Everything I Need to Know About Christmas I Learned From a Little Golden Book

by Diane Muldrow

Overview

The Poky Little Puppy, the Gingerbread Man, and many other classic Golden Books characters help illustrate this wise and witty guide to the holidays! A perfect gift for Little Golden Book lovers - young and old!                                                                                                                              
Delightfully retro yet utterly of the moment, this companion to the bestselling EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED FROM A LITTLE GOLDEN BOOK will delight fans of those gold foil-spined treasures. Featuring iconic art from Golden Books luminaries including Eloise Wilkin, Richard Scarry, J.P. Miller, Garth Williams, and more — this collection is a must for maintaining ever-important holiday cheer!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780553497359
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	09/09/2014
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	6.70(w) x 8.10(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	500L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

New York Times bestselling author DIANE MULDROW (Everything I Need to Know I Learned From a Little Golden Book) is the editorial director at Golden Books. She has written dozens of children’s books, including We Planted a Tree, illustrated by Bob Staake, and edited Golden Legacy: How Golden Books Won Children’s Hearts, Changed Publishing Forever, and Became an American Icon Along the Way, by Leonard Marcus.

Editorial Reviews

09/15/2014
Muldrow, editorial director of Golden Books, returns with a second witty compilation of wisdom inspired by the beloved line of children’s books. In contrast to the vintage artwork—from Mary Blair, Richard Scarry, Eloise Wilkin, and more—the narrative voice is off-the-cuff and modern, moving from a position of exhaustion (“All that baking, the endless cycle of cooking and cleaning”) to one that appreciates the traditions and merriment of Christmas (“So deck the halls! Deck yourselves!”). Muldrow cleverly repurposes illustrations from holiday and non-holiday titles alike to create a book that will resonate with readers young and old. Ages 12–up. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Publishers Weekly, September 15, 2014
"Muldrow . . . returns with a second witty compilation of wisdom inspired by the beloved line of children's books. . . a book that will resonate with readers young and old."

From the Publisher

2014-08-12
Muldrow continues to mine the Golden Books archive, this time with a Christmas focus (Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Little Golden Book, 2013). "Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year and all, but… // there's just so much to do. / All that baking, // the endless cycle of cooking and cleaning, // and the rounds of social obligations… / when you could be taking a nap. Can we just call the Christmas season what it really is? // Cold and flu season!" Having clearly defined her audience as an adult one, Muldrow goes on to enumerate everything else there is not to like about Christmas, before rallying herself to deliver a pep talk. Strewing her text with exclamation marks galore, she celebrates "The writing, the mailing! / The jolly wassailing!" before taking a turn to earnest sentimentality to touch upon the Nativity and hopes for peace. As in the first of these repurposed compilations, the illustrations outshine the text, with glorious images, mostly lithographs, from such lights as Garth Williams, Richard Scarry, Leonard Weisgard and Mary Blair. Unfortunately, accomplished as the illustrations are, the overall effect is hopelessly white-bread; just two of the 96 pages include images of children of color. Although there are many animals, the relentless parade of idealized white face after idealized white face is downright depressing and, in this year of #weneeddiversebooks, calls the entire enterprise into question. An opportunistic, retrograde novelty. (Picture book. Adult)

Kirkus Reviews