Tag: santa

Review: Dasher Gift Set

Title: Dasher Gift Set
Author: Matt Tavares
Genre: Children’s, Picture Book
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Source: Publisher
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: September 24, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Celebrate five years of Matt Tavares’s holiday classic with a beautifully designed gift set featuring four press-out keepsakes.

Dasher is an adventurous young reindeer with a wish in her heart and whose life is forever changed when she meets a man in a red suit with a horse-drawn sleigh. New York Timesbest-selling author-illustrator Matt Tavares channels the spirit of the season—and leaves us with a heroine to root for—in a pair of picture book odes to giving, kindness, and holiday magic. Included are two specially designed paper ornaments, two standees as well as two hardcover classics:

Dasher: How a Brave Little Doe Changed Christmas Forever
Dasher Can’t Wait for Christmas

Review:

This gift set had two hardcover picture books about the reindeer Dasher. In Dasher, she lives with her family in a traveling circus. Her mom has always told her stories about living at the North Pole, so when Dasher gets a chance, she runs away. Dasher meets Santa who is struggling to pull his sleigh with his horse, so Dasher helps him. 

In Dasher Can’t Wait for Christmas, Dasher now lives with her family at the North Pole. She loves Christmas Eve, and one year she can’t wait for it to arrive, so she runs away the night before Christmas Eve to see the Christmas lights and hear carols. However, she gets lost and needs the help of a child to get home.

These are two beautiful Christmas picture books. I love that they are new origin stories about Santa’s reindeer, but they fit with the traditional story of Santa and his reindeer. This gift set also comes with some ornaments and decorations on a card that can be used for the holidays. 

Dasher and Dasher Can’t Wait for Christmas are beautiful books for the holidays!

Thank you @penguinrandomca and @tundrabooks for providing a copy of this book. This book was gifted to me from Penguin Random House Canada as part of the Holiday Book Magic Campaign! The Holiday Book Magic books are a curated list of books that are perfect for gifting and enjoying all year long!

Have you read Dasher or Dasher Can’t Wait for Christmas? What did you think of it?

Review: Twas the Night Before Puck Drop

Title: Twas the Night Before Puck Drop
Author: Harry Caminelli, Dhamma Cakka (illustrator)
Genre: Children’s, Picture Book
Publisher: Taffy Tales
Source: Publisher
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: November 1, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A new classic in the making, ‘Twas the Night Before Puck Drop combines two subjects North American kids love: hockey and Christmas. Magical winter fun ensues as Santa drops in for a big game of pond hockey just before Christmas. Find out that Santa can not only deliver presents in a single day, he can also skate like the wind and has a big slapshot! Enjoy this beautiful hardcover edition with emboss and spot UV treatments!

Review:

On Christmas Eve, the narrator looks out the window and finds an ice rink in the backyard. On the rink is Santa with four iconic Canadian hockey players: Bobby Orr, Gordie Howe, Sidney Crosby, and Wayne Gretzky. Santa plays a game with them before flying off on his sleigh. 

This was such a fun adaptation of Twas the Night Before Christmas. The rhymes were cleverly written to fit the hockey theme while also following the rhythm of the original story. This book would be the perfect gift for any hockey fans!

Twas the Night Before Puck Drop is a fun hockey Christmas story!

Thank you Taffy Tales for sending me a copy of this book!

Have you read Twas the Night Before Puck Drop? What did you think of it?