Source: Sky Pony Press
Hardcover, 32 pgs.
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The Night Before Christmas: A Brick Story by Clement C. Moore, illustrated by Amanda Brack, follows the traditional story of the clatter on the roof and the calls to the reindeer. What makes this story different is the use of bricks (also known as Lego pieces) to illustrate the story. The pieces are well placed and resemble the elements of the story, and the scenes are augmented with felt stockings and other non-brick items. These elements help provide readers with a more realistic feel.
Our favorite parts of the story were of course the rhyming lines that tell the story, but also the sugarplums dancing in the heads of the children and the flying reindeer. My daughter and I had a conversation about Santa Claus’ other name, St. Nicholas, and what coursers were and why the word was used in the story. We’re already having conversations about language usage and choice, though I’m not sure she understands it completely. One tiny quibble is the fact that the smoke from Santa’s pipe does not look like a wreath above his head as it says in the story, but I’m sure that would be difficult to reproduce.
The Night Before Christmas: A Brick Story by Clement C. Moore, illustrated by Amanda Brack, is a cute book for those modern kids familiar with these plastic bricks used to build scenes. Maybe some readers would take what they saw in the book and create their own Santa and Christmas scenes.
About the Author:
Clement Clarke Moore, (July 15, 1779 – July 10, 1863), is best known as the credited author of A Visit From St. Nicholas (more commonly known today as Twas the Night Before Christmas). Clement C. Moore was more famous in his own day as a professor of Oriental and Greek literature at Columbia College (now Columbia University) and at General Theological Seminary, who compiled a two volume Hebrew dictionary. He was the only son of Benjamin Moore, a president of Columbia College and bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York, and his wife Charity Clarke. Clement Clarke Moore was a graduate of Columbia College (1798), where he earned both his B.A. and his M.A.. He was made professor of Biblical learning in the General Theological Seminary in New York (1821), a post that he held until 1850.