Reviews for Grumpy Santa
Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Brisk rhyming verse describes Santa's bad day (stubbed toe, shrunk suit, wife puts him on a diet) and how he finally gets out of the dumps when he finds a holiday card and cookies left for him at the home of caring children. The slick illustrations of the beleaguered Santa are punchy and humorous, and the verse, despite occasional stumbles, moves at a good clip. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Publishers Weekly
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To the titular question, the answer is yes. But, confirming what carbohydrate addicts have known all along, the Spiridellis brothers, in their children's book debut, espouse that a plate of cookies can cure even an extreme case of the grumps. Via rhyming verse and computer-generated artwork-a jarring mix of pancake-flat cartoonish characters and more dimensional backgrounds-Santa experiences a Murphy's Law day of preparations leading up to his Christmas Eve ride. Aches and pains (in one of many accidents, "he fell into the fireplace/ and sprained his/ chubby tush"), an itchy wool suit (the comfortable suit was shrunk in the dryer) and an empty belly (the garishly made-up Mrs. Claus has put him on a diet) darken Santa's mood. The tale ends with an admonition to readers: "Just be sure to leave some cookies,/ in case Santa's feeling grumpy." Ages 3-8. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
PreS-Gr 2-A rhyming text that scans awkwardly is paired with computer-generated illustrations to present a didactic story summed up on the penultimate page: "When people do/nice things for you,/the GRUMPIES/disappear!" A potentially humorous idea (Santa is having a very bad day), diluted by a contrived text, results in an offering with minimal impact.-S. P. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
