Holiday

All posts tagged Holiday

THE LEGEND OF HOLLY CLAUS – Brittney Ryan

Posted by Daniel on November 27, 2020
Posted in: YA. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

If you see or hear about this book, don’t be like me … don’t wait seven years before you read it!

If you’ve picked up this book, you’re already pretty familiar with Santa Claus.  He’s the King of Forever in the Land of Immortals.  You knew that, right?

The story here begins when a little boy writes to Santa Claus and asks a question that no one has ever asked of the jolly old elf, which brings about a miracle – a daughter, Holly, is born to Santa and Mrs. Claus. But there’s a curse that comes with Holly’s birth: Holly’s heart has been replaced with one made of ice (she has to stay in the cold all the time or her heart will literally break) and the gates to the Land of Immortals are locked, keeping the immortals captive in their land with only one night a year when Santa can deliver his toys. This curse comes from an evil individual named Herrikhan.

Holly grows up to be a beautiful young woman, selfless and giving, and wants to free her people from their captivity. With the help of some animal friends, Holly manages to escape the Land of Immortals and finds herself in Victorian New York – about as far south as she dares go. This world is new and unusual to her, but it doesn’t change her.  She is still the selfless, giving young woman, and she works her way into the hearts of some of the tough, cold Victorian’s.

Not surprisingly, there are young man who would like to catch Holly’s attention, but she’s got her eyes on the goal of freeing her people – though there is one young man ….

This is a beautiful story. Author Brittney Ryan captures the sense of the Victorian era while telling a modern fantasy. Holly is a perfect princess and she’s got an appropriate challenge ahead of her, with a nasty villain as her foil.

I did find the book to be just a little bit too long. It gets caught up with delivering the luscious language in the middle portion of the book.  But ther beginning and ending are strong enough to overcome the slow middle.

I can see where this book might become a seasonal favorite for some, and it’s got all the makings of a holiday movie as well.

The book is lightly illustrated with some very nice drawings by Laurel Long which also evokes the Victorian era.

Looking for a good book? The Legend of Holly Claus by Brittney Ryan is a YA romantic fantasy that gets a little slow at times, but might become a regular holiday read for some.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Legend of Holly Claus

author: Brittney Ryan

artist: Laurel Long

publisher: Open Road Media Young Readers

ASIN: B009O3ZN6A

Kindle Edition, 554 pages

A VERY SCALZI CHRISTMAS – John Scalzi

Posted by Daniel on December 3, 2019
Posted in: HUMOR, SHORT FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

There are only a handful of authors whose work I will go out and buy as soon as I am aware of a new published work.  John Scalzi has become one of those authors for me.

If you’re familiar with Scalzi you can probably already imagine that a book titled A Very Scalzi Christmas is going to be irreverent and sarcastic and full of humor. And you’d be right. Scalzi’s wit is in full force here.

One of the main features of this collection are a series of ‘interviews.’  We have interviews with Santa’s lawyer, Santa’s reindeer wrangler, the Christmas bunny, and the Nativity innkeeper.  Each of these has a moment or two that will likely make you snort with a burst of laughter.

There are some short short stories and other oddball tidbits, each usually good for a Christmas snort.  Sometimes the humor is pretty apparent before you even read the piece. In “Script Notes on The Birth of Jesus” for instance, we Scalzi goes with the obvious choice of having Hollywood producers suggesting improvements on the Birth of Jesus story – from adding slapstick to the pregnancy situations, and keeping spin-offs in mind.

My favorite section was “The Least Successful Holiday Specials of All Time.”  Scalzi is at his most creative here, I think, and even though each of these are only a couple of paragraphs long, I was in full belly-laugh mode. Of course I loved “The Lost Star Trek Christmas Episode: “A Most Illogical Holiday.””

If you’re a Scalzi follower you should note that most of these pieces first appeared on his blog and have been collected for this special edition book.  But of course, if you’re a Scalzi follower, you probably want the book anyway.

