12 Newly Released
Children’s Holiday Books
1. Gingerbread Christmas
By Jan Brett
Gingerbread Baby and his friend,
Matti, take his gingerbread band to
the Christmas Festival where they
are a hit,
until the
aroma of
ginger- bread
reaches the chil-
dren, sig-
naling it’s
time to run away. Clever Matti uses
snow to disguise the gingerbread
instruments while Gingerbread Baby
leads the audience on a merry chase
to the smartest hiding place ever—a
giant Christmas tree.

2. Very Christmas
By Simone Mets
When Santa’s workshop is destroyed
by a ferocious storm, even the richest
man in the world is stumped for
a way
to save
Christ- mas. Just
when everyone
seems to give
up all hope, the unstumpable Ava
Buttons, together with her friends,
discover a way to make Christmas
wishes come true.

3. Dreidels on the Brain
By Joel ben Izzy
Joel is wish-
ing for one
lousy Hanuk-
kah miracle,
but instead
he seems to
just be get-
ting chopped
liver. His dad
is sick and his
parents don’t
have any
money to give Hanukkah presents.

Through the course of the eight days
of Hanukkah, though, Joel discovers
an appreciation for small miracles
in his life, with a little help from an
unusual stranger he meets on a bus.

4. North Pole Ninjas:
MISSION: Christmas!
By Tyler Knott Gregson and Sarah
Linden Santa has a team of special elves,
selected for their
ability to help
carry out top-
secret missions
that are
all about
helping, giving, caring and listening. Anyone
who receives this box is called upon
to help carry out those missions with
a bit of stealth and an open heart.

5. The
Night Before the
Snow Day
By Natasha
Wing and
Amy Wummer
It’s nighttime
34 December 2016 washingtonFAMILY.com