For day 5 I bring an adorable little board book from Karen Katz. Chances are, if you have a little one, you are familiar with the round-faced, brightly colored, energetic books from Karen Katz. They are engaging, delightful, and perfect for the Christmas spirit. Here is Counting Christmas by Karen Katz, 2003.
In a similar vein to one of our favorite Katz books, Counting Kisses, Counting Christmas begins at ten and counts backwards to the end. It all starts with “ten tiny lights get twirled around the tree” and presents get wrapped, cookies baked, stockings hung, more decorations, snugly hugs, and dreams of toys and Santa until at last the magical day of Christmas morning arrives for the family to celebrate.
My girls are always up for a Karen Katz books, and this one is quite delightful. While I like it because it is from Katz and her stuff is always cheery, it does bother me that only a couple spreads rhyme. I’m not sure if this was intentional or perhaps a cut for the board book version from the original. Nevertheless, I like that it covers a lot of the stereotypical Christmasy activities, features the signature dog and cat along with the kids of the family, and adds a large measure of fun in the anticipation of counting down to the big day. It really is true that anticipation is half the fun and books like this help make the waiting even more exciting.
Hope to see you tomorrow on my 25 Days of Christmas Children’s Books countdown!
Three Books a Night 