By Kaylie Seed
When I was researching books to read and review, I came across The Legend of the Christmas Witch and just knew I needed to read it. I have long been fascinated by witches, and with winter being my favourite season, I felt that this would be a children’s book that I would enjoy—I was right.
The Legend of the Christmas Witch tells the tale of Kristtörn and her twin brother Kristoffer who were abandoned in a forest. They each end up leaving with very different adults who ventured into the forest on that fateful day. Kristoffer ends up with a family whose last name is Kringle and thus begins the legend of Santa Claus in the same breath that we see the lesser-known legend of the Christmas Witch. Kristtörn decides to search for her brother after the village figures out that she is a witch, and while on her way to the North Pole, Kristtörn ends up in the South Pole. Kristtörn makes it her mission to find her mysterious brother and reunite after all this time apart.
Dan Murphy and Aubrey Plaza have created a children’s book that is both eclectic and entertaining. The Legend of the Christmas Witch is very different from other children’s books I’ve read, and I mean this in the best way. Intended for children ages 5-8, The Legend of the Christmas Witch is a story that can be enjoyed by all ages. I found this tale to be easy to follow and felt like it flowed nicely. Being that this is a 50-page children’s book, this would be best read as a bedtime story over a couple of nights as there are natural breaks in the story that would offer a cliffhanger for the next evening.
As The Legend of the Christmas Witch takes place in a Scandinavian country, Murphy and Plaza have done an excellent job incorporating both real life and legend from this part of the world. While the name implies that this should be read at Christmas time, The Legend of the Christmas Witch is a story that can be read and enjoyed at any point in the year.
Julia Iredale’s illustrations are gorgeous and really help tell this story of long lost twins. The pages are thick and glossy, making them easy to turn and beautiful to look at. Iredale has taken great care to include details that older readers will appreciate while maintaining a look that younger readers will find fun to look at while being read to.
All in all, I recommend The Legend of the Christmas Witch to anyone who appreciates Christmas, witches, or just a good old fashioned legend. Easily a book that you can read more than once, The Legend of the Christmas Witch is bound to invoke a love for this lesser-known tale.
Thank you, Viking Publishing, an imprint of Penguin Random House, for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.