Mr Santa by Jarvis

A little boy, or is this a girl, meets Santa - this child has SO many questions and we get to hear all of them. Santa himself is a wise old fellow and so he just smiles and takes his little companion on the adventure of a lifetime but Santa himself never utters a word.

• Dogs or cats, Mr Santa? You have to choose.
• Can reindeer talk?
• Can you eat clouds?
• Do you stop at traffic lights?
• Mr Santa is your belly button inny or out?
• Can I be an elf?

Mr Santa is a new Christmas book for 2025. If you have a young reader in your life this needs to be added to their Christmas stocking. Here is a video of the story so you can see all the illustrations (but please find the actual book to share in your family). My own copy was an early Christmas gift from a friend!

With signature warmth and a gentle visual humor, Jarvis channels the excitement of every child who has dreamed of meeting the jolly, generous old soul who personifies the most magical night of the year. Penguin Random House

The young protagonist’s dogged curiosity makes for a wholly original Yuletide tale, infused with the magic and wonder of Christmas. Kirkus

Companion book:

Santa's First Christmas by Mac Barnett illustrated by Sydney Smith

Santa has been delivering presents to children all over the world for years, but he has never had his own Christmas celebration. After prompting by a bear who lives near the North Pole, his elves are determined to fix this and to give Santa the best Christmas ever with presents, a feast, a huge Christmas tree, lights and of course a celebration with the best company of all. 

There are some sweet touches in this story - such as when the elves deliver breakfast in bed to Santa on Christmas morning - fresh doughnuts; when Santa and the elves decorate the tree with gingerbread pigs; and when they make biscuits to leave out with a glass of milk for 'you know who'.  Santa settles back to read a famous story 'he had a broad face and a little round belly that shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly'. 

But who is going to arrive with the presents? And what will Santa receive?

You will love their Christmas feast:

"For the table was set with mince pies and pudding and rolls and roasts, Brussels sprouts, gravies, horseradish sauce, sparkling crystal glasses filled with milled wine, a yule log, poached pears, candy canes, several pies, and a ginger stout cake, powdered with sugar and six layers high."

Santa's First Christmas was published in 2024 and this week my friend gifted me a copy for Christmas 2025. 

There are so many Christmas books and of course so many that I love but this one is TRULY special partly because, amazingly, it is an utterly fresh story and partly or perhaps mainly because Hans Christian Andersen Award winning illustrator Sydney Smtih has created utterly delightful illustrations. Even the cover has a special feature called spot varnish. There is one double spread in this book (with no words) that made me gasp!

Cozier than a roaring fire and sweeter than milk and cookies, this earns its “Christmas classic” stripes with flying colors. Kirkus Star review

I am sure you have seen lots of other splendid books by Mac Barnett. I love Extra Yarn, 20 questions, Billy Twitters and his Blue Whale Problem, and Just Because. Read more here. I have talked about Sydney Smith extensively on this blog (click on the label at the bottom of this post).

Look for this book in your local or school library - it is also by Mac Barnett:

Twelve Days of Letters to Santa - Christmas Day

Dear Father Christmas by Alan Durant illustrated by Vanessa Cabban

Dear Father Christmas was published in 2005 and the paperback in 2013. I picked up a copy at a recent charity book sale for just 50 cents! This book is out of print but I am sure it will be in many school and local libraries and hopefully the final (vital letter) is still in the envelope on the last page.

After the children visit Santa in a big store Holly leaves him a letter above the fireplace:

Dear Father Christmas,

I hope you are well. Is it snowing in Lapland?

It is cold here. I saw a man in a shop today who said he was Father Christmas.

He was dressed like you, but was it you? Really?

He told me to leave my Christmas list by the fireplace, but I wanted to make sure it really was you.

Please answer.

love Holly

Father Christmas writes back to Holly. She finds his letter on her mantle. It is typed and has been sent from Lapland.

Dear Holly,

Thank you so much for your letter.

What a lovely Christmassy name you have!

"The Holly and the Ivy" is one of my favourite Christmas carols. 

I am also very fond of "Jingle Bells." I often sing it on Christmas Eve when I ride the sleigh

with my reindeer to deliver the presents.

Santa goes on to ask Holly to write her Christmas list. 

Holly wants something very special for Christmas, but she does not feel brave enough to ask so instead she writes back and asks about the elves. Once again Holly finds a reply on the mantle and once again she is not able to ask for her gift instead this time she asks about riding in the sleigh and Billy wants to know how Santa can fit down the chimney. The letters continue back and forth and Santa also gives Holly a decoration for her tree and a special guide explaining how to care for reindeer. On Christmas Eve Holly finally writes her Christmas list - you will never guess the one thing she wants most in the world but the envelope on the final page contains something so wonderful you are sure to sigh with happiness.

Here is a good idea - this reviewer suggests you treat Dear Father Christmas a little like an advent calendar - opening one letter each day in the lead up to Christmas. I would share this book with children aged 6+. Please don't use this with your child but if you need to see inside this book here is a video - it is read way, way too quickly. 

Meerkat Merry Christmas by Emily Gravett

Meerkat Christmas was published more recently in 2019. The paperback edition [9781509857302] from 2020 is still available. The publisher suggest this book for readers aged 3+ but to my eye this one is for an older child especially one who has enjoyed the other book from this series - Meerkat Mail (see below).

Bookseller blurb: A young meerkat travels the world looking for Christmas in this festive card-packed picture book, ...  Sunny isn't quite sure if Christmas in the desert with his meerkat family is the right sort of Christmas - there's no snow, no fir trees and no figgy pudding! So, he heads off on a journey round the world looking for the picture-perfect Christmas . . . before realizing he might have left it at home after all.

Begin with the cover - you need to stretch it right out.

Sunny reads a magazine article - How to have the Perfect Christmas. 

1. THE PERFECT WEATHER Must be snow. Crisp and deep.
2. THE PERFECT TREE Must be tastefully decorated
3. THE PERFECT PRESENTS There must be a huge pile.
4. THE PERFECT DINNER Must include well-boiled sprouts.
5. THE PERFECT MUSIC Christmas carols.

So Sunny packs his bag (which looks a little like a Santa sack) and he heads off - leaving the Kalahari - in search of a place that is more Christmasy than his desert home. 

First stop Australia and his friend Kev. But oh no they are having prawns and there is no snow and everyone is at the beach. Only one thing on his check list of five criteria receives a tick. 

Next stop Trevor's in the Philippines. Again, only one tick on the list although Sunny does enjoy eating crickets so this food be part of his Christmas dinner. He travels on to visit Robin, but it is raining and very gloomy. The birds are singing carols but there is no snow and the food on offer is worms! The weather is way better in Antarctica - snow tick, presents tick, but no trees, no dinner and no singing. Sunny travels on to the north. Snow tick, trees tick, but no presents, no dinner and no music. 

Finally "on the night before Christmas Sunny arrives somewhere perfect. The snow is falling (outside), everyone is singing, there is a beautifully decorated tree, plenty of presents and a HUGE Christmas dinner with all the trimmings (even sprouts).  It should be perfect."

It should be perfect but something is missing! Santa has the solution, and a wonderful present arrives on Christmas morning in the Kalahari. Oh, and remember Sunny had a sack - wait until you see what he has inside. And make sure you spend some time enjoying the brilliant end papers which are different front and back and contain some wonderful images to make you smile. 

Then re-read the book and find all the fun and corny Christmas cracker jokes. Here is a video of the book which is well done - good pace and full screen images but please only view this after you have enjoyed exploring the real book with your young reading companion or library group. 

This book is a joy, from Sunny’s Christmas jumper to the excitement of opening the little cards. A fitting follow-up to a popular book and a timely reminder that sometimes we have to look a little closer to home – at what matters to us – to find perfection. Book Murmurmation

Twelve days of Letters to Santa Day Ten - Santa Post

Publisher blurb: Santa receives post from children all over the world. But when Amy sends him a letter, he just can't work out what she wants as her gift. Will Santa manage to find Amy the right present in time for Christmas Eve?

Can you see the burn marks. The vital words from the letter are ruined. How can Santa find the perfect gift for young Amy?

First he asks the elves but they are SO busy so the chief elf who has the delightful name of Elfalfa Higglesbottom Senior, asks Boggins to help. All that is left in the toy cupboard is a box of coal. But Amy was on the 'nice' list - this cannot be the right gift. So next Santa writes to Mr Polar Bear but this gift is enormous - perfect for a polar bear but not right for Amy. Surely the reindeer will know. All of the reindeer 'put their antlers together' and decide the perfect present is a carrot! I love the tone of their letter to Santa:

Howdy Mister S
So good to hear from you dude. We've just been surfing some clouds ready for the big night. Dancer dinged her antlers on a star doing an epic dive. It was so awesome. ... Wish I could see your face when you open this parcel. It's gonna blow your mind (and beard).

