Little Women Christmas by Heather Vogel Frederick

Little Women Christmas by Heather Vogel Frederick, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline

Rating: 5 stars

In May 2007, I held my daughter Lorelei for the first time. My first day as a mother was an idyllic bubble of joy—Lorelei nursed confidently, I capably soothed her cries, and the nurses were a short call away should I have any questions about the many things I didn’t know how to do.

On Lorelei’s second day in this world, my father came to visit. He came, of course, to say hello to Lorelei, to welcome her into this world and our family, to congratulate my husband and me. He sat holding his granddaughter, singing Ranger jodies into her tiny ears. He also came to say good-bye. He deployed for Iraq the next day.

It’s hard for me to imagine how my heart held these two giant, opposing emotions. My blissful hours with Lorelei had an undercurrent of fear as my father bunkered into and worked from the Green Zone. I endured six months of this, of letter writing and baby bathing, of worrying and cooing.

Click HERE to read the rest of the review at Nerdy Book Club...

Little Blue Truck's Christmas by Alice Schertle

Little Blue Truck's Christmas by Alice Schertle, illustrated by Jill McElmurry

Rating: 5 stars

Little Blue and I go way back. I mean, waaaaay back.

The original Little Blue Truck was Ben's favorite book as a baby. Because I read it to him daily, I can still recite the words and recall McElmurry's sweet illustrations that correspond with the stanzas. I can still recall having baby Ben (who turns six in two weeks! what?!) sitting in my lap and reading again and again, him flipping the pages, making the animals sounds, laughing at the change in my voice for the different characters.

I also snapped up the sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way when it was released a few years later. Both of these books have all that you want in great children's books: a fun, interesting rhythm and rhyme; sweet illustrations of neat characters; a nice moral to the story. In the first book, Little Blue helps a big, rude truck get out of the muck and, through his kind actions (rather than preachy words), teaches him that it pays to be a nice guy. In the second book, country-boy Little Blue teaches big-city traffic how to slow down, be patient, and take turns.

This third book, Little Blue Truck's Christmas, is just as wonderful as the first two. It is in a board book format, so best for ages four and under. There's some counting, just from one to five and then back down again, which is best for littler readers. Little Blue puts five trees in back to deliver to his friends, who all (wonderfully) say please and thank you as they request specific trees in the truck bed of Little Blue.

Who gets the last tree? I like this part. I think in decades past the last tree would be saved for an elderly person, someone who needs it most--and while that is fine and dandy, I think the fact that Little Truck saves the last tree for himself is an example of the "self love" trend that has been occurring for the past few years: You've got to love yourself and regard your own happiness in this life we've got, and that habit starts when kids are kids...and hopefully lasts until they are old and gray (and hopefully still very happy).

It's good to see you again, Little Blue!

The Smallest Gift of Christmas by Peter H. Reynolds

The Smallest Gift of Christmas by Peter H. Reynolds

Rating: 4 stars

Last fall I went through a Peter H. Reynolds-is-the-bomb-diggity phase.  I read The Dot and Ish and Plant A Kiss and appreciated his artwork in Tess's Tree and Someday and the Judy Moody series (that Lorelei is reading and loving now).  His stuff is pleasing to look at, but the underlying feel-good wonderful messages about creativity and inspiration and being YOU are what really impress me.  His hands and mind create gifts for children; they come in the shape of books.

So, when I saw The Smallest Gift of Christmas, I bought it immediately.  Didn't even read it.  It was by Peter H. Reynolds so it must be amazing and earth-shattering!

And it really is a sweet message, but one for grown-ups more than kids.

"Roland was eager for Christmas Day," writes Reynolds.  On the corresponding page he draws four stockings hung up with care, and we get a glimpse of what Roland cares about.  There are three appropriately-sized stockings and one stocking the size of a twin bed.  It rolls on the ground because it is too long to hang from the fireplace.  Funny!  And telling.

"When I say big, I mean BIG!" he yelled.

When he comes down on Christmas morning to a small gift with his name on the tag, he's disappointed.  So he wishes for a bigger gift. And right there and then, it doubles in size (and is still wrapped).  Wow!  He uses this magic again and again and again to make his gift bigger; yet instead of wonder and appreciation, he is angry and annoyed and grumpy.

Sounds like "I want a bigger gift!" and "That is not big enough!"pollute the air.

He gets into his rocketship and goes to outer space to try and find his now too-large-to-be-found gift.  It's from that rocketship that he peers out and sees Earth, now just a speck in the distance.

Oh.  He suddenly gets sad.  Earth.  So small, but it's what he wants.

