Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Redman sets gifts and treats in the context of lasting values in a celebration of Christmas anticipation. In rhyming quatrains, loosely scanning verse broadly details a seasonal activity ("After red and green dreams/ We wake up before the sun./ We're counting down December days/ But savoring each one"), then categorizes each as part of a temporal moment ("This is a season of joy"). Including wonder, faith, and light, each concept downplays gratification and underscores generosity. Via soft digital art that foregrounds connection and light, Kaulitzki creates wide-eyed characters, portrayed with various skin tones, arranging a domestic creche, gathering for a meal, participating in a church nativity, and caroling outside an assisted living facility. It's a community-focused look at simple holiday joys. Ages 3--6. (Sept.)
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Review by Horn Book Review
Redman's lyrical rhyming text describes with anticipation the preparations that take place before Christmas. She showcases common traditions of the holiday that explain why this is a season that includes "wonder," "song," "faith," and "light." It's a heartwarming display of decorations, families gathered together, gifts given, and community shared. Kaulitzki's cheerful, bright digital art features characters of varying skin tones as it follows the festive activities of five young children, via a mix of spot illustrations and spreads, in one cozy snow-covered town. Cynthia K. Ritter November/December 2022 p.19(c) Copyright 2022. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Families welcome the many-sided spirit of Christmas. Christmas, Redman reminds us, means joy and wonder. It means loved ones coming together, it means people giving their time, their resources, and the gift of song, and it means sharing stories of faith. Throughout these seasonal proclamations, readers observe three core families, each celebrating Christmas in their own way. Later, these families come together during a Nativity play. Then the congregation lights candles on a snowy evening amid stringed lights and sparkling stars. Told in rhyme, the text closes with an acknowledgement that "the world may not always shine so bright" but encourages readers to keep these values alive during the rest of the year. The story exudes a sense of community, from the church play to a festive scene at a community center to a group of people caroling at an assisted living facility. Kaulitzki's soft-edged illustrations conjure a calm and bright atmosphere. Still, though the tale is a solid one, it doesn't quite stand out in a crowd of similarly themed books. The town is racially diverse; one of the central families presents as Black, another is brown, and the third is light-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Nice but feels standard. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
