A lively tale whose highly skilled, pint-sized heroes provide endless fun.
In Michaels’ (The Order of St. Michael, 2016, etc.) middle-grade adventure sequel, Christmas elves fight against an evil group’s diabolical plan, which involves kidnapping Santa Claus.
In the last book of the series, the Tannenbaum Tailors, a group of elves who tend and “tailor,” or decorate, trees, successfully saved Christmas in 1987 by stopping the Spiritless elves from stealing the Snowball—Santa’s device for delivering gifts. In this book, they must still contend with the Spiritless, who slip tree-destroying swarmer termites into a toy and also try to abduct the Tailors and their captain, Brendan Holly. With help from a fairy named Jane, the Tailors once again thwart the Spiritless, but as the next Christmas draws near, they become wary. A Spiritless elf that the Tailors call “Number One” has been missing for a year, and it also appears that the Spiritless have their own version of a GlimmerBeam, a device that sends presents directly to Santa’s bag. At the same time, Brendan faces a court martial for violating an oath; he revealed himself and the history of the North Pole to a young human, Jack, because he needed the boy’s help. Jane and fellow fairy Coco’s reconnaissance mission to the Spiritless’ South Pole headquarters takes an unexpected turn when they find out that Santa is being held captive there. To make matters worse, there may be a traitor among the good elves. Michaels’ second book to feature the Tailors is a quick, delightful read, with short chapters that effectively bounce the story from scene to scene. The Christian symbolism is perhaps too conspicuous; for example, the Spiritless are elves who rebelled against Santa and then went to the South Pole. But a sense of humor is still prevalent throughout; one highlight is when Tailor Steve and a Spiritless elf vie for Jack’s attention—one at each of his ears, much as if an angel and a devil were on his shoulders. The action is intense throughout, including physical altercations and explosions, but young readers will have no sympathy for the defeated Spiritless. The book even includes a possible origin for Santa, although the background on the dark elves’ potential leader is more striking.
A lively tale whose highly skilled, pint-sized heroes provide endless fun.Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-692-77913-2
Page Count: 284
Publisher: Harrison and James
Review Posted Online: March 7, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In her first children's book, Parton (the country music star) turns one of her songs into a saccharine tale about a girl who is so poor that her mama has to sew her a patchwork coat when the weather turns cold. (Joseph and his coat of many colors are mentioned but never explained.) Despite the girl's love for her coat, she is teased in school, which she counters by trying to explain to her classmates ``that one is only poor/if they choose to be.'' The logic here is as flawed as the grammar, and Sutton's illustrations, while competent, show a well-dressed, happy rural family who look anything but poor. The text is both clumsy and irrelevent (it ends with ``Through life I've remained happy/and good luck is on my side./I have everything that anyone/could ever want from life.'') An apparently autobiographical song that has a hard time standing on its own as a compelling children's story. (Picture book. All ages)
Pub Date: Sept. 30, 1994
ISBN: 0-06-023413-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1994
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Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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