So he wishes to be home. With his family.  Because they are the biggest gift.

Of course, I could wax poetic about how right Reynolds is, about how out-of-whack our Christmases have become.  I could reminisce about my Christmases abroad, away from my family, when I missed the laughing and eating together much more than the stuff.

But hopefully you already know these things.  And you've probably heard enough of my stories.  But being reminded about the importance of people over gifts by a sweet book with great illustrations never hurts.

The Dinosaurs Night Before Christmas by Anne Muecke

The Dinosaurs Night Before Christmas by Anne Muecke, illustrated by Nathan Hale

Rating: 5 stars

On the night before Christmas, "[t]he fossils were standing where they always stood / Looking out o'er a now fast asleep neighborhood." Across the street, a small boy looked over at the museum and wished the dinosaurs good night as he turns off his night light.

Then a band of young duckbills, all dressed up in holly,
Invited the boy, with a gesture quite jolly,
To stand upon their heads and reach out way far
And top their tall tree with a bright Christmas star!

Then, to his surprise, the fossils start to sway.  And move.  And come to life!  He is surprised to see that "the dinosaurs' bodies were growing anew-- / Sprouting rainbows of colorful feathers and scales / From the tops of their heads to the tips of their tails!" He jumps out of bed and runs across the street, happy to find the museum unlocked (!!).  He wonders if the dinosaurs will be hungry after being asleep and without food for so long...and find a meaty boy like himself delicious...when a dinosaur comes up behind him and...kisses him!  Because he's standing under mistletoe, of course.

"With a pat on the back and a cup of eggnog, / The boy helped the kind dinosaurs light their yule long. / And together they joyfully danced 'round the fire / Singing holiday songs in melodious choir."  The icing on this magical cake of a night is the appearance of Santa-sauras, pulled by eight dino-deer.

The next morning, the dinosaurs have turned back to fossils, though a sprig of mistletoe in the T-Rex's dinky hand hints at the mischief that was had.

Landing safe in his bed on soft pillows of down,
The boy waved as Santasaur flew over the town.

This is a must-buy for any dino-lover, for sure.  The story and the rhyme alone are fantastic and cute and magical, but the illustrations!  Man, the illustrations are top-notch.  Nathan Hale does a fantastic job of creating dinosaurs that are simultaneously real and sweet--no easy feat.  The book was published five years ago, but...as great as ever.  I doubt any copies have turned into fossils yet!

Santa! by Rufus Butler Seder

Santa! by Rufus Butler Seder

Rating: 4.5 stars

I might be one of the few people who does not own one of Rufus Butler Seder's scanimation books, but I really do think they are neat.  My kids and I have checked them out from the library, examined friends' copies, and sat with them in many bookstores.  He has produced six books with clever illustrations that seem to magically move while the page bends.  Gallop! and Swing! and WaddleI were followed by Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz.  In each of these books, Seder manages to capture decades of his passion and experience in photography and moving art.  

I was curious about this guy Rufus Butler Seder so, as love the bigger picture of a story, I found out a little more about him and how he evolved into creating children's books.  Turns out he's fairly fascinating--as most artists are.  Rufus' father was a journalist/photographer as well as an inventor--Gus Seder liked to tinker with things to figure out how they worked, and then manipulate these same tools and get them do things slightly differently.  Exposed to his father's creativity, Rufus was also encouraged to invent and create and tinker as well.  Photography was a known subject, one that was both familiar and widely open with possibilities, so Rufus experimented with photography.  One of his first little creations was a book involving trick photography: He photographed his sister jumping outside on the trampoline and manipulated the individual pictures such that, when he rearranged the photographs, it looked as if she was flying around the backyard.  

What a delightful trick for a big brother to have!  

Rufus made several small movies, but returned to the idea of moving art when most two dimensional artwork was still.  He had seen several antique and contemporary photographs where part of the image moved--think of the slightly creepy face from the past that winks or smiles as you look away from the image.  This idea is called the "picket fence"--a bar obscuring one phase of movement while reversing another.  With a whole lot of inspiration and experimentation Rufus came up with a flat image that appeared to move in a really cool way.  It's the old idea of flip-art book (didn't you have one of these books as a kid?), but much, much better.  While much of his art is directed at grown ups, a children's book editor pointed out that a collection of his already-existing scanimation images of animals, when collected together into a small book, would be a fun children's book.  He was right: his five scanimation books are wildly popular. 

That's the back story of his sixth book, Santa!  I hope that's moderately interesting to you, but what is certainly interesting to you is the answer to the question: Will my child like this?

