Skip to main content

Five New Christmas Picture Books of 2016

Tis the season to snuggle up in a warm house with hot apple cider or hot chocolate while reading books. And here are five new Christmas books to read to little ones to get them excited for one of the biggest holidays of the year.


The Christmas Boot by Lisa Wheeler and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

This is a fun new addition for the holidays. In this story a woman named Hannah finds a boot in the snow. She works hard out in the weather and her feet are cold…so she puts the boot on. It turns out that this boot has magic. Hannah discovers that when she wishes for things those wishes come true. Of course a man with a red suit and a white beard (and who tends to be associated with descriptions like “jolly”) comes looking for his lost boot. Such a fun story that can get kids thinking about what would happen if they had found some of Santa’s magic themselves.




A Night of Great Joy by Mary Engelbreit

With the classic style of Mary Engelbreit this book tells the story of the nativity—as told by children acting it out at a school production. Youngsters who often hear the nativity or are part of a nativity drama themselves will enjoy seeing kids with fake beards and stuffed animals and dolls to tell this tale. And with rich layers of details on the clothing and background, children will be entranced by the illustrations as well as the story they depict.




Stowaway in a Sleigh by C. Roger Mader

This is one of my favorite new holiday books this year. Basically on Christmas Eve a cat named Slipper hears something moving around the house. Slipper names the newcomer Mr. Furry Boots (for the white fur on top of the black boots). While watching Mr. Furry Boots Slipper’s curiosity got the better of her and she crept into a big red sack that was on the floor. Of course little ones will know just what will happen as Mr. Furry Boots heads back up the chimney. The question is, what will Slipper think about her journey.




Christmas in the Barn by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Anna Dewdney

The text of this book was originally copyright in 1952. The illustrations, however, are all new (and done by the late Anna Dewdney of Llama Llama fame). The animals who live in a barn are surprised when a couple come to spend the night with them since “there was no room in the inn.” And of course, in this nativity story the animals meet a newborn babe that others (shepherds and wise men) also wish to visit. This is a sweet rendition of the nativity from the perspective of those who live in a barn.



The Lost Gift: A Christmas Story by Kallie George and Stephanie Graegin

Four animals sit on a hill watching the night sky (and Santa for this particular night he is flying by to deliver gifts). Unfortunately one of the gifts on Santa’s sleigh falls from the sky. The deer, rabbit, squirrel, and bird go to the gift and discover that it is for the new baby that lives somewhat close. The animals decide that they should help Santa by delivering the gift themselves (though it is quite the feet for these four animals to do). This book is one that will help little ones remember that the feeling you get when giving and being generous is truly what the holiday is all about.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

If You Like...KPop Demon Hunters

KPop Demon Hunters has been one of the most talked-about movies of the summer. If you loved this movie as much as I did, you don't want the magic (or the music) to stop. Try reading these books that touch on some of the same topics and themes as the animated hit! Brick Dust and Bones By M. R. Fournet New York: Feiwel and Friends, 2023. Fiction. 247 pages. Orphaned Marius works in the family business--as their cemetery's ghost caretaker. However, Marius also moonlights as a monster hunter in order to earn the costly Mystic currency he needs to bring his mother back from the dead. As the window to bring his mother back begins to close, Marius's exploits get more and more dangerous, and he may have set his sights on a monster too big to handle on his own. Like Mira, Marius longs for familial connection, and his work as a monster hunter will satisfy the thrill of demon hunting for fans the movie. Where's Halmoni? By Julie J. Kim Seattle, WA: Little Bigfoot, 2017. Comics. W...

Review: Kareem Between

  Kareem Between By Shifa Saltagi Safadi New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2024. Fiction. 324 pages.  Kareem loves football and as he gets ready to start seventh grade he dreams of someday becoming the first Syrian American NFL player. Seventh grade is not off to a great start for Kareem, after football tryouts don't go as he had planned, his best friend moves away, and his mom returns to Syria to help bring his sick grandfather to the US for treatment. So when Austin, the quarterback and coach's son, offers to talk to his dad and get Kareem on the football team in the spring, if he will cheat and do his homework for him, Kareem agrees. Kareem really wants to fit in at school and he is desperate to find a friend, but deep down he knows that doing Austin's homework isn't the right thing to do. And to make things harder, Kareem's mom asks him to be a friend to Fadi, a Syrian Christian refugee. He knows he should stand up for Fadi and help him adjust to the new school,...

Review: Faker

Faker By Gordon Korman New York: Scholastic Press, 2024. Fiction. 214 pages. 12-year-old Trey is used to starting over at a new school -- he has the routine perfectly memorized: make new friends, introduce his dad to the wealthy parents of his new friends, and "Houdini" themselves out of there before they get caught running their latest scam. Trey's dad is a master con artist, and Trey has just been promoted to full-partner. Their new scheme for the next big score brings them to the affluent suburb of Boxelder, TN where Trey's dad has cooked up a fake electric car company for investors to buy into. The only problem is that Trey is starting to grow tired of moving around and never putting down roots, especially after forming a fast friendship with Logan and developing a crush on Kaylee, a socially conscious girl in his class. As Trey longs for a normal life, is there any way he can convince his dad to get out of the family business? Gordon Korman is a perennial favorit...