The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus [Hardcover]

L. Frank Baum (Author), Michael Hague (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

A beautiful new edition of L. Frank Baum's Christmas classic with illustrations by Michael Hague

Every child knows about Santa Claus, the jolly man who brings gifts to all on Christmas. There are many stories that tell of his life, but the delightful version relayed in The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus is by far the most charming and original of all. Only L. Frank Baum, the man who created the wonderful land of Oz, could have told Santa's tale in such rich and imaginative detail.

Acclaimed children's artist Michael Hague has created strikingly beautiful illustrations for this wondrous holiday story. In delicate ink drawings and lush watercolor paintings he brings to life that most beloved of all childhood heroes, Santa Claus, in a gorgeous Christmas classic that will be cherished for years to come.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5-Originally published in 1902, this fantasy imagines that Santa Claus was once a human foundling adopted by woodland fairies, who grows up surrounded by elves, Knooks, Ryls, and other "immortals" of the natural world. Claus decides that his mission in life should be to bring joy to mortal children by making and distributing toys. His good works spread worldwide, and the mantle of immortality is bestowed upon him. This is a long and old-fashioned tale full of improvised fairy lore, a battle against the evil Awgwas, and unique explanations of such Christmas customs as hanging stockings. Claus is an appealing character, although he never quite comes fully alive. The illustrations, both full-color watercolor paintings and monotone ink drawings, add lots of Rackham-like charm to this handsomely designed book. An attractive addition but not necessary for most collections.-E. M.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"The illustrations, both full-color watercolor paintings and monotone ink drawings, add lots of Rackham-like charm to this handsomely designed book." --School Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); First Edition edition (October 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805038221
• ISBN-13: 978-0805038224
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 8.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #959,776 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Wonderful Treat for Christmas!!!, October 19, 2003

By 

Craig T. Case (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (Hardcover)

This book has a rather peculiar history. Originally published in 1902, two years after Baum's success with The Wizard of Oz,the first printing contained 20 color illustrations. In the second printing, eight of the color illustrations were left out, replaced by numerous black and white marginal illustrations. So you can imagine the delight of Oz fans when they discover this lovely edition in full color readily available after so many years of black and white reprints of the original edition.

The book is in three sections: "Youth", "Manhood", and "Old Age". Santa was discovered as an infant abandoned in the Forest of Burzee. The nymphs, fairies and elves adopted him and under the tutelage of Ak, the Master Woodsman of the World, Claus is bought up to appreciate and understand that all living things are sacred and deserve respect. In the "Manhood" section Baum tells the reader how Claus began making toys and delivering them to the world. He had his problems though. The Awgwas, who are evil creatures and can't tolerate happiness, continue to plague Claus first by intercepting his toys during delivery and then kidnapping Claus himself. "Old Age" describes the immortals' decision to take certain actions so that Claus can continue to give to the world.

Numerous questions are answered here:
What is the reason for hanging stockings?
How and why did Santa enlist the help of reindeer?
Why does he slide down the chimney?

As in the Wizard of Oz a good number of the characters here are Baum's own creations. You'll meet the knooks and the ryls, for example. You'll also meet the Gnome King who is rather benign here, but, by the end of Ozma of Oz, becomes the arch enemy of that fairy kingdom.

Michael Hague's illustrations are glorious.In the "Illustrator's Note" he states that the illustrations took three times longer than he expected. Well, it certainly shows. This was a labor of love. The pictures are in two varieties, full color and two color. The endpapers show a snowy day in the woods, a small creature trudging through it with a sack on its back. This is indeed one of Mr. Hague's finest moments. I wish I could give this book a 10, 5 for the story and 5 for the pictures.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Christmas Classic, August 9, 2007

By 

Philip Ford "Philip Ford" (Lubbock, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (Hardcover)

In this Book L. Frank Baum seeks to explain the origins of Santa Claus to children and he succeeds wonderfully. I read this book when I was much younger and really treasure the talent Baum has to tell a tale and explain where Santa Claus comes from and why he delivers those toys. Baum plays with traditional Santa myths as with most tellings Santa is an orphan or foundling adopted by others. Here Claus is adopted by the wood nymphs and raised to love the forest and all it's creatures. If there is one thing Baum asserts in this book is a love for nature, love and peace. He is taught to love the human race and another great message in this book is to do good in this world and leave it in better condition than we found it. besides that Baum explains how Claus learns to create toys and uses them to bring happiness to the children around him. Every thing is explained how the sleigh and reindeer were first used, how the first stockings were fillied, how Claus created the first christmas tree, and how he became immortal.
The book is not without a conflict as Baum created the Awgawas, creatures who seek to corrupt children through bad behavior. The creature try to destroy Claus only to earn the wrath of the immortals who befriend him. This battle in the book is noteworthy as supposedly insignificant weapons destroy their attackers.

This particular edition is beautifully painted by Hague. His nymphs are straight out of a style like the elves from Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. His Santa is more like a cross between a Father Christmas and Saint Nicholas. He is jolly, and happy. Although I note he also looks a bit like Hague which is fine, why not, Hague sees the Santa in himself. This book is the most beautiful edition of Baum's Christmas classic and worth a read through out December.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic that no one knows, July 26, 2008

By 

Joseph Pickett (Riverside, CA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (Hardcover)

I got this book for my parents on Christmas. They loved it. It describes the childhood and maturation of Santa Clause. The mythology is deep with fairies and fairy folk. The illustrations are through out the book as any good children's book. This is a classic children's story as it will grip the emotions of even adult readers. It makes one pine for the good and humane in the world. This is a great book.