LitPick Review
This eighty-eight page book tells the story of Mr. Dalton, a middle-aged man who works at Macy’s Department store. It is Christmas in New York. Mr. Dalton lost his wife due to a drunk driver who badly injured him as well, which ended his acting career. Every year since the accident, his college friends have asked him to go to a Ski Lodge, and he finally agrees. Maria Esperanza and Mr. Dalton work together during the Christmas rush and talk about the Lodge and both spending Christmas alone. Maria encourages him to go to the Lodge. Maria also lost her parents in the last year, so she understands the pain and sees this in Mr. Dalton. He takes the train to the Lodge and a sleigh ride alone, but a bad storm moves in, and he is lost in a blizzard. Mr. Dalton is found by a nice old man who fixes the sleigh, stables the horse, and saves him. However, back at the Ski Lodge, no one has a explanation for this magical rescue.
Opinion:
Mr. Dalton’s Christmas is a classic, wonderful, modern magical story for the true Christmas spirit. Mr. Dalton and Maria both work at Macy’s department store and have both lost family members, however neither of them have reached out to friends for help. The story is easy to identify with as all of us have had similar losses in our own lives. I hope that each of our lives can be touched like the unexplained magical encounter with Niels, St. Nicklaus on Christmas Eve as Mr. Dalton encountered. This book is easy to read, uplifting, and the characters are well-developed. The few pictures at the beginning of each chapter are black and white with beautiful detail. The settings are well-described, and you can see yourself in the ski lodge, at Macy’s department store, and in the cabin with Niels.
