Christmas Picture Book Reviews 2020

2020 has certainly been a chaotic year for many, with this Christmas season in particularly having to be done differently to usual. I have found that having a good book to read always helps during these stressful times and these Christmas books will certainly help to make your Christmas a little brighter. This time I will be reviewing one classic, one brand new book and one that features a character beloved by many.

Title: The Polar Express.
Author/Illustrator: Chris van Allsburg.
Publisher: Anderson Press.
Published: 1985.
Format: Paperback.
Source: My own copy.

I was very lucky to be able to watch Chris van Allsburg talk recently, as well as receive a signed copy of the 35th anniversary version of The Polar Express, one of his most famous books. The story tells of a young boy who boards a train one night to the North Pole, with other children joining him and a breathtaking view of the sights around. When the children arrive at Santa's place, one of them will receive the first gift of the year.

This is a magical yet poignant tale of the power of belief, and is vastly superior to the film adaptation of it. It comes complete with the beautiful photorealistic illustrations that Allsburg is renowned for, all mixed with a magical adventure. The descriptions of the sights that the children see, as well as the fact that they receive hot chocolate and get to sing Christmas carols, really made me want to ride the Polar Express itself! Definitely a classic worth checking out.

Title: The Twelve Days Of Christmas or Grandma is Overly Generous.

Author/Illustrator: Alex T. Smith.
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books.
Published: 2020.
Format: Hardback.
Source: My own copy.

A very humorous take on The Twelve Days Of Christmas. Eloise's grandma is very generous...a little too generous. As the days go by, her gifts for Eloise keep on increasing and, whilst the book starts off in the same way as the original poem, it takes an entirely original turn once it gets to the seventh day. Eloise's reactions are mixed - sometimes she's delighted and sometimes she's unsure whether these gifts are what she really wants. And the twelfth provides the biggest surprise of them all...

I got a good chuckle from the humorous and often surprising situations that Eloise finds herself in, with the trademark illustrations of Alex T. Smith really adding to them. I also loved the Edwardian touch to Eloise and her grandmother's outfits as a reference to when the original was first published. Like Smith's other Christmas book I reviewed last year, How Winston Delivered Christmas, this is a perfect read for Christmas time and a particularly funny one at that too.

Title: Winnie and Wilbur Meet Santa.Author: Valerie Thomas.
Illustrator: Korky Paul.
Publisher: Oxford University Press.
Published: 2016.
Format: Hardback.
Source: My own copy.

I've always enjoyed the antics of Winnie the Witch and her cat Wilbur. This time, her adventures see her having to help out Santa after he got stuck in her chimney. Now he needs her help in delivering the presents to the children in time. As always with Winnie and Wilbur, things don't go so smoothly...

For those who know about this series, you will be pleased to know that this book is complete with the same slapstick and zany antics that Winnie and Wilbur are known and loved for, topped off with the irreverent and humorous illustrations of Korky Paul. But it's the added bonuses exclusive to this book that really make it stand out. From the endpages featuring drawings of the characters from children who love these stories to the pop-up features at the end of the book, this is definitely a Christmas treat worth having.

The Bolds

Title: The Bolds
Author: Julian Clary
Illustrator: David Roberts
Publisher:  Andersen Press
Published: 2015
Format: Paperback
Source: My own copy

Two English speaking hyenas leave the Masai Mara to take on the identities of Fred and Amelia Bold, a young couple from Twickenham. Fred gets a job writing jokes for Christmas crackers and Amelia makes hats from unusual items such as egg boxes. They have two young children Bobby and Betty and are very happy with their new life in the suburbs. The children have a human friend, Minnie, who knows their secret, but can be trusted not to let on to anyone else. The only problem they have is their grumpy next door neighbour, Mr McNumpty, who is extremely unfriendly. One day the Bolds visit the local safari park so that the children can see the wild animals and get a taste of what life in Africa was like for their parents. Whilst there they make friends with the park's hyenas and hatch a plan to rescue Tony, an elderly hyena at risk of being put down by the vet.

The story is told in such a way that you can imagine Julian Clary reading aloud to you. The style is very chatty with plenty of asides from the narrator which makes it very easy to read. I think that this book would be great to read aloud. An audio book read by Julian Clary would be brilliant except for one small problem; you would miss out on David Robert's fantastic illustrations. The book is packed with illustrations which complement the text perfectly and really bring the story to life. I particularly liked the way that the pages are black with white writing when the story takes place at night or in the dark. Mr Bold's job writing jokes gives Julian Clary the excuse to include plenty of Christmas cracker type humour, which can make you groan, but in a good way. The story itself is really funny and made me laugh out loud a lot. I was particularly amused at the thought of Mr McNumpty dating Joan Collins and living the high life. The book is quite thick for one aimed at younger readers, but that is because there are so many illustrations which will appeal to children making the move to longer books. It is really easy to read and the story races along. I am really looking forward to the publication of The Bolds to the Rescue in March 2016. It sounds as if it will be another brilliantly funny book.