The simple answer: yes!  People of all ages really like this stuff, and they're fascinated by how the scanimation pictures work--probably because it seems pretty magical, even in the era of the entertaining and ubiquitous app.  "This is Santa unlike you've seen him before!" it says in the promotional flyer that accompanied this book.  That made me laugh but it is so true!  This is a really great version of behind-the-scenes Santa.  Unlike the normal images of him checking his list, overseeing the craftsmanship of toys, and guiding his sleigh across the night, this is playful Santa: he hula-hoops, unicycles, juggles candy canes, ice skates, and does a back flip.  It is light and fun and sweet; seeing Santa taking the time to be silly and playful is a wonderful reminder to anyone who picks up the book to be a little silly and a little playful themselves.  I think it's just great, and a fantastic book for any age.  Or maybe for a grandparent whose shelves need to include a few children's books that appeal to children of all ages for an extended amount of time. 

I suspect that after a while SantaI will get put on a shelf, but the moment it is pulled off again--whether that's months or years later, the child (or grown up!) will be entertained and fascinated all over again.  And maybe a little bit inspired to create and tinker and make something of their own.

Santa is Coming to Washington, D.C. by Steve Smallman

Santa is Coming to Washington, D.C. by Steve Smallman, illustrated by Robert Dunn

Rating: 3.5 stars

I just told Ben about the whole naughty and nice list.  I'm hoping he kicks it up a notch out of fear of coal.  I'm doubtful...he's in the throes of lack of impulse control and when he gets going...man, he's just a blur of giggles and dimples and glee.

But...  'Tis the season for reminding kids to be good for more than goodness' sake!  And this book does start with a funny line.  Santa asks one elf if children in Washington, D.C., have been good this year.  The elf replies: "Mostly."  Santa: "Mostly?"  Elf: "Yes...but they've all been especially good in the last few days!"

This is a cute book in which Santa goes out to deliver tons of presents to the Washington, D.C., area but, because of a crazy blizzard, he gets hopelessly lost.  Santa's GPS doesn't help him (it's 2013, folks, all these books have Santa holding a GPS), that "old reindeer with the red nose" is helpless (my heart goes out to old Rudolph), but a young reindeer hears a church bell (turns out to be the Washington National Cathedral) and tugs the sleigh thattaway.  The blizzard magically disappears in a nanosecond, and the reindeer and Santa realize they are flying straight into the Capitol building.  They pull with all their might to (successfully) avoid hitting it.

Lots of local places are listed in the book: Capitol Hill, the Mall, Dupont Circle, the National Zoo, Rock Creek Park, Cleveland Park, Chevy Chase, Georgetown. In all these places Santa either zooms over or stops to visit, often taking a bite of a cookie and grabbing a carrot left out for his reindeer.  At the last house, as the sun starts to rise, he gives each reindeer a carrot and they fly home.

It's a cute book if you live here--the illustration of Santa flying over the Capitol building and the White House are fun images for kids to see.  But the story is unoriginal and barely there; it's not some magical tale that you'll get wrapped up in every holiday season.  Instead of that, the author just found a series that would sell well...he's written books about Santa coming to many cities, including: Maryland, Virginia, Pittsburgh, Georgia, Texas, California, Austin, Albuquerque...


P.S.  When my Dad read this review, he commented: "In this post 9/11 world, it's a good thing Santa didn't get shot down."  Good point, Dad.  Good point.  If the author had included that, it'd be a hard one to talk through with kids...

Cowboy Christmas by Rob Sanders

Cowboy Christmas by Rob Sanders, illustrated by John Manders

Rating: 4 stars

This book came out last year, got noticed by the international NYTimes as well as the local Washington Family Magazine.  It's pretty cute in a perfectly goofy, nicely focussed-on-the-right-things sort of way: 


It’s the day after Thanksgiving, therefore it is time to start getting in the mood for Christmas.  Cowboy Christmas will definitely help get your children to think about all things Christmas, with a cowboy twist.  They will be decoratin’, singin’, hopin’ they get some gifts…all the traditional stuff, without the “G” at the end.

Cowboy Christmas is a fine first book written by teacher-author Rob Sanders.  At first glance it does not look like a best seller, or one that your kid would be excited about unwrapping.  But there’s more to this book than a simple tale of three cowboys out on the range rather than home for the holidays.  

These cowboys are not happy about being stuck with cows rather than their families, and kick around their disappointment in the dirt.  To cheer themselves up, they do what all kids ought to be able to do by kindergarten: they improvise.  They lasso themselves a cactus tree and use what they have to decorate it.  It looks as you might imagine it to look: pretty silly. 

