Olaf & Sven on Thin Ice by Elizabeth Rudnick

I t was another perfect day in Arendelle. The blue sky was cloudless and a gentle breeze blew through the warm air, carrying the scent of fresh flowers. It was so perfect, in fact, that it was hard to believe Arendelle had recently been covered in ice and snow.
    Back when Princess Elsa of Arendelle was to be crowned queen, something unimaginable had happened. She had accidentally created an icy storm and covered the kingdom in snow! What no one—not even her sister, Princess Anna—had known at the time was that Elsa had special powers. Unfortunately, she couldn’t always control those powers. Horrified by what she had done to Arendelle, Elsa ran away and created an ice palace far up on the North Mountain. She vowed she would never return to Arendelle, so that everyone, especially her sister, would be safe from her icy magic.
    The only problem was that after Elsa left Arendelle, it continued to snow…and snow…and snow some more. It snowed until the entire town was covered in white and every person and animal was cold through and through. To stop the snow, someone had to find Elsa.
    Luckily, Princess Anna was brave and clever. With the help of some new friends, like Kristoff, Sven the reindeer, and a snowman named Olaf, she saved the day. Anna found her sister and showed her that love was stronger than fear. Elsa returned to Arendelle and thawed the kingdom. In no time, the people of Arendelle learned to love their new queen.
    Queen Elsa, Anna, and the townspeople of Arendelle were ready to embark on this new era in the kingdom. The royal sisters now kept the castle gates open, and laughter always echoed through the halls.
    But on this particular morning, singing, not laughing, could be heard in the palace. The tune was slightly off-key but cheery and contagious. The singer was Olaf—the snowman Elsa had created when she built her ice palace. He looked just like a snowman the sisters had made when they were children—only now he was alive and could talk!
    Olaf had been living in the castle for just a short while, but everyone loved the happy-go-lucky snowman.
    As Olaf made his way through the halls, he zigzagged a bit. The little snowman wasn’t particularly good at moving in a straight line. “This way, I get to see things that other people miss when they only walk straight,” the always-optimistic Olaf had said when Princess Anna once pointed out his slight wobble. “You should try it, Anna. I bet you’d like it.”
    At the moment, he was looking for his friend Princess Anna. They were supposed to go into town and find a special present for the royal cook. The next day was her birthday, and Olaf loved picking out presents. Maybe they would get her a new apron. Or a nice new spatula! Pausing to think, Olaf raised one of his stick hands to his long carrot nose. That gave him an idea. Maybe Cook would like a basket of freshly picked vegetables? Then Olaf shook his head. Cook had plenty of vegetables. She needed something special. She needed a treat on her birthday! “Maybe we can get her an ice cream cake,” Olaf thought aloud. “Yes, an ice cream cake sounds delicious. Nice and cold and full of yummy goodness. Ice cream cake on a warm day…it’ll melt just a little and then be perfect. Cook will love it!”
    Hearing voices ahead, Olaf quickened his pace and found himself on one of the castle’s many balconies. Zigzagging closer to the large stone railing, he poked his nose through and peered down into the room below. His eyes lit up. It was Princess Anna and Kristoff! “My favorite friends!” he squealed. Just as he was starting to shout hello, he stopped. Anna had crossed her arms and was frowning.
    â€œI know it isn’t what we talked about,” Olaf heard Kristoff say, “but it’s going to be great. You, me, a picnic basket full of food! Just think…we get to spend the whole day together!”
    Olaf saw Anna’s