PPBF: Little Santa

Author/Illustrator: John Agee
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers, 2013
Age Level: 3-5 (says Amazon – but I’d put that up to 8)
Themes: young Santa, North Pole
Opening: In the North Pole, in a little cabin, lived Mr. and Mrs. Claus and their seven children, Larry, Mary, Willy, Millie, Joey, Zoe, and Santa.
Summary: (From Amazon) Little Santa loves the North Pole. The rest of his family?  Not so much. So, when they decide to move to Florida, Santa is miserable. Lucky for him, a blizzard foils their plans. The only way out of the house is up the chimney. Up goes Santa, to look for help, and along the way, he meets a reindeer and a large group of elves, who are more than eager to join in the rescue!

Why I like this book: Simplicity, both in the illustrations and in the storytelling. His frowning family helps the reader identify with this cold and snow loving character in a red suit all the more. I could easily imagine where the story was going, yet I was excited at every page turn! And I know my dear friend Penny Klosterman just reviewed this last week, but I wrote this up weeks ago and it IS THAT GOOD – so pooh! And since there is no PPBF today, it won’t harm anyone!

Resources/Activities: Christmas books are not found in too many classrooms anymore. Debatable, but I believe too much political correctness wipes us clean of culture. But this is one that should be shared for ideas alone, especially good for kids who begin to ask why – and don’t stop! This could be a great lead-in to help kids come up with story ideas: imagine how any cultural figure, mythical or otherwise, started out.

No new ones today, but for other Perfect Picture Book picks with activity resources, go to Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog – HERE