Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

by Robert L. May, Denver Gillen (Illustrator)

Overview

In 1939 Robert L. May, a copywriter working at Chicago's Montgomery Ward & Co., wrote a holiday story at the request of his employer. Almost two and a half million copies of the little tale about a reindeer with a shiny red nose were given away to all the children who visited Montgomery Ward stores that year. The rest is history. Seventy-five years later, the beloved classic is once again available in a hardcover faithful facsimile of the 1939 Rudolph, with original text and original Denver Gillen illustrations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781557091390
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	10/01/1990
Series:	Applewood Books
Edition description:	Facsimile
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	7.38(w) x 10.25(h) x 0.34(d)
Lexile:	NP (what's this?)
Age Range:	1 - 6 Years

About the Author

Robert L. May penned one of America's most famous contributions to Christmas folklore while working as a copywriter for Montgomery Ward & Co. in Chicago. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Dartmouth College in 1926 and held various advertising jobs in several department stores across the country before going to the catalog company in 1936. A humble, soft-spoken man, May was gratified that children the world over responded to the story of the lonely little deer who found happiness when he gladly accepted a chance to help others. May referred to Rudolph as "my generous son," claiming that the noble reindeer enabled him to send his six children to college. In 1958 May donated the original 32-page Rudolph manuscript to the Baker Library at Dartmouth College, which now houses the Robert L. May Collection. May left Montgomery Ward in 1951 to manage Rudolph's burgeoning career but returned to the company in 1958, retiring in 1970. He died in 1976.

Read an Excerpt

The delightful feel of the original is kept and while reading, it becomes clear why this story has become a cherished part of every Christmas.  (Feathered Quill, August 29, 2012)

Editorial Reviews

How do you review a classic? It's not easy but I must admit that it was a lot of fun to read the tale of Rudolph as it was originally written.

We all know the story of Rudolph, how the other reindeer teased him because of his bright red nose, how he ran away, and then how he came back and saved Christmas. In the original version, a poem written by Robert May, Rudolph is actually living with other reindeer, far from Santa's home in the North Pole. Like all the other animals, and girls and boys, on Christmas Eve, Rudolph is fast asleep, dreaming of the toys Santa will bring. But Santa is having trouble delivering his gifts because a terrible fog has settled into the land. What will happen if he can't get to all the houses? Santa is in a panic and he doesn't know what to do, but then he comes upon the house where Rudolph and his friends live. Perhaps that bright red nose... There is, of course, a happy ending, Rudolph saves the day, all the toys are distributed, and Christmas is saved.

Applewood Books is a publishing company that has brought many classics back to life to be enjoyed by new generations of readers. For Rudolph, they have kept the look of the original 1939 publication by using the same text, design, illustrations, and even typeface. The delightful feel of the original is kept and while reading, it becomes clear why this story has become a cherished part of every Christmas. Don't miss it!

Quill says: Every home should have a copy of this book to enjoy at Christmas!

Feathered Quill - Holly Connors

A board book abridged from Robert L. May's original story, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, illus. by David Wenzel, allows youngest Rudolph fans to join in the fun. PW said of the original, "The text, which gives a nod to Clement C. Moore, gets a boost from David Wenzel's illustrations of a warm, appealing Santa." Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

K-Gr 3-This newly illustrated edition of the well-known story uses May's original, lengthy but satisfying rhymed text, written in 1939. Wenzel's watercolor illustrations are vibrant and richly detailed with a nostalgic, old-fashioned quality. Michael Emberley's watercolor, cartoonlike pen-and-ink drawings in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Applewood, 1994) are amusing but crowd the pages. Of the two books, Wenzel's illustrations are a better fit for the text. While a tad too long for storytime, it's a solid representation of the tale.-M. W. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

2014-08-12
The original 1939 story about a reindeer with a noteworthy nose serves as the text of this lavishly illustrated, oversize interpretation of Rudolph's place in Christmas lore. The cover illustration draws readers in to the story with an evocative view of Rudolph and the reindeer team pulling Santa and his sleigh through an azure sky. The paper used for the cover has a mottled, opalescent shine which, along with hazy swirls and shimmering bubbles, suggests the magical nature of flying reindeer and Santa himself. This use of glowing illumination to set a mysterious tone is repeated when Rudolph peeks into Santa's toy sack during the Christmas Eve toy delivery, with radiant light emanating from the reindeer's rosy nose, as it does on nearly every page. The 75-year-old rhyming story is a little too long and a little too singsong, with some of the phraseology a trifle dated for today's children and some of the rhyming word pairs struggling to fit the meter. However, there is no other full-sized version of this original story of Rudolph with contemporary illustrations currently in print; most picture-book versions are based on the alternate television version of Rudolph's story. (A new edition of this interpretation, retold by Thea Feldman, also publishes in 2014.) Rudolph and his contribution to the Santa saga seem firmly entrenched in American Christmas tradition, and this fresh look at the reindeer that triumphs over rejection and a seeming disability may be a new holiday classic. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews