The 12 Days of Christmas celebrates the 12 days between December 25th and Epiphany on January 6th. Knowing this, you’d think I’d wait and post this after Christmas, right? Well… I considered waiting, but this topic seemed like the perfect introduction to the Christmas season, so I decided to post it this week.
I love comparing and contrasting books with the same story, or in this case, the same song. I hope you’ll find a few you enjoy and then share with your family.
TRADITIONAL TEXT
The Twelve Days of Christmas illustrated by Jan Brett
Like all of Jan Brett’s books, this book has delightful illustrations surrounded by borders of more delightful illustrations that tell a complementary story. Beautiful.
The 12 Days of Christmas illustrated by Rachel Isadora
The text is traditional but the wonderfully lively illustrations are set in Africa. At the end is the author's note about some of the African traditions depicted.
The 12 Days of Christmas illustrated by Tad Hills
Anita Pig’s boyfriend brings her the traditional gifts on each of the 12 days of Christmas. The gifts keep accumulating, filling her house to overflowing. This lift-the-flap book is charming.
The 12 Days of Christmas illustrated by Linnea Asplind Riley
Each bold cut-paper illustration beautifully fills each page. In the end, all the gifts crowd into a giant fold-out spread that defies counting.
The Twelve Days of Christmas illustrated by Dorothée Duntze
The illustrations are lovely and often rather funny. My favorite is the eight maid a-milking.
The Twelve Days of Christmas illustrated by David Delamare
All the illustrations feature animals, all dressed and with terrific expressions on their faces. The polar bear maidens milking cows is a hoot. In the last pages, there is information on the signs and symbols of Christmas, which the illustrator has hidden throughout the book.
NOT-SO-TRADITIONAL TEXT
The Twelve Days of Christmas in New York City by Lisa Adams
This is a really terrific book. On the left side of each page spread is a letter written by the narrator, telling her all about her visit with her cousin Daniel in NYC. The right page has a joyful illustration of each of the 12 days of her visit. The opening line gives you an idea: On the first day of Christmas, my cousin gave to me…a pigeon in a Central Park tree.
The Twelve Days of Christmas Dogs by Carolyn Conahan
The first verse gives you an idea: On the first day of Christmas, my best friend gave to me…a pug puppy under the tree. And how about six pooches playing, seven splashy swimmers, ten labs a-leaping. A perfect book for a dog lover!
Twelve Hidden Days of Christmas illustrated by Macky Pamintuan
The text is changed just a bit – On the first day of Christmas, Santa hid for me… – but the changes have created a fun hidden-pictures book. By the last days of Christmas, there’s a lot to look for!
More Christmas books are coming up on the next 2 Mondays! :)
Gail
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