Quote of the Day: "Christmas doesn't come from a store maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more."
~Dr. Suess- How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Title: The Twelve Days of Christmas
Author and Illustrator: Susan Jeffers
Ages: 4-8
The illustrations are truly stunning in this book. The water-colour-and-ink creations paint holiday magic on every page. The artwork is magical, whimsical and sparkles. The original Christmas song is an accumulative one which means the verses build one on top of another. Jeffers takes this familiar carol and makes it into a story with the song tucked inside and she changes the lyrics,"My true love gave to me," to "Santa gave to me."
Emma, our narrator, is up later than she should be on Christmas Eve and she pokes around the tree until she finds a gift addressed to her from Santa. She carefully opens it up and discovers a beautiful, musical snow globe that plays the music for "The Twelve Days of Christmas." She is so pleased and excited and in her enthusiastic joy she stumbles and the snow globe drops and cracks. She is heartbroken and very upset. She cradles the fragile, broken globe in her arms, curls up in her favourite chair and instantly falls asleep. Santa comes and whisks her away in his sleigh and they observe the gifts of the song on their travels to the North Pole. The twelve pipers piping announce Santa's arrival at his homestead and Emma and he enter, walk through his workshop and sit down in his room to sip cocoa and eat cookies together. He asks Emma if she needs to share anything with him and she slowly hands over the her broken music box with an explanation of how it got that way. She once again drifts off to sleep snuggled in Santa's arm chair and dreams that the reindeer are flying her through the air and back home.
On Christmas morning Emma wakes up to find a true Christmas miracle and she is very thankful and happy to know that all is well, and that her beloved gift that "Santa gave to me' has been restored.
About the author:
Susan Jeffers, a New York Times bestselling artist, has won the ABBY from the American Booksellers Association, a Caldecott Honor from the American Library Association, and the Pomme d'Or de Bratislava. Her work has been exhibited in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Norman Rockwell Museum. Her books, including Brother Eagle, Sister Sky and the perennial bestsellers The Nutcrackerand Robert Frost's Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, have sold millions of copies and have been published around the world. Susan Jeffers lives in Westchester County, New York.
Book Review Rating: 8 (Fantastic!)
Read on and read always! Have a good one.
Just for fun: The lyrics to the original song for you to sing.
The Twelve days of Christmas
On the first day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:A Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the second day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the third day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the fourth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Four Calling Birds*
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the fifth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the sixth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the seventh day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Seven Swans a Swimming
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the eighth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Eight Maids a Milking
Seven Swans a Swimming
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the ninth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Nine Ladies Dancing
Eight Maids a Milking
Seven Swans a Swimming
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the tenth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Ten Lords a Leaping
Nine Ladies Dancing
Eight Maids a Milking
Seven Swans a Swimming
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the eleventh day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
Eleven Pipers Piping
Ten Lords a Leaping
Nine Ladies Dancing
Eight Maids a Milking
Seven Swans a Swimming
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
On the twelfth day of Christmas
my true love sent to me:
12 Drummers Drumming
Eleven Pipers Piping
Ten Lords a Leaping
Nine Ladies Dancing
Eight Maids a Milking
Seven Swans a Swimming
Six Geese a Laying
Five Golden Rings
Four Calling Birds
Three French Hens
Two Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree
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