Looking for a good book? A Very Scalzi Christmas by John Scalzi is a lot of fun and I can imagine reading these as a Christmas tradition.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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A Very Scalzi Christmas

author: John Scalzi

publisher: Subterranean Press

ISBN: 1596069325

hardcover, 144 pages

THE CAT WHO ATE CHRISTMAS – Lil Chase & Thomas Docherty

Posted by Daniel on October 15, 2018
Posted in: CHILDREN'S. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

The Hudson family is looking forward to enjoying their Christmas, but their curious cat, Jingles, is exploring Christmas just the way any feline might.  First, there’s the Christmas tree, with its shiny ornaments and attractive lights that needs to be explored.  But the poor cat didn’t expect a tree to actually come crashing down!  And the decorations around the house … a series of toys for a cat, right?  And why would you cook a Christmas turkey and leave it on the counter if it wasn’t meant to be eaten by a cat?

Jingles threatens to ruin Christmas for the Hudson family. They get mighty upset with the cat, but when Jingles is missing, the family forget about the destruction the cat caused knowing that a happy Christmas means everyone being together…including the cat.

The story is cute – easily the sort of book I could see reading to/with young children at Christmas time … especially if the family has a cat.  But it’s not the sort of book that would get multiple readings during the season.  The story is just a little bit over the top for me.  A family with a cat like this should clearly know better than to leave a cooked turkey out in the open – they kind of deserved to have it eaten for not thinking a little more about it.

Thomas Docherty’s art is pleasant and serves the story.  I very much liked that this was a mixed-race family by appearance, though nothing was ever said about it.  It’s the sort of thing that will either be taken in stride (as it should be), or prompt some questions from youngsters which is a great way to open dialog/discussion about families and race.

Looking for a good book? The Cat Who Ate Christmas is a cute story by Lil Chase with delightful art by Thomas Docherty that will entertain youngsters, but likely won’t be often requested for repeat readings.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Cat Who Ate Christmas

author: Lil Chase

artist: Thomas Docherty

publisher: Running Press Kids

ISBN: 0762464755

hardcover, 96 pages

FIELDS WHERE THEY LAY – Timothy Hallinan

Posted by Daniel on December 19, 2017
Posted in: MYSTERY. Tagged: , , , , . 1 Comment

This is book number six in a “Junior Bender Mystery” series.  I have not read any of the other books in the series and because of that I think I was a bit lost right from the start. Junior Bender is a bit of a detective – but not for the good guys.  He’s a burglar who does a bit of detecting work for the criminal bosses in the area.

At the start of the book, Bender is in the security office for a local mall.  The mall, like so many around the country, isn’t doing too well. Most people tend to shop online.  But this mall is having some significant ups and downs during the holiday season.  Enough ‘ups’ that the mall has hired two Santas – one for either end of the mall.  But on the down side, there appears to have been more petty theft than usual, even for the holiday time of year.

The mall is owned by a Russian gangster, who calls Bender in to investigate.

At the beginning, I didn’t realize that Bender was a criminal.  We’re informed that the mall owner has contacted him to investigate the theft problems.  Without knowing any more, I immediately assumed that Bender was a detective or retired cop.  So when I later read about his burglary tools in the trunk of his car, I’m confused.  More-so when we’re informed that the mall owner is a criminal. So who is Junior Bender?  Of course if I’d read other books in the series I’d already know, but picking up this book new, I was confused.  I only got to know more about him as the book went on.  (Of course, if I’d read the Goodreads reviews before I read the book, I would know, but I prefer to read a book as fresh as possible so that I am not influenced by someone else’s thoughts.

Bender’s dealings with the Jewish Santa, Schlomo, aren’t what one would expect of a criminal (compounding my confusion), but I liked  the gentleness and the holiday message here.  It grounded the characters in a nice and fresh way.

Unfortunately, despite some holiday philosophy, we also have a murder, corruption, and a threat against Bender’s family. So much for the holiday spirit.

What makes the book worth reading are the characters. Bender, Schlomo, and even the ‘heavies’ here are wonderful examples of literary characters that are unique and come across as quite real.