To read the rest of the review, click here.

An Otis Christmas by Loren Long

An Otis Christmas by Loren Long

Rating: 5 stars

We are fans of Otis.  We first met him in 2010 in Otis, then continued to fall in love with him in Otis and the Tornado and Otis and the Puppy.  There is even a board book and a stuffed animal available now!  He is a fantastic character; in fact, he's a character with character: a hard worker on his beloved farm, an enthusiastic player of all types of games, and the type of friend who looks out for the little guy, tries to include everyone, and genuinely cares.

So I was pretty psyched to see An Otis Christmas!

I'll warn you, I'm a little biased because Loren Long is one of my favorite illustrators AND...well...see that little foal on the cover?  I'm a sucker for all things horses.  When I was a horse-obsessed, riding-hours-every-afternoon girl, my cure for the uncurable giggles (in Church or in class) was to think of my horse, sick.  It would sober me up immediately.

Loren Long's beautiful illustrations swept me in immediately.  Otis is excited about his favorite time of year: Christmas!  This year, the excitement is bigger than ever because the mare is going to have a baby foal soon.  And this year, he gets something he's not ever received before...a gift!  It's a brand new horn.

"A special tractor needs a special horn," says his beloved farmer.

On Christmas Eve, a painful cry and troubled voices wake up Otis' putt puff puttedy chuff.  The mare is giving birth, but she's in trouble.  (As I saw the mare lying on her side painfully with the farmer and his son looking concerned over her, tears came to my eyes.  At a book!  Geez.  Yes, I cry at Hallmark commercials, too.)

Something was wrong.
Something was very wrong.

"We need Doc Baker out here tonight or we'll lose them both!" whispers the farmer.

But there's a blizzard outside.  One of the farmer's helpers already failed to make it down the hill from the farm because of the snow.  Yet, Otis does what he needs to do.  He goes out in the cold, chugs through the snowdrifts, calms himself when he gets lost, and finds the vet's house.  He uses his new horn to wake up the vet, who knows immediately that something is wrong.  They zoom back through the drifts and the night.

"The farmer prayed for a miracle.  All was quiet, until..."

Otis' horn cracks through the stillness and the sadness, and he brings Doc Baker to the horse and her unborn baby.  As that baby is born, with a star on its forehead, the whole farm stands around in wonder and appreciation.  Of a miracle.

This is a great Christmas book--one of the best from 2013 I think.

I love how Otis doesn't just stand by.  He does something.  This resonates clearly with me, an action-based person.  And he does something courageous, dangerous, and necessary--not because someone tells him to, but because he knows in his heart that it's the right thing to do.

See?  I told you he was a good character.

Bravo, Loren Long!  This is another great one.

Little Santa by Jon Agee

Little Santa by Jon Agee

Rating: 3.5 stars

How did Santa become who he is today?

It's a great, fun question for authors to ponder and write about.  My favorite book that answers this question remains Santa From Cincinnati by Judi Barrett--maybe that book is too front-and-center in my mind to fully appreciate the humor in Little Santa...?

Little Santa is the youngest of seven kids whose family lives in the North Pole.  Everyone grumbles about their cold- and snow-filled days, except Santa: his red little suit and smile stand out amidst his family's gray outfits and mopey demeanors.  Little Santa has Big Santa habits: he likes to crawl up the chimney so he can slide down it, for example.

They dislike the North Pole so much that they decide to move.  To Florida.  Santa is the only one who is sad about the upcoming move.

But then a blizzard strikes, and their house is completely buried in snow--all you can see is the chimney. They can't go anywhere, including Florida.  Little Santa heads up the chimney and goes looking for help.

He finds a reindeer (no ordinary reindeer as it can fly) buried in snow, and a whole colony of elves who build him a sleigh and travel back to his house with him to rescue his family.  The family stays a little longer in the North Pole and finds it a nicer place to live with industrious friends like the elves, but...eventually they move to Florida.

But Little Santa stays behind.  And, well, you know the rest of the story.

The Night Santa Got Lost: How NORAD Saved Christmas by Michael Keane

The Night Santa Got Lost: How NORAD Saved Christmas by Michael Keane, illustrated by Michael Garland

Rating: 5 stars


This is a fun holiday book I reviewed last year for Washington Family magazine.  I just saw it last week at Barnes and Noble and was reminded how much I liked it.  It's definitely not for everyone--Santa rapelling and all!--but for those who think that's a fun image, this book is for YOU.  And your family.  Or...maybe just for you!

