KIRKUS REVIEW
A much-honored Canadian author tells a heartwarming Christmas story set in a wilderness cabin in 1800. With Ma ill, Pa tells Lucy and Dan that there can be no presents this year. Then their schoolmaster's story of an elegant city celebration gives them an idea: using the family's carefully stored tallow and precious red madder, they will make at least a few candles to surprise their parents and brighten the holiday. And so they do, with just a few setbacks. An appealing frontier story; the gentle full-color illustrations, in nicely varied frames, are as attractive as the long but easily read text. (Fiction/Picture book. 6-10)*justify no*