Recently, Parent Bloggers provided me with review copies of three books by Lisa Sferlazza Johnson: All Hallow's Eve, Christmas Eve, and Winter's Eve.
The books are marketed as "positive spin holiday themed books". They all feature a fairy named Eve who, through the course of the story, learns the history behind various traditions and practices. All three books feature illustrations that are both gorgeous and colourful, as well as an anapaestic rhyme scheme and metre (the style of the popular "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (or "Twas The Night Before Christmas" poem), which unfortunately causes some lines to feel forced.
The Halloween book was excellent. My daughter loved it and both my wife and I had no concerns with it. The other two books have some content worth noting, however.
The Christmas book begins as a story about Santa Claus, but does delve slightly into the Christian story of The Nativity and the birth of Christ. This wasn't a concern for us, as we had already introduced the Nativity to our daughter, but those who prefer their Christmas non-denominational may find this aspect troubling.
The Winter book has an excellent concept: brief introductions to a variety of winter-based myths, legends, and religious ceremonies. However, since the book is geared towards younger children (the guideline we were given was four years and up, but that the stories were appropriate for two year olds who enjoy being read to), some of the content feels misplaced. For example, while I found the fact that Diwali's history involved a princess being kidnapped by a demon fascinating, I wasn't comfortable with sharing that level of detail with my three and a half year old daughter. I think the Winter book may be better suited for older children, personally.
Overall, we enjoyed all three books (with parental editorial control exercised in the Winter one) and would recommend them to others.
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