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    An Early American Christmas
    Unavailable
    An Early American Christmas
    Unavailable
    An Early American Christmas
    Ebook36 pages25 minutes

    An Early American Christmas

    By Tomie dePaola

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    A new family shows the neighborhood what Christmas is all about
    In this small New England village, no one makes much of a fuss about Christmas—until a new family moves in, that is. The family works tirelessly to prepare for the holiday: decorating the house, hand-dipping candles, baking mounds of delicious cookies, and carving nativity pieces. In the end, these new neighbors show their small village how to celebrate the holiday in a very special way.

    This fixed-layout ebook, which preserves the design and layout of the original print book, features read-along narration.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHoliday House
    Release dateNov 5, 2013
    ISBN9781480411425
    Unavailable
    An Early American Christmas
    Author

    Tomie dePaola

    Tomie dePaola (1934–2020) was the beloved author and/or illustrator of more than 270 books for young readers, including the children’s classic Strega Nona. He was the recipient of the Newbery Honor, Caldecott Honor, and the 2011 Children’s Literature Legacy Award for “significant and lasting contribution to children’s literature.” A native of Connecticut, Mr. dePaola studied at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, and spent much of his life in New London, New Hampshire. Visit his work online at Tomie.com.

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    Reviews for An Early American Christmas

    4/5

    31 ratings6 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Christmas was not elaborately celebrated in the early 1800's; in fact, many Americans did not celebrate Christmas at all. A German family moves into a small New England town and brings their Christmas traditions with them. This book focuses on an early American Christmas. Bayberry candles are made from scratch, apples and other fruits are stored in root cellars, and popcorn and dried apple rings are formed into garland. This "Christmas family" is the only family celebrating Christmas in this town. At least, for now. This work of historical fiction was written and illustrated by Tony dePaola.
    • 1/5
      I disliked this book for two reasons. First, I thought the language would not be appealing to children because it is too complex. Even when I was reading the book, I was not engaged in the story because I disliked the author’s language. In the story, the author describes the people making candles for Christmastime. The author uses the word, “cauldron” to describe a large kettle used to mix the ingredients to make a candle. The author also calls the berries used to make candles, “bayberries” and the mantel in which the candles will sit a “mantelpiece.” Words like cauldron, bayberries and mantelpiece I feel are too complex for third-fourth grade readers, especially considering they are not explained nor are they spaced out throughout the book. The second reason I disliked this book is because of the illustrations, which were plain and lifeless. I mostly disliked that the illustrations lack color, and the characters lack expression. The background of every illustration is white, and it seems there is more white space that fills the pages than there are illustrations. The big idea of this book is to inform readers about how Christmas was celebrated in the early 1800's.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      This was a very interesting story about how Christmas came to be apart of the towns and cities and villages of the Northeast part of these United States. Back in the early part of this country, Christmas was not a celebrated holiday. After awhile certain families from different backgrounds began moving into these towns and villages and started celebrated that time of the year with a tree in the house and lights in the window. A very nice tale that tells a very interesting story.
    • 3/5
      New England didn't celebrate Christmas in the 1800's. however, there was an American family who did and was known as, "The Christmas Family." the American family would start saving harvest in fall just for Christmas day in December. They celebrated Christmas with burning candles in the windows for everyone to see. They made these candles out of bay berries so the house will smell really good. The candles were also said to be good luck. They also used food and paper cut outs to decorate their Christmas tree which they cut down themselves every year. Every year all of their neighbors would watch their candles burn and look at their decorations because they admired it. Soon enough every house started to light up, and that was how Christmas was brought to New England.
    • 3/5
      I gave this book three stars because it might not be the best book to read in class since all families do not celebrate Christmas. However; this is a great book. It talks about all of the different traditions and how traditions often travel down from generation to generation. The book main focuses on the different aspects of Christmas but other traditions are discussed in the book as well.This book can be used to discuss the importance of family traditions and all the different memories that can be built around the Christmas season. This book can also be used to show children how people celebrate different traditions, based on the beliefs of the family.
    • 5/5
      Tomie dePaola's Early American Christmas tells the tale of a German family that has just moved to a new East Coast American village. Their familial holiday traditions are rich despite the fact few others in the area seem to have any at all. They carry on, preparing for the season for many months. All members of the family work together to bring food into the cellar for winter months, dip bay berry candles to light in the windows and carve a new manger scene. The kitchen is full of festive cookies and the bushes outside are covered in wax dipped stars. The story illustrates the power and beauty of tradition and family and their ability to inspire others to carry on in the same way.