book with a black kid as hero … None of the manuscripts I'd been illustrating featured any black kids. My book would have him there simply because he should have been there all along... ... ... I wanted the world to know that all children experience wonderful things in life. I wanted to convey the joy of being a little boy alive on a certain kind of day — of being for that moment.
It is widely considered the first children's book to portray a black child in the central character. Following Snowy Day Keat’s character of Peter appeared in an additional 7 story books.