What doesn’t work so well are the multiple stories taking place.  A mystery, with a red-herring or two, would have been fine.  But the thefts, the murder, the history of Schlomo, the … well, you get the idea.  It was more than was necessary for a good mystery.

Looking for a good book? Fields Where They Lay by Timothy Hallinan is the sixth book in a series – which is moderately important to know and has some great characters, but tries to tell too many stories.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Fields Where They Lay

author: Timothy Hallinan

series: Junior Bender #6

publisher: Soho Crime

ISBN: 1616957468

hardcover, 384 pages

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF EBENEZER SCROOGE – Charlie Lovett

Posted by Daniel on December 7, 2016
Posted in: OTHER, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

The spirit of Christmas is still with Ebenezer Scrooge, even twenty years after he was famously visited by his own three spirits.  He walks about town, wishing everyone good tidings but is often met with scorn.  People are too busy to think about Christmas or to take time off.  And so Scrooge decides he needs to help teach some people the meaning of Christmas.  To do so, he calls upon three spirits to help spread the word.

This is a very quick and easy read.  It’s a little over-the-top and didactic.  I suppose, thinking back on Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, it too is didactic, but the difference is that Dickens’ characters feel like real people, whereas author Charlie Lovett’s characters feel like characters in place to make a point.  It seems like a small difference, but it is enough to separate the reader from getting involved in a story and caring about what the characters are doing from simply reading and being given a message.

The idea is fun and it’s an easy twist on the original idea.  It will not have the same impact that Dickens’ book has had and although the characters are the same (in name) as those in the original story, they will feel like strangers who act very differently than those we’ve come to know and love through Dickens book and the myriad film and stage adaptations.

If you want something quick to read with a Christmas theme to it, this might be just the right thing, but it will never have the lasting power of that which it spins from.

Looking for a good book?  The Further Adventures of Ebenezer Scrooge by Charlie Lovett is a quick spin on the original with all the roles being reversed as lacks the draw of the timeless classic.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Further Adventures of Ebenezer Scrooge

author: Charlie Lovett

publisher: Viking

ISBN: 0525429107

hardcover, 107 pages

THE MAKING OF THE RANKIN/BASS HOLIDAY CLASSIC: RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER – Rick Goldschmidt

Posted by Daniel on December 1, 2016
Posted in: ENTERTAINMENT, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

As someone who grew up with this classic holiday program, trying to make sure my parents didn’t schedule anything on the one night of the year that this would air, I was really interested in looking behind the scenes.  I love “the making of” books.  I suspect it was this fascination with behind the scenes looks that motivated my career in theatre (behind the scenes, of course).

When I subscribed to Kindle Unlimited (something I didn’t think I would do, but did so on someone else’s behalf) I decided to see what books might be available for loan.  This was one of the first ones to come up on my screen (scary how well Amazon knows me!) and I checked it out right away.

It is a quick read, and while author Rick Goldschmidt doesn’t go too in-depth, he does touch on a lot of topics and I was fascinated and informed.  I can honestly say that I knew nothing about Rankin, Bass, or anyone involved with the creation of this classic.  I’m still not sure I know too much about Rankin or Bass, but I do know more about Romeo Muller (the writer of the story) and the creation of the ‘animagic’ process.  The animation was done in Japan with a team of people who each had an incredibly detailed chart of their characters’ movements needed for each frame of photography.

I really delighted with the photos from behind the scenes — the sets, the characters and the people posing them.  I liked reading how the posers would wear white gloves to keep fingerprints off of the characters and to try to prevent stray fibers during each shot.

One of my favorite parts of the book was the inclusion of an early version of the script, complete with notes and ‘X’ed’ out dialog.  To me, this sort of thing has always been fascinating … to  see the process, where it started and how it got to where it finished.

I was not aware of the changes, over the years, from the first broadcast to what we see today.  I did not realize that there was a ‘re-do’ on the end credits and that some of the names were misspelled in the re-shoot.  There is also information regarding a new scene and a lost scene that was supposed to air after it was discovered, and still was edited out of the television showing (if you want to know why, you’ll have to read the book).

