Miracle on 34th Street: A Storybook Edition of the Christmas Classic

by Valentine Davies Estate, James Newman Gray (Illustrator), Susanna Leonard Hill

Overview

Experience the magic of Valentine Davies' 70-year-old classic Christmas story in picture book format for the first time—the perfect Christmas gift for kids this season!

For a little girl named Susan Walker, Christmas could be any other day. She doesn't believe in Santa Claus or magic or miracles of any kind. But when she meets Kris Kringle and tells him what Christmas gifts she most wishes for, Susan finds herself hoping that maybe, just maybe, he is the real thing. Based on the original holiday classic, Miracle on 34th Street is a timeless, heartwarming children's book about generosity, imagination, and the spirit of Christmas… if you just believe.

Why readers love Miracle on 34th Street:

• The perfect Christmas gift and novelty stocking stuffer for children ages 4-7
• Parents, guardians, and grandparents will love reading this nostalgic Christmas tale to a new generation of kids, sure to become a new family tradition!
• Screen-free fun for children during the winter season
• A great read aloud for teachers and classrooms

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781492669869
Publisher:	Sourcebooks
Publication date:	10/02/2018
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.80(w) x 10.90(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 9 Years

About the Author

Valentine Davies (August 25, 1905 – July 23, 1961) was an American film and television writer, producer, and director. He wrote the story for the 1947 film Miracle on 34th Street, which was given screen treatment by director George Seaton and received an Academy Award for Best Story. Davies also novelized the story, publishing a novella in conjunction with the film release.

Susanna Leonard Hill is the New York Times bestselling author of Moon’s First Friends, as well as many other award-winning books for children. She does frequent school and library visits, teaches picture book writing, and offers picture book critiques. She lives in New York's Mid-Hudson Valley with her children and two rescue dogs.

Editorial Reviews

"Quite possibly the most beloved Christmas story, this picture book adaption is richly illustrated and ready to become your Christmas Eve go-to." — The Children’s Book Review

"A nice, new rendition of the familiar, touching story about the magic and power of belief. " — Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2018-08-20

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade gets underway in New York with Santa sound asleep at the rear.

Susan's mother, in charge of the parade, quickly finds a replacement, who introduces himself as Kris Kringle. Welcomed to Thanksgiving dinner with Susan, her mother, and their neighbor Fred, he proclaims that he is the actual Santa Claus. Susan wants to believe him, but her mother has real doubts. The old man is convincing as the department-store Santa, talking to a diverse group of young visitors in different languages, including sign language. Eventually a judge settles the question of whether or not he's Santa once and for all. A story that's been adapted to many formats from cinema to radio to television since its publication as a novella by Davies in 1947, here it's reworked by Hill for a picture-book audience. Gray's soft-focus illustrations retain the flavor of 1940s New York while consciously developing a diverse cast of secondary characters including an interracial family and a black judge; Susan, her mother, Fred, and Kris Kringle are white, however. A rich palette and holiday-themed borders on some of the pages add to the comforting feel of the book. Inset boxes of illustrations with fuzzy edges re-create some of the cinematic qualities of previous adaptations.

A nice, new rendition of the familiar, touching story about the magic and power of belief. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews