The Lost Christmas Gift

October 1, 2012

Gr 4 Up-The narrator, an old man named Emerson, receives a package just before Christmas that had been mailed to him seven decades before but had never arrived. It is a small handmade book from his father, who was overseas at the time, recounting an adventure that he and the then-young narrator had the year before while looking for a Christmas tree in the forest. The old, yellowed book includes photos Emerson had taken of mysterious men-Santa? Elves?-who had helped them after they were caught in a snowstorm-but as these men didn't appear in the photos, Emerson's father added them as drawings on transparent overlays. Each page includes not just the images from the old book, but also the now-elderly Emerson's comments and his memories of that long- ago Christmas Eve. Though too solemn and slow-moving a story for most children, some youngsters-and adults as well-will appreciate the simple spell this lovely and unusual book casts.-Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.