Review: When Santa Was a Baby by Linda Bailey and Geneviève Godbout

Since I've been trying to write more often I thought I'd take the opportunity to talk about a few thing I've been doing this past week. And what better place to start than with a book review, especially one that's as seasonal as this. I have a few reviews I'm a bit behind on so I'll be doing a few of these this month. If you like bookish updates let me know and remember to follow me on LibraryThing, Goodreads, and Libib (@deelinnea).

This was such a cute little book. I really love reviewing children's books from LibraryThing because I can go through them quite fast (I'm a fairly slow reader when it comes to fuller sized books) and I like
having books I can someday read to my kids. I know, it's super sappy to say that, but I like the idea anyway. So over the past few years I've been collecting some children's literature as I browse books stores, and online. Some of my favorites are Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty (I have got to start picking up more from her), and Carson Crosses Canada by Linda Bailey. I saw this one  on LibraryThing's Early Reviewers and thought that it looked so cute. I mean look at that face! So I requested it. If you haven't done Early Reviewers I highly recommend it, it's a great way to get books for free. Just sign up, and under the "More" Tab select "Get Free Books". It does take a little while for them to get to you, depending on where they ship from (I've had some from UK or Canadian publishers every once in a while) but you can get physical copies or e-books for free. I will say I don't know how they choose reviewers, but it helps if you review some of the books you've already read. So onto my thoughts.

First off the illustrations, all done by Geneviève Godbout are so pretty all throughout the book. It's that rustic, airbrush look that always makes me think of Christmas or winter in general (like The Little Match Girl or The Snowman). It's got very vintage stylizing, and every page is beautiful. The story is, of course about how Santa grows up to be the jolly Father Christmas we know him to be. It starts with his first "HO, HO, HO!" and goes to show how Santa is a symbol of the kindness we show to each other, and the joy that come with having a generous heart. And the thing I love the most about it is the ability to say all this in a 30 page book without it sounding preachy, as many children's books can do when they have a moral lesson.

One of my favorite lines in this book is, "When Santa became a teenager, he continued to be unusual. He knew his own mind. He didn't always fit in with the crowd. But his parents thought he was wonderful." I think that's a very good message and says something that everyone, no matter how old, needs to be  reminded of: It's okay to be a little weird.

I think this is a really good book to get you into the spirit of the Holiday Season, especially if you have little ones to share it with. My little sister and I both enjoyed it very much, as I'm sure you will too!
~Delaney