On Christmas Eve [Hardcover]

Ann M. Martin (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up | Grade Level: 2 and up

A heartfelt gift for every family, sure to be shared over and over each year.

Eight-year-old Tess is convinced this is the year she will finally meet Santa, and experience "the Christmas magic." She also wishes with all her heart that her best friend's ill father will recover. Tess' faith in the season results in a Christmas Eve so wondrous, so sparkling, readers won't be able to help but feel transformed. Like trimming the tree and "It's a Wonderful Life"; baking cookies and "White Christmas," ON CHRISTMAS EVE is sure to bring new holiday magic to readers' lives.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5–Nine-year-old Tess believes in Santa–truly believes. And on Christmas Eve, she gets to see the magic: the animals talk and Santa, the real Santa, arrives. But will he save Tess's best friend's father from dying of cancer? Tess learns about magic, miracles, and the power of hope in a satisfying story that mostly avoids sentimentality and an excess of Christmas sparkle. A full-page, decorative black-and-white watercolor painting opens each chapter.–Susan Patron, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Even though Tess is eight, she still believes in Santa, and she's particularly anxious to see him this year because she has a special request. Her friend Sarah's father is ill with cancer, and Tess thinks Santa will work his magic to save him. Set in 1958, this story harkens back to a simpler time and captures the magic of belief. It is at its best when Tess (who sounds older than eight) describes her small-town life, punctuated by the activity of the holidays. The sadness Sarah is feeling is effectively portrayed, as are the musings about the mystical. But when Santa actually appears, the mix of the everyday and the supernatural seems strained. The story also moves in fits and starts: the first two-thirds of the book are expansive, but the rest seems cramped with a whole year's events. Yet despite problems with plotting and pacing, Martin's writing can be enticing, reaching out to readers. There are difficult as well as lovely things to think about here. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press; 1 edition (October 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439930146
• ISBN-13: 978-0439930147
• ASIN: 0439745888
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,657,064 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ann M. Martin is the bestselling author of the momentous series The Baby-sitters Club, as well as the Main Street series. Her other acclaimed novels include "A Dog's Life," "Belle Teal," "Here Today," and the Newbery Honor Book "A Corner of the Universe." She lives in upstate New York. For more information, visit www.scholastic.com/bsc.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Christmas Magic Permeates this Sweet Book, but Beware! It's sad, too! (Spoiler alert), December 17, 2006

By 

Amy Senk "Read it, Loved it" (Orange County, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Christmas Eve (Hardcover)

Tess is a very likeable girl who believes in Santa and hatches a plan to see him and talk to him one Christmas Eve. She has always wanted to do this, but this year, she needs make a very special Christmas wish, and it has to be done in person. The story is sweet, full of the magic of the season and a charming, pure joy.

However, there is nothing on the book jacket that indicates there is a character with cancer, and by March after Christmas everyone is at a funeral.

This could be very upsetting to the young audience this book gears to. In my case, we have a parent in the family with cancer, and I can't believe I nearly gave the book to my child to read as a Christmas-y, magical, pick-me-up. I do wish the book jacket and blurb on the sleeve had been more open about the story line.

If you or your child enjoys sad books, however, this is a very nice holiday read.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable, heartfelt holiday romp that can't be missed!, November 15, 2006

By 

Erika Sorocco (Southern California, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Christmas Eve (Hardcover)

It is Christmas Eve, 1959. Tess McAlister is nine-years-old, and while she is looking forward to the coming Christmas morning, she can't help but remember the magic she saw last year. When she was an impressionable young third grader, Tess spent the entire holiday season attempting to cheer up her friend Sarah, whose father was in the hospital with cancer. Tess did everything she could to cheer the somber girl up, even enlisting the help of her eleven-year-old sister Evvie, and her boy-obsessed friend, Maggie. Tess held tight onto an array of Christmas wishes. Wishes that were for her, her family, and, most of all, Sarah. She knew that it was up to her to confront Santa with her wishes, and did what she could to stay up last Christmas Eve. For she could feel the magic surrounding her. She knew that this would be the year that she would meet the elusive Santa Claus. Regardless of what the people surrounding her told her, Tess knew that the jolly old fellow was real. She had felt the magic swirling around her all season. And then, on Christmas Eve, after her parents had traipsed up and down the stairs, hiding gifts under the tree, Tess did something she had never done before...she crept downstairs and waited for Santa, her canine companion Sadie by her side. It was on this night that she planned on using the faith that had built up in her all season to seek out the only man who could possibly help her. The man who had the magic, and the power to heal Sarah's father, and make her friend happy once more. That was last Christmas. And now it is up to Tess to make this Christmas Eve wondrous. As wondrous as last year.

I didn't quite know what to expect upon purchasing Ann M. Martin's ON CHRISTMAS EVE. I was so used to THE BABYSITTER'S CLUB books that she had penned, that I thought ON CHRISTMAS EVE would be something similar to those tales. However, upon reading just one chapter, I realized that I was wrong. Martin has managed to build up so much amazing Christmas magic in this tale, and transfer it into the reader's heart, as they flip furiously from page to page. Tess is a remarkable young character, who is wise beyond her years. Caring and kind, and an all-around saintly angel. Her adventures in attempting to meet Santa Claus are humorous, while at the same time selfless, and exciting to read about. The interactions of the characters are enjoyable, giving the reader the opportunity to meet an array of people, all looking to celebrate the holidays in a different way - from Sarah wishing for her father to spend Christmas at home; to Evvie wishing for make-up and curlers to impress boys; and to Tess, wishing that her friend could have her father back - healthy and happy. Each characters story interweaves with one another, creating the ultimate tale of love, faith, hope, and the magic of a wish. An enjoyable, heartfelt holiday romp that can't be missed!

Erika Sorocco

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars TOO SAD to be Christmas-y!!, January 11, 2011

By 

Mom-me (NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: On Christmas Eve (Apple Signature Edition) (Paperback)

Yes, this story teaches a little girl about 'Christmas magic' (though it's far beyond any child's reality), & even about hope (vaguely, & so close to the end it has hardly any meaning), but it is bogus when a story claims to be about Christmas & has a main plot that is all about (*spoiler alert*...)a little girl's father dying. I love books, & I especially love Christmas stories, but I was so glad I read this before I gave it to one of my kids. At one point, I sat there crying & slammed the book closed... I was tired of waiting for the 'happy' Christmas Eve that you would think you'd find in a book with this title. The next morning I finished it, hoping for the best. I could NOT say it was in any way 'satifsying', as another reviewer claimed. It was sweet & touching in spots, but overall, it was SAD!! Thing is, each storyline could have had its own merit: the Christmas story, & then the story about two sweet friends & how they handle one of life's tragedies, together. Where did they get the idea that a Christmas story leading up to a funeral & the loss of a little's girl's daddy, could be anything BUT heartbreaking?! Not my idea of relaxing, or pleasant 'Christmas' reading! If you're looking for a true, heartfelt Christmas story, with lessons to be learned, try A Country Christmas, which was excellent!