LitPick Review
Even long-familiar characters can find their place and come to life in a new, fascinating story that ignites the reader's imagination, as happened in the cozy Christmas book, A Christmas Love Story: Nicholas Nutcracker & Brittany Ballerina. This book, authored by Maureen McCabe, tells you the story about two Christmas ornaments, Nicholas Nutcracker and Brittany Ballerina, who were generally satisfied with life but desperately wanted to find their true love, about friends who tried to help them achieve this aim, and about the obstacles that happened along the way. All in all, this is a story of the Christmas traditions that ornaments' owners, Harmonie and her husband Harrison, adored and maintained throughout their lives. After all, every family has its own unique ones. The desire of the author was to create a festive mood so that you will be immersed in an atmosphere of kindness, love, and joy, which this book presents! It remains for you to find out, whether any Christmas miracle befell the Ballerina and the Nutcracker, such lonely but sincere hearts.
Opinion:
A Christmas Love Story is a book that gently takes you to pages full of wonder and invites you to live every moment together. When you read it, you involuntarily compare the holiday traditions of Harmonie's family with those of your own family, which makes it a pleasant experience while reading. I really liked that Brittany and Nicholas have their own story that describes their past and personalities. Brittany is a world-renowned ballerina, and each of her dance moves is explained at the end of the book in "Ballet Terms," which, in turn, may interest girls in taking up ballet lessons. Nicholas, as befits a brave soldier, is persistent and self-confident but nonetheless has a sensitive heart. These traits are certainly an example to follow. After all, it is important to be able to combine different character traits and show them at the right time. Positive impressions were made by pleasing-to-the-eye drawings, which seem to come to life. We can thank the illustrator of the book, Anastasiia Khmelevska, for this. Illustrations and words work well together, revealing everyone's strengths. If you read the book aloud to your child, who will easily understand what it is about, your child will enjoy looking at the fascinating pictures. I can safely say that this is the perfect book to read at any time, in any way. It can be read at bedtime, during the day, out loud, or on your own. It can be read to the child on Christmas night or on holiday evening for the whole family. The book will be understandable for children from 5 years old and up because if there are difficult words, the author simplifies them at the end of the book in the "Glossary of Words." Although the meaning of the book most likely can be grasped by older children, it is better to develop their soft hearts and good thoughts from an early age. An undeniable advantage of the book is author's subtle and unobtrusive tries to explain to young readers what "true love" is, which agreeably begins first and foremost with friendship. This is an important step in the proper upbringing of children and understanding of such a beautiful feeling as love. Christmas + adventure + love = the perfect holiday book for kids and adults alike. Nothing brings people together like Christmas. If you want to immerse yourself or your child in a cozy Christmas atmosphere and fill your hearts with the best feelings, then I definitely recommend reading this book.
