A sweet ode to and pleasant reminder of the Christmas spirit.
London’s Christmas tree tells its own story.
Narrating in first “person,” a lovely pine describes, in gentle, lilting rhyme, its journey from seedling to tree. Like other trees before and others that will come after, the pine sprouts from a seedling in Norway, grows to a majestic height, then is cut and transported the long distance to the U.K. When set in place, it proudly stands, resplendently decorated, in London’s Trafalgar Square, where it’s watched over by the statue of Adm. Nelson, atop his towering column, and the majestic lion statues surrounding its base. Cheery throngs come and go in the square, fireworks light up the night, and children frolic and sing around the tree, an annual gift from Oslo’s mayor to the U.K. since 1947, in thanks for Britain’s aid to Norway during World War II. This is a charming homage to the holiday season, expressed from an unusual point of view. Children should appreciate gaining some insight into where some large, civically displayed trees may have come from and how they came to be placed on public view. The delicate illustrations effectively contrast the bright greenery, deep blues, and striking winter whites of the Norwegian forest with the lighter colors of London’s day and night skies. Some of Trafalgar Square’s iconic buildings are also on view, as is a vivid red double-decker bus. Adult and child characters are racially diverse; one child is depicted using a wheelchair. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A sweet ode to and pleasant reminder of the Christmas spirit. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-82927-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2022
Cookie-cutter predictability.
After all the daring escapes in the How To Catch… series, will the kids be able to catch Santa?
Oddly, previous installments saw the children trying (and failing) to catch an elf and a reindeer, but both are easily captured in this story. Santa, however, is slippery. Tempted but not fooled by poinsettias, a good book (attached to a slingshot armed with a teddy bear projectile), and, of course, milk and cookies, Santa foils every plan. The hero in a red suit has a job to do. Presents must be placed, and lists must be checked. He has no time for traps and foolery (except if you’re the elf, who falls for every one of them). Luckily, Santa helps the little rascal escape each time. Little is new here—the kids resort to similar snares found in previous works: netting, lures, and technological wonders such as the Santa Catcher 5000. Although the rhythm falters quite a bit (“How did we get out you ask? / It looked like we were done for. / Santa’s magic is very real, / and I cannot reveal more”), fans of the series may not mind. Santa and Christmas just might be enough to overcome the flaws. Santa and the elf are light-skinned, one of the children is brown-skinned, and the other presents as Asian. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Cookie-cutter predictability. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781728274270
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
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A forgettable effort that fails to capture any of the magical charm of Santa’s story. (Picture book. 3-6)
Wallace and Elkerton continue their series about catching elusive mythical creatures (How to Catch a Leprechaun, 2016, etc.) with this Christmas story about an elf who must avoid traps constructed by children before Santa’s annual visit.
The unnamed elf narrator is the sole helper traveling with Santa on his delivery rounds on Christmas Eve, with each house featuring a different type of trap for elves. The spunky elf avoids a mechanical “elf snatcher,” hidden in a plate of cookies, as well as simple traps made of tinsel, double-sided tape, and a cardboard box concealing a mean-looking cat. Another trap looks like a bomb hidden in a box of candy, and a complicated trap in a maze has an evil cowboy clown with a branding iron, leading to the elf’s cry, “Hey, you zapped my tushy!” The bomb trap and the branding iron seem to push the envelope of child-made inventions. The final trap is located in a family grocery store that’s booby-trapped with a “Dinner Cannon” shooting out food, including a final pizza that the elf and Santa share. The singsong, rhyming text has a forced cheeriness, full of golly-jolly-holly Christmas spirit and too many exclamation marks, as well as rhyming word pairs that miss the mark. (No, little elf-boy, “smarter” and “harder” do not rhyme.) Bold, busy illustrations in a cartoon style have a cheeky appeal with a focus on the freckle-faced white elf with auburn curls and a costume with a retro vibe. (Santa is also white.)
A forgettable effort that fails to capture any of the magical charm of Santa’s story. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4631-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016
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