Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Love, Santa
Illustrator: Lee White
Picture Book
For ages 5 to 7
Scholastic, 2017 ISBN: 978-0545700306
When Lucy is five years old she writes a letter to Santa asking him how he keeps warm at the North Pole. On Christmas day there is a present and a letter from Santa under the tree. In the letter, Santa explains that he and Mrs. Clause wear red coats that “keep us toasty.” His gift to Lucy is a red coat that has white trim on the hem, cuffs, and collar.
When Lucy is six she writes Santa another letter and in it she asks him to bring her an elf for a gift, but if that isn’t possible she will “take a bicycle instead.” She then asks him if he likes chocolate chip, or oatmeal, cookies.
That year Santa gives Lucy a bicycle. He explains in his letter that he “can’t spare an elf” and that he likes oatmeal cookies.
When she is seven Lucy writes a letter to Santa in which she asks him how he gets down chimneys. What does he do when he has to visit a home that does not have a chimney? More puzzling still, why does his handwriting look so much like her mother’s? In the end Lucy does not send this letter full of questions. Instead, she asks Santa to bring her whatever he wants.
The letter that Lucy wrote but did not send is not forgotten, or rather the questions that she asked in the letter are not forgotten. The next year one of those questions prompts Lucy to write a very different letter.
In this wonderful book the author explores who Santa really is, and she helps her readers to understand that the man in the red suit is more than just a person who delivers gifts on Christmas Eve. With wonderful illustrations, letters that readers can open and read, and a moving story, this picture book gives children a memorable holiday story experience.