See ya later!

Peace out

Chief

The Chief Reindeer

Amy does receive a present at Christmas and I know the final letter will give your young reading companion a huge smile.

Emma Yarlett has done it again with another brilliant book featuring beautifully fold-out letters that are a joy to discover. This time, it's the clever use of letters to Santa - and letters to and from Santa and his team of experts - that help the story develop, and as the gifts for Amy multiply (a scarf, a carrot, some coal) young readers may be able to guess what might happen in the end. A heartwarming picture book with a special interactive element that makes it all the more fun. BookTrust

This book was published in 2020 and a new paperback edition was published in 2023. The best thing about the book design, apart from the fire singed letter, is the way the letters open as flaps. This means the precious letters cannot be lost by young borrowers as can be the case with a book like The Jolly Christmas Postman. Here is the book trailer. You can see inside this book on the author web page.

The companion volume to Santa Post is Dragon Post. You should look for this book because 2024 is the Year of the Dragon. 

Twelve days of Letters to Santa Day Three - A letter to Father Christmas

 Dear Father Christmas - I would like a Cindy Doll. Love Margot

Dear Father Christmas

I am writing to tell you what I would like in my stocking. When you come to my house on Christmas Eve you mustn't look for me in my bedroom because Grandma and Grandad will be there. I will be in Ben's room (next to the bathroom). Ben is too small to write his own letter so I have put some things for him on my list. Also would you bring me a surprise? I like surprises best of all.

Lots of Love,

Miss Charlotte Ruth Hall x

There is a rush after the letter is done. Charlotte needs to get it into the envelope. She picks up a list thinking it is her Christmas list along with her letter and her father posts it up their chimney. Charlotte is good at copying writing but she is too young to be able to read. When Father Christmas reads the letter he admires the neat writing but the list puzzles him. 

"Why it looks more like somebody's shopping list,' he thought. And of course, that's exactly what it was."

• Bread
• Carrots
• Fish
• Nuts
• Hot water bottle

The day before Christmas is very cold and thick snow covers the area around the house. Charlotte is worried about the donkey who lives in the next field - she wishes she could bring him in out of the cold. She is worried about the cat. He looks hungry but Charlotte would be so sad if he ate the birds. The birds are hungry too and there are only a few berries left on the holly bushes.

Can you match each gift from the shopping list with her animal friends. The presents in her stocking are certainly a surprise but there is also a special gift for Charlotte - and it is perfect.

This is an old book - the newest copy was published in 1997 - but there are plenty of fairly cheap used copies still available. This book is also sure to be found in many school library collections.

Here is an alternate cover from the US - I laughed when I watched the video read and realised this UK book had been changed for children in America - tap=faucet, Mum=Mom, Tea=Supper for example:

Letters to Santa

Image source: The Tayor House

It all begins TOMORROW - my Twelve Days of Christmas Letters.

Yesterday I mentioned my planned series of posts with some Christmas picture books which feature letters to Santa or Father Christmas or letters written at Christmas time. Starting tomorrow I will have my Twelve Days of Christmas which this year will focus on twelve posts featuring special Christmas books with letters.  Here are a few extras:

Here are the details from Kids' Book Review

Toddlers will love lifting the flaps to open the presents and find out what Santa has sent. 

Will he send the perfect present in the end? With gold foil cover, flaps to lift on every page and a touch-and-feel surprise ending, this festive favourite is the ideal Christmas gift ...

Rachel Rosenstein is determined to celebrate Christmas this year—and the fact that her family is Jewish is not going to stop her. In a series of hilarious and heartwarming mishaps, Rachel writes a letter to Santa explaining her cause, pays him a visit at the mall, and covertly decorates her house on Christmas Eve (right down to latkes for Santa and his reindeer). And while Rachel may wrestle with her culture, customs, and love of sparkly Christmas ornaments, she also comes away with a brighter understanding of her own identity and of the gift of friends and family.