While I’m glad to have had the chance to read this on my Kindle, this is actually the sort of book that I’d love to sit and look through, page by page, really studying the pictures.  And Kindle’s aren’t good for that.  This is one of those books that I’d like to see in paper.  But I am just glad to have had the chance to learn a little more about this great show.

Looking for a good book?  Rick Goldschmidt’s The Making of the Rankin/Bass Holiday Classic: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a really nice slice of entertainment history and should be enjoyed by anyone who fondly recalls the animagic “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” special, television history, or a good behind-the-scenes exploration book.

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The Making of the Rankin/Bass Holiday Classic: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

author: Rick Goldschmidt

publisher: MISER BROS PRESS

ASIN: B00520KL84

Kindle Edition

THE CHRISTMAS TREE – Julie Salamon

Posted by Daniel on November 24, 2016
Posted in: OTHER. Tagged: , , , , , . 1 Comment

THROWBACK THURSDAY: REVIEW A REISSUE

One of the jobs of the chief gardener at Rockefeller Center is picking out the massive Christmas tree to have in the plaza for display to the public.  It’s all just part of the job and most of his work takes places well before the Christmas season so it doesn’t bolster his appreciation for the holiday spirit.  The gardener finds his perfect tree on the grounds of a convent.  When he approaches the Mother Superior to make his request for the tree, he is told that he will have to take it up with Sister Anthony – a nun (formerly an orphaned girl by the name of Anna) who has a special relationship with the flora on the grounds and has taken to referring to the Norway Spruce in question as “Tree.”  It takes a bit of convincing and explaining but the gardener gets more than he bargained for.

I was not familiar with this story before reading this reissue, but I’ve come to understand that it’s a bit of a modern classic.  It definitely has many of the things one looks for in a feel-good holiday story.  Our main characters come to learn something about themselves and their place in the world and how they can have a positive impact on others.

It is interesting to note that the book starts out with the Rockefeller Center gardener speaking to the reader, and it is his story that we follow, but if you read the Goodreads description of the book, it is about a little girl named Anna who becomes Sister Anthony and who has a special bond with nature and one particular Tree.

The book is barely more than 100 pages and yet it is indeed about both the Rockefeller gardener and the orphan girl Anna/Sister Anthony. This is one of the few times that you will see me write this … this book needs to be just a little bit longer.

I felt just a little bit short-changed on the story bout Anna/Anthony.  I was drawn into the story by the writing and because I was curious to see how we would get to the end (we see the very end of the story at the beginning of the book, so I know from the outset that this is about the journey to get there) and while it is definitely a sweet, nearly touching story, it could have gone just a little deeper to have a fuller impact.

This newest edition has sweet illustrations by Jill Weber.

I can understand why this has become a popular story to read during the Christmas holiday season.  It is brief and hits all the right notes.  It is worth making it a tradition to read this story each year.

Looking for a good book?  The Christmas Tree is a touching holiday tale by Julie Salamon and is might just have you making a new holiday tradition to read this novella each Christmas.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Christmas Tree

author: Julie Salamon

artist: Jill Weber

publisher: Random House

ISBN: 0679452532

hardcover, 118 pages

THE CHRISTMAS COAL MAN – Joe Kulka

Posted by Daniel on November 27, 2015
Posted in: CHILDREN'S, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

What happens when Santa Claus decides that he’s no longer going to punish the bad boys and girls by giving them coal in their stockings, and instead reward the good boys and girls with something extra?  Well, the man who has supplied Santa with coal for all these years is suddenly out of a job.  That’s the basic premise of the children’s Christmas picture book.

A new take on a Christmas storybook is ‘gold’ to anyone who can devise the right story that will capture the reader’s interest, but I think this story is going to stay in the coal mine.

