Emily Brown and Father Christmas by Cressida Cowell illustrated by Neal Layton

Father Christmas has no idea just how much he needs the common sense and enthusiasm of little Emily Brown and her toy rabbit friend called Stanley. 

Father Christmas thinks it is time to be modern! First off no sleigh - he is using the very latest climbing equipment. When he gets horribly stuck Emily Brown has to come to the rescue with her enormous suction device. 

Emily Brown suggests Father Christmas should stick with dropping down chimneys in the old way - much safer. 

Then Santa gets into more trouble. He has added a turbo whatsit to his sleigh and now he is stuck on the roof. Again Emily Brown comes to the rescue and suggests a team of reindeer will work way better. So now Father Christmas has his sleigh and his reindeer but he has no idea where all the presents need to go. His technology of iphones, why-phones, screens and buttons are no help. And to top everything off Father Christmas now has a dreadful winter cold.

Emily Brown knows the presents can only be delivered by magic. She tucks Father Christmas under a warm rug with a mug of hot chocolate, leaves him home beside the fire and she and Stanley set off to do all the deliveries in the sleigh with the team of reindeer. 

"Because being king and helpful to others is what Christmas is ALL about."

If you want to add a terrific Christmas book to your shopping list (perhaps for next year as it is only 2 sleeps until the big day) I highly recommend this one. 

There are lots of books in the series about Emily Brown by Cressida Cowell. You might recognise her name from the How to Train your Dragon series and The Wizards of Once books. Over time the covers of the Emily Brown books have changed. The first book in the series published in 2006 was That Rabbit belongs to Emily Brown and you can see two different covers below. 

The five-picture book Emily Brown series, illustrated by Neal Layton, follows Emily and her toy rabbit Stanley as they go on "intrepid adventures" to help others. "Along the way they demonstrate the unbreakable bond between child and favourite toy, and that kindness, determination and a sense of humour can overcome almost any obstacle.'