Tales of Santa
to Tickle Your Toes
By Holly E. Newton
Santa Claus is coming to town and do I ever have some great picture books about him! Let me point out that all ages will enjoy every one of these books!
First,
let’s begins with the ultimate Santa Claus book. Santa Claus,
by Rod Green, is an oversized picture book that has large, heavy-duty pages
filled with extraordinary pictures and information about the jolly man himself
and all the facts that surround him.
The wonderful and inventive illustrations, by Jon Lucas, Carol Wright, Simon Danaher and Craig Sudac, are bright, fill each page and include many pictures that unfold, with letters inside envelopes and tabs to pull. If your little one wonders about life and magic at the North Pole, this is the perfect book!
And what is Christmas without the famous poem by Clement C. Moore, The Night Before Christmas? Only this picture book is beautifully illustrated by the famous Will Moses. Mr. Moses' famous folk paintings bring Santa’s arrival, in the early morning night, in full spread pages. This book is a must for all households!
And while we’re on the subject, A Creature Was Stirring: One Boy’s Night Before Christmas, is a counterpart to Mr. Moore’s famous poem. Carter Goodrich, who both wrote and illustrated the book, placed Mr. Moore’s poem on one side of the page and on the opposite page a youngster’s reaction to it. For instance, on the opposite page from the part of the poem that states The children were nestled all snug in their beds…, the opposite page has the youngster sitting wide awake on his bed and the text reads, How can they sleep? I sure wish, I could, He’ll write in that book; he’ll write I’m no good!
How about Clement
C. Moore’s poem from a soldier’s point of view? The Soldier’s Night
Before Christmas, by Trish Holland and
Christine Ford, is the perfect book for those families with loved ones serving
in
Santa Knows, by Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith, is a clever story about a young boy who is very doubtful that Santa really exists. He goes around school promoting this idea, writes a letter to the paper and even goes on the radio. But something quite fantastic happens to him on Christmas Eve, making him change his mind. The illustrations, by Steve Bjorkman, are in a cartoon-style form.
And
what about Santa’s wife? Does she ever get to go anywhere? Mrs.
Claus Takes a Vacation, written and illustrated by Linas
Alsenas, is a humorous look at the spouse and
her view on life in the cold and snowy weather. She tells Santa that he
always gets to go all around the world. So she packs up and leaves for
sunnier weather. The pictures are hilarious as she tries sushi, or suntans
on a beach. But it’s very evident that Mr. Claus misses her terribly.
Kids would likely love to have Christmas come every day of the year. Or would they? Merry UnChristmas, by Mike Reiss, and illustrated by David Caatrow, is a very funny look at a youngster's life where she only gets to go to school for one day a year and only gets leftovers one day a year. And it’s the one day that she doesn’t get a bunch of presents. And she can hardly wait! Your little one will laugh out loud with this unique slant on Christmas and you'll love the picture on the last page of the book.
Mary Englebereit’s A Merry Little Christmas has her celebrated trademark style of beautiful and bright illustrations as she takes you through the alphabet this holiday.
One
Snowy Night, by Beth Harwood, is a darling story about a little
lost dog. But what make this story outstanding are the layers of pictures
that seem to pop in with depth by illustrator Susanna Ronchi.
And once again, the last book will definitely not be last on your list. Christmas Lights, by Marion Dane Bauer, has a sweet message of rhyme. But it’s the bold and bright illustrations, by Susan Mitchell, that will instantly grab your attention. Every board-like page lights up! Wow!