Book Review/Giveaway: The Polar Express 25 years of Magic!

This giveaway is Closed.  

Winner will be announced tomorrow - thanks for joining in!

This year The Polar Express celebrates 25 years of magic!  Most of us know the movie staring Tom Hanks and those cute kids on that great big black train.  The hot chocolate scene is one of my favorites.  I think I got through most of the movie before I even realized that Tom Hanks did most of the characters - and that only adds to the magic.


Now, the book is somewhat different than the movie.  The kids and conductor all look the same, but the story itself is different.  Certain scenes from the movie were added (not in the book) but I think for a movie with additional scenes that the story itself wasn't ruined but only added to the excitement and suspense.


Book Summary:
One Christmas Eve many years ago, a boy lies in bed, listening hard for the bells of Santa's sleigh, which he had been told by a friend do not exist.  Later that night he hears not bells but a very different sound.  He looks out his window and is astounded to see a steam engine parked in front of his house!  The conductor invites him to board the Polar Express, a train filled with children on their way to the North Pole.

You can go to: polarexpress.com for activities, recipes and prizes, plus a Christmas Countdown calendar!

You can purchase a copy of The Polar Express if you're thinking Christmas Gifts at Amazon.com for $10.92!  Just click HERE to place your order.  Remember with a $25 order almost everything is eligible for FREE shipping! (This is for the Anniversary Edition according to Amazon)

Houton-Mifflin Publishing for Children has very kindly offered a copy of the 25th Anniversary Edition of the Polar Express to one of my readers.  The Anniversary Edition comes with a CD read by Liam Neeson and a Keepsake Ornament.

How can you WIN a copy of The Polar Express?

Mandatory: Leave a comment telling us if your kids still believe and if not, how did they learn the truth about Mr C?

Optional entries:  Just a couple that you can enter - IF you want to!  (Pls leave 1 comment per entry: +2=2 entries)

• Follow ME on Twitter and tweet: "WIN a copy of the 25th Anniversary Edition of The Polar Express http://ning.it/i88k9E, #christmas, #family, #giveaways  RT @familyliteracy" (+2 entries, you can tweet this up to 2x's a day for 2 entries each)
• Enter any of my other active giveaways on this blog and receive an entry for each one. Tell me in your comment which one it is.  (+1 entry)

** Pls leave your email address on EACH comment 

so I can contact you if you WIN **

This contest will run until 11/30 @ 10 pm and then the winner will be drawn by Random.org.  Once the winner is drawn and notified they will have 48 hours to contact me with their contact information.  Winner must provide a street address (no PO Boxes & be in the US).  Be sure to send your friends a link about this awesome giveaway!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a copy of The Polar Express for review purposes. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Review/Giveaway The Night Before Christmas...... in Africa!

This giveaway is Closed - thanks for joining in!

Click here to listen to Clip

The Night Before Christmas in Africa

by Jesse, Hannah and Carroll Foster

Illustrated by Jean Christodoulou

The Night Before Christmas in Africa is a delightful take on the old story "Twas the Night Before Christmas".  The poetry of the story has the same sing-song quality but the story is truly different.  The characters are African's from a tribe living in the desert and longing for rain but can Santa really bring rain - let's find out!

Summary of the book:
On the arid South African plain, families sleep on the floor mats waiting for Father Christmas to arrive with his bag of goodies.  However, members of the Shangaan tribe only wish for simple items such as candy, soccer balls and chickens during the holiday season.

(Note: what a difference from our yearly wishes for commercial items such as the Wii, the newest toys and things we seriously don't need.  Hmmm?)

They long for relief from the hot, dry climate, but they dare not bother the man in red with such a large request.  When his donkey cart arrives, pulled by kudu and a black rhinoceros, Father Christmas is willing to try.  Don't American children wish for snow on Christmas?

Written by a mother and her 2 children (who live in Africa), this book and the beautiful illustrations show life in Africa.  With traditional garments, daily life is shown in pictures, actual african words taken from several of the African languages and you actually see the children dreaming about monkeys that chatter and roar.