Here ya go:

Just as every military group has their own color of ribbon to wear or sticker on their members' cars, every group has their own version of the classic The Night Before Christmas.  As a member of the large and varied defense industry--I'm an Army brat, sister of a soldier, a former defense analyst--I am thrilled that this treasure of a book fell into my lap!

The plot is, like most stories, one that has been told before: It's Christmas Eve, and Santa is on his mission to deliver toys when a massive blizzard knocks him and his reindeer off course.  He is stuck for a while; by the time he gets unstuck he's in a time crunch.  With help from his friends, the toys find the right good boys and girls and everyone wakes up to many gifts and many smiles.

The story, like all recycled stories, has its own twist: Our North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) is responsible for tracking airplanes, bombers, Air Force One, and oh! Santa and his reindeer, too.  They see the little "blob" that represents Santa on their screens suddenly disappear.  A small, elite military team fast-ropes out of a helicopter and finds a cold Santa and his equally chilly reindeer buried in heaps of snow.

To read the rest, click here.


P.S.  This is the author's first children's book.  On the back flap is a list of other stuff he's written, including The Dictionary of Modern Strategy and Tactics.  Just sort of a funny thing when you compare it with Santa.  I love it!

Mrs. Claus Takes a Vacation by Linas Alsenas

Mrs. Claus Takes a Vacation by Linas Alsenas

Rating: 5 stars

Lorelei checked out this book from her school library yesterday--and shared it with the rest of us.  We LOVE it!

Mrs. Claus has had enough of staying at home while Mr. Claus gets to see the world.  So she packs her bags, borrows the reindeer and says, "I'm outta here!"  Okay, Linas Alsenas words it a little differently...

The next few pages made me laugh out loud.

First, you see Santa at home, worrying.  "Mrs. Claus isn't used to warm weather," thought Santa.  "She'll get sunburned!" he says with a droopy, forlorn face.

Turn the page.

Nope!  There's a huge two-page spread of Mrs. Claus in her (age-appropriate) white bathing suit!  She's lovin' the sun!

Next, you see Santa at home, worrying.  "She doesn't know all the worlds languages.  I'll be she's terribly lonely," he says in a heavy, woe-is-me tone.

Turn the page.

Nope!  There's a huge two-page spread of Mrs. Claus merrily dancing (in Poland?  Greece?), blending in with the locals in their attire.  She's livin' it up!

You get the idea.  After these pages, Mrs. Claus begins to miss her husband, who is getting into the holiday spirit as much as he can at home.  She begins to notice that Christmas is coming, and she feels the tug of home.  The two are thrilled to see each other on Christmas Eve Day, but Santa soon has to get on his way.  As he is ready to walk out the door, he hands her her coat.  And invites her to come along.  She happily accepts.

This book is just great--a tiny glimpse into adult love, but one with enough care and humor and familiarity that kids would hear and see just a cute story (but hopefully get a bit more).  A great, unique holiday book in case you're in need of another gift idea...!

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin, illustrated by James Dean

Rating: 4 stars

I love Pete the Cat.  I don't know what it is about him--his slinky coolness, his quiet head bob (not that he bobs his head in this book or the other books, but I just imagine him walking down the street, with lanky shoulders moving slowly and head bobbing to his own beat).  There is just something about him that I love, and his catchy songs that bring a grin--not just a smile--to all of our faces makes me appreciate him all the more.  I am thrilled that he's back!  (And there are two more books that are soon to be out, easy reader books.  Yay!)

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas is a twist on the traditional 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.  Santa is sick and considers canceling Christmas (gasp!) but they call Pete the Cat, and he comes to the rescue.  He has to do it in his usual cool way, so he hitches the reindeer to his hippy minibus, all filled with toys for all the good girls and boys (or, as my dad would say: none for the girls and all for the boys).  Pete thinks flying through the sky is "pretty groovy," but, like our old Golden Retriever, his expression doesn't change.

This book's refrain: "Give it your all, give it your all.  At Christmas we give, so give it your all."  It is less snappy and catchy than his other books, but appropriate for the season.

Pete is lauded a hero in the North Pole when he returns with his empty minibus, and he is proud of himself for accomplishing his mission.  "'I did it!' said Pete. 'And although I am small, / in the spirit of Christmas I gave it my all.'"

This is a great book for fans of Pete (that'd be our family) but probably won't attract heaps more followers on its own.  Those first three books are fantastic; if you've not read them just buy them all, like I did, so you always have a smile-raiser of a book on your shelf when you need one.

We are getting into the holiday spirit in our house...how about you?