The biggest problem here is that there really isn’t any story, and Santa and Christmas play almost no role, other than providing a backdrop for our coal miner.  What little story there is tends to be confusing, especially to those to whom this book is targeted.  The coal miner has a job mining coal for Santa Claus.  But he’s getting tired and wants to retire.  He tells his trusty donkey that after a couple more hauls, he’ll have saved enough to finally quit the mining business.  Then Santa tells him that he’s going to go with rewards instead of punishments and he won’t be buying any more coal.  And suddenly the miner seems to be in a panic.  Despite planning to retire, he’s now worried about how he’ll get by.  When he trips and his bag of coal drops, there a few diamonds mixed in with the coal and the miner realizes that he can now retire.  And he still works for Santa but does so by picking shells on a sunny beach to use as gifts for the best good boys and girls.

So…the seashells are a good gift to give the good boys and girls?  What about the diamonds?  As I was reading through this the first time, I really expected that the diamonds were his way to retiring by selling them to Santa to use for the exceptionally good girls and boys.  If seashells are the new stocking-stuffer from Santa, why did we need the pages of the miner discovering diamonds?  Why not just send him straight to the beach and have him sell Santa on the idea of the shells?  Why muddy the story with the diamonds?  Aside from not fitting in well with the story itself, it possibly fuels the incorrect thinking that diamonds are formed from coal.

The story just didn’t catch my interest very early and it doesn’t develop.

The art is fair but not outstanding.  There are some pages with very nice, colorful artwork, and other pages have a much more cartoonish look to them.  The art serves the story, but it does not rescue it.

Looking for a good book?  If you’re looking for a new children’s book for the Christmas holiday, The Christmas Coal Man by Joe Kulka definitely has a unique story, but you may not find it very engaging.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Christmas Coal Man

author: Joe Kulka

artist: Joe Kulka

publisher: Carolrhoda Books

ISBN: 1467716073

hardcover, 32 pages

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ST. NICK – Alan Russell

Posted by Daniel on March 16, 2015
Posted in: MYSTERY, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

What do you do if you’re a cop who’s been suspended, your family will have nothing to do with you, the press hound you and treat you as a villain, and it’s almost Christmas and you’re thinking of eating a bullet?  Become a mall Santa, of course.

Police officer Nick Pappas is currently suspended following an on-the-job shooting incident.  While sitting around his home, wallowing in pity, Nick gets a call from a former partner who is now working security at a local mall in the San Diego area.  The mall is regularly being hit by a series of robberies, targeting shoppers.  Nick is convinced to help out, but realizes only too late that his under-cover role is playing Santa Claus.  A jolly old elf adored by children is not a role that comes even close to natural for Nick.

Nick’s handler is the head elf who won’t let Nick back out of performing his role and is of the personality type that always sees the brightest side of any issue.  Will Nick’s biggest challenge be catching the criminals, keeping his Santa suit clean, or dealing with a perpetually perky elf?

Author Alan Russell has done a really nice job of giving us three-dimensional characters that we care about.  Even the grumpy, irascible Nick Pappas (perhaps especially Nick Pappas) is someone we develop a soft spot for. And the story grows a variety of sub-plots that Russell weaves together quite well.

As dark as the story starts, with Nick giving thoughts to ending it all, it grows brighter as one might expect, or at least hope a Christmas story would.  However, it is well-tempered with a dose of reality that will almost certainly bring a tear or a lump in the reader’s throat.

There are a few moments when the writing moves from ‘showing’ to ‘telling’ but over-all we get caught up in the story and the characters and it’s a smooth read.

Although written with a Christmas setting, this isn’t just a Christmas novel.  It is a mystery with characters who grow.  What more can you want in a book?

Looking for a good book?  St. Nick, by Alan Russell, is a moving, engaging mystery with strong, like-able characters, good for any season.