This story began as a family Christmas project when the Foster children, Hannah and Jesse, asked why there were no stories about Christmas in Africa. They took a family favorite poem, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, and adapted it to the climate and culture of Africa. The story grew over months. The kudu were named after friends in Hannah’s grade 4 class, the gifts were all Jesse’s contribution, and mom Carroll put it all together.

Time went by and next door neighbor Jean Christodoulou heard about the story and offered her artistic talents to illustrate. Each picture was a work of art and it seemed the time had come to share this story with the world.

The CD:The story needed ‘telling’ with sounds and songs and a beautiful rich deep African narrator voice. Victor Masondo and Joe Arthur put their talents into creating the narration and sound track and the Sparrow Foundation School choir sang the traditional songs. Ed Jordan’s ‘African Christmas’ adds the finishing touch to this celebration of the wonder and beauty of Christmas and Africa.

Sparrow Foundation Schools:Each book sold contributes to the education of a remedial student at this amazing school in Johannesburg SA. For more information on the school and how you can be involved go to www.sparrowschools.co.za.

To purchase the book & CD ($11.99), go to: Night Before Christmas in Africa, The (Night Before Christmas Series)

Pelican Publishing has generously offered 4 of my readers a copy of the book (sans CD).  Here's what you can do to enter:

Manditory: (pls choose 1 or both and let me know which)
Follow Holiday Traditions blog on GFC and leave a comment here with your sign on name & email.  (You can add it like this:  contact(dot)thebooklady(at)gmail.com to avoid spambots)
OR
Add this button to your blog (preferably your sidebar if possible) to let others know about my Black Friday Open House!  Thanks so much for your support!  Please return and leave me the link on your page where you put it.





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Optional:  (Note you can do ALL or NONE of these) 

• Follow Pelican Publishing on Facebook
• Follow Pelican Publishing on Twitter 
• Follow Family Literacy and Twitter and Tweet up 2x's a day for +2 entries each (4 hours apart pls): "Black Friday Giveaways @familyliteracy http://tiny.cc/yi7as Christmas Music, children's books, & more! #giveaways, #kids, #family, #literacy"
• Follow Family Literacy and post a comment about the Holiday Traditions Open House (on your FB page) about Black Friday's awesome event (include a link back here in your post) on Facebook - leave a comment for me with the link to find it.

This drawing will take place on Black Friday (11/27) around 10 pm by random.org.  The winner will have 48 hours to respond with their address (no PO Boxes pls) and must not have been drawn for any other giveaways from Pelican Publishing within the last 90 days, sorry this drawing is limited to the US. I received a copy of the Night Before Christmas book for review purposes. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Usborne Books - The Books Kids Love to Read!

Everyone who has ever read an Usborne Book knows Kids Love to Read them!  Why?

• There are Double Page Spreads dedicated to one subject,
• Unlimited Activities designed to keep kids involved in what they're reading, 
• Cut-Away Pictures so you can See Inside things like Castles, Pirate Ships, the Body and more!  
• Bite Size Knowledge provides the answer a kid wants in short distinct paragraphs.  This encourages kids to read and the information is "easily filed" in their brain - thus it's easily recalled.
• Step-By-Step formats enable children to learn a task (such as drawing an animal) in a manner that enables them to succeed.  Children learn to check themselves as they do the work - this is a skill that is better learned now then when they are struggling to complete a difficult math or science concept.

Even children who don't like to read Usborne Books - with a high ratio of picture to text.  Text is broken up by headings and illustrations and kids don't feel overwhelmed when they look at a book.  Many of our books are activity based so kids don't feel they are learning or reading while they are completing a task within the story or book.

You will find many different groupings and themes available for kids at the Usborne Books website.  There are many ways to order the books you want:  Get them FREE through a homeshow or catalog show, your school or church can host a BookFair and receive FREE Books for their Library or classrooms, or you can order them online at:  My Usborne Books