Dasher

September 1, 2019
An origin story for Santa's "eight tiny reindeer." Nearly two centuries after "A Visit From St. Nicholas" originated Santa Claus' "coursers" and "called them by name," Tavares offers readers their backstory, centered on "a brave young doe named Dasher." First, the frontmatter notes "a time...when Santa's sleigh was pulled...by a single horse, named Silverbell." Ensuing pages depict not a wintry scene of Santa and Silverbell but a parched landscape with a crowd of people peering at penned reindeer as part of the cruel J.P. Finnegan's Traveling Circus and Menagerie. Illustrated details in clothing and material culture suggest a 19th-century American setting, but the focus is on the animals' cramped misery. Though kind children provide solace through carrots and smiles, Dasher's main comfort comes from her mother's stories of a northern homeland with "crisp, cold air and cool blankets of white snow." One windy night, the pen's gate blows open and Dasher escapes. While following the North Star, she encounters Santa (depicted as a white-bearded white man) and a weary Silverbell and offers to help pull the sleigh. Tavares' art is at its best in such magical scenes, which fairly beg to be made into Christmas cards, but the storytelling falters due to the ease with which the other reindeer escape when Santa grants Dasher her "best wish yet" and rescues her family. Gorgeous illustrations make this one sure to fly off shelves "like the down of a thistle." (Picture book. 3-8)

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October 7, 2019
In this prequel to the Rudolph story, Tavares explains how Santa ended up with his original reindeer crew. Young Dasher and her reindeer family languish in a circus, displayed as zoo animals under the hot sun by day and pulling the menagerie’s wagons at night. “The air was crisp and cold,” says Mama, recalling her birthplace under the North Star, “and the ground was always covered with a cool blanket of white snow.” Seizing an opportunity to escape, Dasher follows the North Star, and finds Santa and Silverbell—an affable, plodding horse who struggles to pull the heavy load: “I’m sorry, Santa. The sleigh is just so heavy this year.” Happily for all, a bit of magic assists gift delivery, and Santa’s gratitude leads to granted wishes and a reindeer reunion. Tavares’s classically painted figures are lit by moonlight and falling snow in this cozy antidote to holiday hullabaloo. Ages 4–8.

October 25, 2019

K-Gr 2-A magical origin story of Dasher, the first of Santa's flying reindeer. Dasher, the youngest reindeer in J.P. Finnegan's Traveling Circus and Menagerie, dreams and wishes for freedom, to be at the North Pole where the ground is covered in a cool blanket of snow. One night a storm helps Dasher escape and, while wandering in the woods, she meets Santa with his sleigh and horse, Silverbell. Dasher helps the pair deliver Christmas presents and, when the night is over, she finds that her wish has come true, she has made it home to the North Pole. The story opens with a detailed and expansive layout of the circus and menagerie, hot and dusty and crowded, clearly not a comfortable home for a reindeer family. Light is used to excellent effect in all of the illustrations. The twinkling North Star guides Dasher through the forest when she first escapes and on a later page radiant beams of moonlight illuminate Santa and Dasher when they meet for the first time. The text is formal and reserved and has the feel of a folktale or myth. On several pages the text is set in black typeface on top of color illustrations, which makes it difficult to read and is incongruous to the rest of the story, where text is set in large white boxes with decorative elements. The illustrations mirror the stately and calming text and are rarely dynamic, with one notable exception occurring when the escaping form of Dasher breaks through the white border and runs off the page entirely. VERDICT The overall message is one of family and togetherness, made possible by the magical powers of Santa Claus.-Laken Hottle, Providence Community Library, RI

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