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Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Santa's Story, written and illustrated by Will Hillenbrand. two lions, Amazon. Thomas Allen & Son, 2019. $23.99 ages 3 and up

"Santa sighed. "Oh my, I have looked far and wide; near and far; high and low; here, there, and everywhere ... Did the reindeer disappear?" Santa decided to play the all-call on his horn.
TOOT, 
          TOOT, 
                    TOOT ... " 

After learning how Santa found the reindeer he needed to pull his sled in yesterday's post, today we find out that while Santa is ready, those reindeer are now nowhere to be found. He is concerned; the reindeer are not!

In fact, each one of them is doing just what their name implies: dashing, dancing, prancing, vexing, commenting, crooning, dozing, and boasting. What will Santa do?  He does have a few aces up his sleeve: his very loud horn, the sleigh bells, even a familiar and hearty ho, ho, ho. Nothing!

"Santa wondered, "Have I overlooked something?'
Then he saw Comet ... and remembered their
Christmas Eve tradition."

The reindeer are thrilled to hear their favorite story, and joyous as they head out to help Santa make all the children of the world happy. Make sure you have a copy of The Night Before Christmas at hand and ready as a follow-up to this fine new tale.

We all have them, don't we? Things we do as the days wind down to Christmas Eve and the long-awaited arrival of the jolly man from the North Pole. Kids are beside themselves with excitement, while parents try to hide the exhaustion they are experiencing as they prepare for Santa, family,  guests and the culmination of all that hard work ... a good night's sleep.

Christmas Eve seems a perfect time to take a page from the Icelanders: buy some chocolate and a new book, hunker down in bed for the evening and read your book while munching on a delicious chocolate treat.

Children will appreciate Will Hillenbrand's lively digital artwork which shows expressive and attentive reindeer as they hear their favorite story and prepare for a long night's ride. Indeed, there is magic in these pages! Warm light fills windows and lanterns, the snowy landscape will have little ones eager to welcome another snowfall in time for Christmas revelry, and who doesn't love a lighthouse? Its beam reaches far and wide and provides guidance for take-off and landing.
                                                                     

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