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Christmas is Awesome

Written by Sabrina Moyle and illustrated by Eunice Moyle

This fun board book celebrates all of the wonderful traditions, sights, sounds, and feelings of the holiday season. The rhyming text is simple, with only a phrase or two per page. The busy illustrations are bursting with bright colors, adorable characters, and lots of joyful details. Kids and adults will both enjoy reading this peppy tribute to holiday cheer.

The Muppet Christmas Carol: The Illustrated Holiday Classic

Written by Brooke Vitale and illustratated by Luke Flowers

Are you a fan of the Muppets? This illustrated version of the popular Muppet movie is a must have for fans of the characters. The Muppet Christmas Carol is one of my all time favorite holiday movies, so I was so excited when I heard about this book. The vibrant illustrations highlight some of my favorite scenes from the movie, and the text tells the story in a kid friendly way, with Gonzo and Rizzo popping in as the narrators. Kids will love this fun spin on the classic Christmas tale, while adults who grew up with the Muppets will love seeing their favorite scenes from the movie in book form.

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How Do Dinosaurs Say Merry Christmas?

Written by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Mark Teague

This Christmas themed entry in the popular series asks the reader to consider how dinosaurs would celebrate the holiday, and how they would participate in the familiar Christmas traditions. The text has a peppy rhyme scheme, while the illustrations show a variety of dinosaurs taking part in the holidays. Kids will love the hilarious illustrations of dinosaurs playing with the tree, opening presents, and eating candy canes.

Christmas Train

Written by David Miles

This unique train shaped board book unfolds to become a 56″ train. The rhyming text counts from 1 to 20, using familiar symbols of the holiday. The large and colorful numbers will encourage kids to count along with the peppy text, while the colorful illustrations are full of adorable characters and holiday cheer.

The Crayons’ Christmas

Written by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers

This adorable holiday themed spin off of the popular book The Day the Crayons Quit revisits the adorable crayon characters from Duncan’s crayon box. As the crayons get ready for Christmas, they pull out the decorations and enjoy lots of seasonal traditions together. When the mail carrier starts bringing letters, they aren’t for Duncan, but for his crayons. Every couple of pages, there is an envelope page filled with fun games and puzzles. The illustrations are adorable, featuring the funny crayons and highlighting their personalities. Kids will love finding the surprises hidden within the book.

Santa’s Secret

Written by Denise Brennan-Nelson and illustrated by Deborah Melmon

This story follows a curious young girl who is determined to find out the secret behind Santa’s helpers during the Christmas season. She recognizes that the Santa she sees in the parade is different from the Santa in the store, but has she seen the real Santa? She decides to put her investigative skills to the test and try to find out the truth before the day is over. Kids will love following the young girl’s investigation as she asks questions that they may have as well. The illustrations are bright and cheery and full of little hints and fun surprises.

Snow Globe Wishes

Written by Erin Dealey and illustrated by Claire Shorrock

This wintry tale follows a family as they face a big winter storm. They snuggle up at home, create blanket forts and have a picnic dinner, and the young girl makes a wish on a snow globe. The next day, they head outside with their neighbors for a fun day spent in the snow. The story is an ode to the way a community can come together after a snowstorm to enjoy the beautiful snow and lend a hand to one another. While the story doesn’t mention Christmas, the illustrations are full of holiday decorations, and the sense of community and togetherness is perfect for the holiday season.

The Gifts of the Animals

Written by Carole Gerber and illustrated by Yumi Shimokawara

This beautifully illustrated tale of the birth of Jesus celebrates the kindness of animals and the preparations made for his arrival. The soothing rhyming text talks about the many offerings from the animals in the stable – like feathers, hay, and a blanket. The breathtaking illustrations are full of texture and soothing colors, pairing perfectly with the lyrical poetry.

Happy Holidays, Pirates

Written by Tatiana Koval and illustrated by Inna Chernyak

This fun story follows a band of pirates who just want a visit from Santa this Christmas. So they write a letter to Santa explaining all of the things they will do to change their ways. The rhyming text and funny illustrations make this a fun one to read aloud, and kids will love lifting the flaps on each page to find the silly things hidden underneath.

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Harry Potter: A Hogwarts Christmas Pop-Up

This large pop up book from Warner Bros. opens up to feature a large, intricate paper Christmas tree with spikes on the end to hold ornaments. The book opens all the way to lay flat, and the base of the book has 26 hidden doors that the reader can open up. The first door includes a small booklet which explores the holiday traditions shown in the Harry Potter films, as well as detailed explanations of each of the ornaments found in the other 25 doors. Kids (and adults!) will love opening the doors to find the Harry Potter themed ornaments found within, as well as hanging them on the paper tree.

Santa’s Story

Written and illustrated by Will Hillenbrand

It’s Christmas Eve and Santa is ready to go, but the reindeer are nowhere to be found. He tries lots of different ways to get their attention, but they are all wrapped up in their own things. Finally, he remembers their yearly tradition, and he gets their attention with a familiar Christmas story. The story has a sweet ending, and kids will love all of the silly things that their reindeer are doing when they should be helping Santa. The text includes lots of action words that are fun to read aloud.

Christmas is Coming!

Edited by Howard W. Reeves with illustrations by the Metropolitan Museum of Art

This beautiful anthology from the Metropolitan Museum of Art is chock full of seasonal stories, songs, poems, and recipes. The book is broken up into 5 parts: The First Christmas, Stories and Tales, Songs, Poems, and Recipes. The illustrations feature beautiful artwork from the collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, including religious artwork, cheery holiday scenes, and wintry landscapes. The back of the book includes author and artist biographies for the stories and art featured in the book. This is a beautiful collection for families to share together throughout the holiday season.

Little Robin’s Christmas

Written and illustrated by Jan Fearnley

This adorable story follows Little Robin as he prepares his seven festive vests for the week before Christmas. Each day, he wears a new cheery sweater, but when he comes across chilly animal friends, he happily gives up his sweater for them. But when he gives up his last sweater right before Christmas, Santa appears to offer him a special gift. This sweet tale of giving is accompanied by cheery artwork of the different woodland animals, and the bright atmosphere of the forest.

Dasher

Written and illustrated by Matt Tavares

This beautifully illustrated book shares the story of how Santa’s reindeer began pulling the sleigh on Christmas. The tale starts with Dasher, a young doe who lives with her family as part of the J.P. Finnegan Traveling Circus and Menagerie. When a wind storm offers her an opportunity to escape, she takes it. During her travels, she comes across Santa Claus, and offers to help him pull his sleigh. The story has a sweet ending, and the illustrations are gorgeously detailed.

Ho Ho Homework

Written by Mylisa Larsen and illustrated by Taia Morley

Christmas is right around the corner, and suddenly Jack’s classroom has a new substitute teacher who seems pretty familiar. He has a white beard and big black boots, and he is patient and jolly. But it can’t be Santa, can it? For homework, he tells the kids to make a paper snowflake and write a wish on the back. When Christmas morning comes, will Jack get his wish? This story is full of Christmas joy and magic, and the illustrations are full of fun details that little kids will love.

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt: Christmas Activity Book

From Candlewick Press

This seasonal activity book is full of fun facts, holiday crafts and recipes, sticker activities, and silly jokes. The crafts are accompanied by detailed instructions and simple sketch illustrations, walking the reader through the steps. There are over 100 stickers included, and lots of pages for kids to add them to. The illustrations are done in the same style as the original book, highlighting the family and their holiday gatherings.

What are your favorite new Christmas books for kids? Share in the comments below!

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