I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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St. Nick: A Christmas Cop Novel

author: Alan Russell

publisher: Thomas & Mercer

ISBN: 1477818456

paperback, 270 pages

DENSLOW’S NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS – Clement Clarke Moore & W.W. Denslow

Posted by Daniel on December 4, 2014
Posted in: CHILDREN'S, Uncategorized, YA. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THROWBACK THURSDAY: REVIEWING A REISSUE

There’s something I find wonderfully appealing about Victorian Era children’s book art (though, yes, technically speaking, this would be in the Edwardian period as it was published in 1902 … but Denslow was certainly famous for his work during the Victorian period). There’s a great deal of whimsical fantasy, the sense that anything is possible, and yet it is anything but cuddly. In fact it is often a little eerie or creepy. But of all the versions of this poem that I have on my shelves (and there are more than a few of them), this may be my favorite.

I’m not sure how many people are familiar with Denslow’s work as the illustrator for the Wizard of Oz series (it’s not a storyboard of the movie, folks!), but his work here is in a similar fashion.  (I’m not quite sure how to define the ‘style’ except to say that it is consistent with other works I’ve seen from that era.)

I am particularly fond of the little eerie faces throughout.  The brass andiron’s in the fireplace have expressive faces, as does the clock on the mantle.  And who doesn’t find the face in the Christmas tree to be just a tad frightening.  Or that of the face in the moon?

Denslow gives a nod to Wizard of Oz with the inclusion of a Tin Woodsman doll in Santa’s sack.

Be warned…this is from 1902 and there are some politically incorrect figures here, including an Al Jolson-like black-face doll.

I really like this edition and am grateful to Dover Publications for re-issuing it.  I hope they will consider publishing some of Denslow’s other works as well.

Looking for a good book?  Denslow’s Night Before Christmas in a beautiful example of story-telling art from the late Victorian Era/turn-of-the-century and is still enjoyable today.

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Denslow’s Night Before Christmas

author: Clement Clarke Moore

artist: W.W. Denslow

publisher: Dover Publications

originally published: 1902

ISBN: 0486783332

paperback, 80 pages

THE ANGEL TREE – Daphne Benedis-Grab

Posted by Daniel on November 28, 2014
Posted in: CHILDREN'S, Uncategorized, YA. Tagged: , , , , , . 2 Comments

In the cozy town of Pine River there is a holiday tradition in which a special Christmas tree is decorated in the town and no one seems to know who is responsible for it.  But what is more amazing is the gift that the tree brings each season.  Over the course of decades it has been that anyone can write down their wish and hang it on the tree and the legend is that everyone’s wish has always come true.  It has been an opportunity for the community to come together to look out for one another.

The story in this book is about four children (Lucy, Joe, Max, and Cami) who act a little “Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys” and decide they need to know who is behind the Angel Tree.  Each of the four sleuths has their own special wish on the Angel Tree.  Lucy, who is blind, wants medical treatment for her guide dog who is dying of cancer.  Joe wants to spend Christmas with his mom, who is in the military and currently stationed over-seas.  Max wants a new house as his recently burned down.  Cami has a gift for music and wants a new instrument as she sold hers

One thing that the book makes evident, is that there are plenty of people who have some mis-fortune.  The four youngster of the story seem to live in poverty in this town that appears to need the Angel Tree.

There is certainly something very nice and touching about the idea of the tree.  Most churches I’ve been in around the holidays have something very similar…pick a name off the tree and try to buy what the family in need have listed on their tree tag.  But the idea of the community coming together to support those in need is clearly a community that most would want to belong to.

What I didn’t care for in this story, however, was the idea that the secret benefactor would be uncovered.  Other than curiosity on the part of the kids, there wasn’t any reason for it.  When someone chooses to do something anonymously, we should honor that desire, not try to make that person public.  That basic premise of uncovering the identity of someone doing something good but wishing to remain unknown, leaves a sore mark for me.  As a book for children, this would suggest that we can intrude on someone’s privacy if we want to do something ‘good’ for them.  I’m not sure I would agree with that.

Looking for a good book?  The Angel Tree is a nice idea, in a cozy little town, but answers a question that wasn’t looking to be answered.

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The Angel Tree

author: Daphne Benedis-Grab

publisher: Scholastic Press

ISBN: 0545613787

hardcover, 256 pages