Skip to main content

Polar Express Read Alikes

By
 
The Polar Express is a Christmas classic, where a train appears in front of a boy's house one Christmas Eve. This train, "The Polar Express," takes him on a magical journey to the North Pole, where our protagonist is picked to receive the first gift of Christmas. Many love the cozy storytelling and Van Allsburg's soft illustrations that create a sense of wonder when thinking about the Christmas season. If you want a cute Christmas book with the same cozy vibes, check out these Read Alikes!

The Christmas Snow Globe
By Sibylle Delacroix
Edinburgh: Florian Books, 2024. Picture Book.

Lucy and Noah have been at the window all day, just hoping for snow. But when none comes, Lucy's parents let her open one present to help her overcome her disappointment. She unwraps a snow globe with a little house inside that looks like hers. Soon, she feels something on her cheek... snow? Inside? Lucy and Noah's indoor snow day celebrates the wonder of children's imaginations. With a soft art style similar to The Polar Express and a fantastical story ending combined with a real-world happy ending, The Christmas Snow Globe is a fun companion to Van Allsburg's story.

The Christmas Pine
Written by Julia Donaldson
Illustrated by Victoria Sandoy
New York: Scholastic Press, 2022. Picture Book.

Every year since 1947, the mayor of Oslo has gifted the United Kingdom a tree to thank Britain for helping Norway in World War II. In The Christmas Pine, the tree tells its first-person account of growing up from seedling to sapling to tree in Norway and how it travels to England. The delicate illustrations show the magic and joy of the season similar to The Polar Express.

Through the North Pole Snow
Written by Polly Faber
Illustrated by Richard Jones
Sommerville, MA: Candlewick Press, 2022. Picture Book.

When an arctic fox wanders into Santa's house, they become fast friends. Santa feeds the little fox and they nap together, but soon Santa has to get to work: making presents, reading letters, and checking lists. Those who enjoyed seeing the preparation of Santa and his elves in The Polar Express will love this story showing what Santa does the rest of the year.

Santa in the City
Written by Tiffany D. Jackson
Illustrated by Reggie Brown
New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 2021. Picture Book.

How does Santa visit kids who live in the city? There isn't a chimney for him to squeeze through, and no parking spaces could fit his sleigh and eight reindeer. These are the questions young Deja's friends pester her with, trying to stop her belief. When Deja's mom finds her crying in her room, they think together about all of the magical ways Santa can get to every child. Those who were touched by The Polar Express' ending page about belief, will enjoy Deja restoring her faith in Christmas magic.

The Magical Christmas Store
Written by Maudie Powell-Tuck
Illustrated by Hoang Giang
Wilton, CT: Tiger Tales, 2021. Picture Book.

A polar bear rushing to work rouses Benji from sadly window shopping on Christmas Eve. Benji was sure that Christmas wasn't going to be happy this year since his family cannot afford a tree or presents, but this polar bear takes him to a magical store where he can conjure up gifts using his imagination. Singing a song and telling a story in payment, Benji takes his gifts home. However, when Christmas morning approaches and his gifts aren't as perfect as he thought, it will take good cheer from his family to assure him that his gifts are wonderful. How Benji's family delights in his simple gifts are reminiscent of how the bell from Santa's sleight brought so much joy in The Polar Express.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Fowl Play

By
  Fowl Play By Kristin O'Donnell Tubb New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2024. Fiction 277 pages. Still reeling from her beloved uncle's death, Chloe Alvarez is comforted and confused when at his last will and testament reading, Uncle Will gifts her his African Grey parrot, Charlie. Charlie has a robust vocabulary and loves to make Alexa requests for her favorite songs, but when she starts saying things like, "homicide," and "cyanide," Chloe becomes convinced that Uncle Will may have met his demise by murder instead of a genetic disease, as was previously thought. Ultimately, bringing in her brother, Grammy, and Uncle Frank (and of course Charlie,) Chloe's ragtag and adoring family support her search for answers ---going on stakeouts, engaging in fast pursuits, and searching for clues. But as the suspects stack up and the mystery grows, Chole will learn that the process of death and grieving is complicated, and in the end her Uncle Will's words that, ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: Blood in the Water

By
Blood in the Water By Tiffany D. Jackson New York: Scholastic, 2025. Fiction. 255 pages. 12-year-old Kaylani McKinnon can't help but feel like a fish out of water. She's a Brooklyn girl spending her summer on Martha's Vineyard surrounded by wealthy family friends in their mansion. All she really wants is to stay home all summer where she her incarcerated father can easily reach her, and she can keep working to find ways to prove him innocent of fraud and embezzlement. Despite her protests, she finds herself on the island with the snooty granddaughters of her host. Soon after Kaylani's arrival, a popular teen boy is found murdered and she decides to conduct her own investigation. As she tries to discover what happened to Chadwick Cooper, Kaylani finds that not everything on Martha's Vineyard is as perfect as it appears. Thrillers for middle grade readers can be hard to find, but Tiffany D. Jackson succeeds in her first middle grade novel. A quick moving plot, tight d...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: Alice with a Why

By
Alice with a Why By Anna James New York: Penguin, 2026. Fiction. 240 pgs. In 1919, in the aftermath of the first World War, Alyce is living with her grandmother in the English countryside. Her grandmother, also named Alice, tells Alyce (with a y) stories from her childhood adventures in a wonderful land filled with white rabbits and mad hatters. Alyce doesn't really believe the silly stories, she just misses her father who was killed in the war. One day, Alyce receives a mysterious invitation to tea, and subsequently falls into a pond where she is transported to Wonderland. Her grandmother, of course, is that Alice. Alyce is prompted by the Mad Hatter, Dormouse, and March Hare to seek out the Time Being and put an end to the war between the Sun King and the Queen of the Moon. Thus begins Alyce's adventure through Wonderland. I have a certain soft spot for the original story of Alice in Wonderland. It is one of my particular favorites and I often have a hard time reading new int...
Post a Comment
Read more