Jimmy Dobbins is a young hockey player who has been very good all year—or so he tells Santa in a letter with a long list of gift requests. Subsequent letters from Jimmy to Santa throughout the month of December gradually reveal a hilarious litany of the previous year’s various mischievous incidents at home and at school, along with ongoing sibling squabbles with a younger sister (“the most annoying four-year-old sister on the planet”). The text is told entirely through these letters to Santa, set in a typeface that looks like a child’s printing on various kinds of notebook and memo paper. Kirkus

Working hard to deliver presents to children all around the world, Father Christmas realises that he has never received his own Christmas gift. Feeling fed up and underappreciated, Father Christmas decides to write his own letter. But, will the letter work? And if it does work, what happens if Father Christmas gets a little bit greedy?

Christmas letters

My twelve blogs of Christmas begins this week.  I have written a series of twelve posts which feature Christmas books that contain letters - either letters to Santa or Father Christmas or letters to friends and family, written over the Christmas period. I am making an early start because I have found more than twelve books so I thought I would begin with these four I have talked about previously:

Truffle's Christmas

Thank you, Santa

A Letter for Bear

Rain for Christmas

Christmas 2022 book selection

 

I've posted my Christmas book choices over recent days. This year I didn't try to have a theme - I just gathered a random selection of Christmas books to share here on my blog. Some are old, some are new, some are long out of print, a couple are Australian, and hopefully nearly all of them will still be in a school or public library. I found a few of these at a recent charity book sale and others I borrowed from a very well stocked school library. 

A Small Miracle

The Snow Angel

Christmas Magic

A House for Christmas Mouse

Strega Nona's Gift

Merry Christmas, Blue Kangaroo!

The Polar Bear who Saved Christmas

The Polar Express

The Animals' Christmas Carol

Green is for Christmas

e-mail Jesus @ Bethleham

The First Noel

Emily Brown and Father Christmas

Grace and the Christmas Angel

Dasher

Check my past Christmas books by clicking Christmas on my sidebar. 

Dasher by Matt Tavares

"You might be surprised to hear that there was a time, long ago, when Santa's sleigh was pulled not by a team of reindeer but by a single horse, named Silverbell."

So how did Santa come to find his reindeer? How did this happen?

The reindeer family part of the J.P. Finnegan Travelling Circus and Menagerie. They were not very well cared for and all of them longed to live in a better place with crisp cold air, cool white snow and freedom. Mama tells her stories every evening to Dasher under the light of the North Star. Dasher likes the way the children are kind to the circus animals but one night, when the gate swings open, she does not hesitate. Out she goes looking for snow and freedom with the North Star as her guide.

You have probably guessed she stumbles upon Santa and Silverbell. The sleigh is so heavy because there are so many children in the world who believe in the magic. Dasher steps forward and offers to help but little does she realise she will be pulling the sleigh up in the sky. 

At the end of the magical night Santa asks Dasher if she has a wish.  

"I love it here ... but I miss my family. I wish we could be together."

"Late that night, as Santa and his new team of reindeer soared around the world, he called them by name for the very first time. 'Now Dasher! Now Dancer! Now, Prancer and Vixen. On, Comet! On Cupid! On, donner and Blitzen!"

I visited a very large (chain) city bookstore this week and I was shocked to discover they did not have a huge display of children's picture books celebrating Christmas. I did find the shelves of Christmas books (two of them jam packed) but it was in a different part of the store not near the other picture books but instead hidden in another section where they keep the children's non fiction books and graphic novels for younger readers. Such a missed opportunity or is this political correctness gone mad?

When I buy I book I love to look at the book shop price sticker because they often include the date a book arrived in their store. Dasher has been languishing on the shelves since November 2020. Of course we were buried in COVID for the 2020 Christmas but I cannot help wonder if this book had been put out on a Christmas book display surely it would not have sat around for 2 years! Kirkus agree:

Gorgeous illustrations make this one sure to fly off shelves 

“like the down of a thistle.”

You can see inside Dasher on Matt Tavares web page. In this interview with Nerdy Book Club, Matt Tavares talks about his book. 

I did some searching to see what other book stores in the city were offering in their Christmas Picture book range.  I discovered this new book illustrated by Bernadette Watts - it looks like a wonderful (248 pages) book to read each night with your family.

And here a few others that I might find next Christmas:

Matt Tavares has two other Christmas books: