The Chaos Before Christmas

Sarina Dickson

Lily Elmo

Hachette NZ, 2022

32pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9781869714741

Tis the run up to Christmas
and there is so much to do!
At Elf School we are learning
how we can help too.

Elroy McChristmas and his friends are about to sit their final test before Santa decides the best job for each elf. But when it’s time to show off their skills, Elroy’s nerves get the better of him and he casts the wrong spell, sending the classroom  into chaos! Can Elroy and his classmates restore calm before Santa arrives?

Although this has the familiar rhyming style of Clement C. Moore’s classic A Night Before Christmas, this is a unique story that young children will want to hear over and over as they delight in discovering the detail in the pictures, each reading adding something new. And, at a time when awards are being given for this, that and the other, it offers an opportunity for those not in the limelight to think about their own best attributes and skills and consider what job Santa might give them if they were in Elf School.  Because even though Elroy causes such chaos, Santa still finds the perfect place for him!