Tis the season for a myriad of books to surprise, delight, and enchant. Today's Picture Book, currently on tour with The Children's Book Review, is one that will touch your heart more than you could imagine. I can see it being a holiday tradition for families big and small, and a great reminder of the spirit of the season that we can carry with us throughout the year. But I digress, my stop isn't a review this day (though I couldn't resist reading and sharing a smidge!), but a GUEST POST, and quite honestly, it's one of my favorites! The author indulged us with a TOP FIVE post, but, in keeping with the heart of the story, I asked for their TOP FIVE Christmas Memories. Ready or not, sit back for a holiday treat as we discover more about today's title and author in the spotlight...
by
Richard Wagner
Illustrated by
Sydni Kruger
Ages 3+ | 38 Pages
9781645437086
Mascot Kids
About the book...
The world is not always a perfect place. Needles, a scraggly little tree, must endure criticism, laughter, and setbacks to realize his goal of becoming a beautiful Christmas tree.
This is a story of dreams, desires, hope, determination, and never giving up. It also offers the observation that what others think is beautiful may not really matter. Beauty is truly in the eyes of the beholder and paired with the spirit of Christmas, maybe we can make the world just a little more perfect!
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~~~ GUEST POST ~~~
Top Five Christmas Memories
with Author Richard Wagner
1. My number one Christmas memory dates from when I was five years old. It was the first time I got to meet Santa at our local Sears. I was scared to death. My mom chased me around the store as I was crying and trying to run away. I finally calmed down and sat on Santa’s lap to tell him what I wanted……a bike!
I was at home with my parents and three-year old sister on Christmas Eve when there was a knock on the door. My dad opened it and there was Santa. I was pretty shy. Santa came in and said he was just checking in before getting back to the North Pole. He asked me again what I wanted for Christmas, and I told him again I wanted a bike. Then he said Ho-Ho-Ho, and was off out the front door. After a minute, my dad said we should run outside and see if we could see him flying with his sleigh and reindeer. We ran outside. I looked up all around but didn’t see Santa. I ran to the curb and told my dad I saw the red rear lights of a car way down the street, but my dad told me that Santa would never be in a car!
The next morning, I got up and we all walked together out into the living room. There, to my delight, was a new Schwinn bicycle, training wheels and all, sitting next to a brand-new Radio Flyer red wagon. It was awesome! Not only was Santa really cool, but I was now the coolest kid in Kindergarten.
2. Going to my grandmother’s house in Arizona for Christmas was always something we looked forward to. She had a big house which we shared with a visiting aunt and uncle and four cousins. Across the street lived another aunt and uncle and seven cousins. My most memorable year going there was when I was eight.
Christmas day was pure bedlam. After opening presents, we broke out the eggnog – one for kids, one for adults. Unfortunately, the huge bowls of eggnog weren’t labeled. My favorite cousin had a lot of eggnog, but from the wrong bowl. Curiously, she disappeared until the following day. For dinner, there was an adult table and a kid table. The kid table was boisterous, and we had a blast.
The following day I was taken on my first quail hunt at the family cattle ranch. We drove all over the ranch with another cousin and I holding on in the back of a pickup truck. For a city kid like me it was as good as any ride at Disneyland.
3. My third top Christmas was the year I flew home from college during my freshmen year. I was a plebe at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and that year was hardcore. I couldn’t wait to get back to sunny Southern California. The day came to leave and it was snowing and sleeting, and the wind chill was ferocious. I made it to Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C. by shuttle. I boarded a huge DC-10 along with other midshipmen from the academy.
We had to wait for the plane to be de-iced twice before we began to taxi to the runway. I was at the window. When we reached the runway, I looked down along it and could only see three lights before the runway disappeared into the fog and sleet. We turned and rolled down the runway and took off. As soon as the plane lifted off, there were huge cheers from the passengers, and especially from the midshipmen from California. A few minutes into the flight, the captain came on to the speaker and said, “I just thought you might want to know that Dulles International closed down five minutes after we took off”. That was cause for another round of cheering and great relief that we had been able to take off. Five hours later we landed at LAX. It was warm, clear, and my parents were waiting for me. It was the start of a great Christmas.
4. The first Christmas after my wife and I were married was very memorable. We had been married seven months, and we had just bought and moved into our first home barely a month before. With great excitement we decorated the house with lights and a tree. On Christmas morning we came down into the living room where my wife had set up a tent with various camping accoutrements. After opening presents, we had our extended family and some friends over for Christmas dinner – almost 20 people. It was a great start to our traditions. Thirty years later, we still have the tent. It has been through many camping trips not only with my wife and I, but with our children as well, including Boy Scouts and other group outings.
5. We built a second home at 7,000 feet next to a ski resort in the mountains above LA. When our twin children were four, we decided to spend the Christmas holiday up there along with my wife’s mother. It had not snowed yet, but it was cold. Since this was the first Christmas where our children were becoming aware of Christmas and Santa, we let them put milk and cookies out for Santa and carrots for the reindeer. After putting them to bed, my wife and I sat in the great room looking out the window, and miraculously it started to snow. It snowed heavily all night, and in the morning, everything was white with over two feet of snow. It was beautiful.
The kids came up and were in awe of the snow, not to mention the presents, and the fact that the milk, cookies and carrots were gone. It was very special. Later that day, I dug a trench in the snow that ran 50 yards, and the kids, with the dog, careened down the hill behind our home in saucers for hours. I will never forget that Christmas.
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About the author...
Richard Wagner grew up in Southern California. When he was fourteen years old, a business friend of his father’s had a small Christmas tree delivered as a thank-you. Their family already had a large tree decorated in the house. Not being able to find anyone who needed a tree, that small Christmas tree stood outside by itself for the remainder of the Christmas holiday. Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree is a tribute to that little tree and what might have been, but more importantly, to all the beauty, goodness, and hope that Christmas brings to us all. Mr. Wagner continues to reside in Southern California with his wife and two children.
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~~~ YOUR CHANCE TO WIN ~~~
Enter for a chance to win a copy of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree, autographed by Richard Wagner!
One (1) winner receives:
- An autographed copy of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
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Special thanks to Bianca at The Children's Book Review for the chance to bring this tour to you and to the author for the guest post. (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, the publisher,
this tour, or those on the horizon, feel free to click through the links provided above. Be sure to check out the rest of the stops on the tour for more bookish fun!
TOUR SCHEDULE
Monday, December 5, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Tuesday, December 6, 2022
A book activity to pair with Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Wednesday, December 7, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Thursday, December 8, 2022
A book giveaway of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Friday, December 9, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Monday, December 12, 2022
Author Interview with Richard Wagner
Tuesday, December 13, 2022
A guest article by Richard Wagner
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
Author Interview with Richard Wagner
Thursday, December 15, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Friday, December 16, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Monday, December 19, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Tuesday, December 20, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Wednesday, December 21, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Thursday, December 22, 2022
A book review of Needles, the Forgotten Christmas Tree
Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!
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