Customer Reviews

Saint Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

We bought this book when my daughter was 2.5 to help her understand the idea of Santa, and she's been bringing us this book to read over & over for the last year! The book is simple and sweet. It tells one story of St. Nicolas secretly giving money to a family so that the girls in the family could have a dowry & get married. Then it talks about how St. Nicolas continued giving to people. Other people gave to each other. And the stories of St. Nicolas spread all over the world. People called him Father Christmas, which is where Santa comes from. The book also talks about Jesus as the greatest gift that God gives to us and how we remember the gift of Jesus at Christmas.

Saint Nicholas: The Real Story Of The Christmas Legend by Julie Stiegemeyer is a picturebook rendition of the historical roots of Father Christmas. Recounting the life of Saint Nicholas, a pastor in fourth-century Lycia (modern-day Turkey) whose generosity was so profound that he became known as "Father Christmas" and legends circulated about his home in the North Pole and his tradition of distributing gifts on Christmas Eve. Moving, realistic color illustrations by Chris Ellison bring heart to this true story of Christian compassion and inspiration.

I can't wait to give this as a gift to my nieces, nephews and a lot of my friends' children. I know my own kids are going to love it. This is a stunningly beautiful children's book! The paintings are amazing and beautiful. The story is powerful and really helps people understand what Christmas is all about. And the best thing is that there really was a man named Nicholas. You are going to love this book.

What a beautiful book! Full of great information about a real man. If your family observes St. Nicholas' Day -- December 6 -- you'll definitely want this book!

I liked this book a lot and it accomplished the purpose for which it was purchased...we don't "do" Santa with our kids, but I wanted them to know that there really was a man named St. Nicholas and who he was and what he did. My daughter really loved this book, and I think it will become a Christmas tradition. It's nice that the real St. Nicholas loved the Lord and was a Christian, and that that was his motivation for giving gifts. I want my children to understand why we give gifts and more importantly, to understand the precious gift of Jesus as Savior, and I felt like this book was a nice Christmas complement.

I did like the book but if you like a little more detail this is not for you. It is great if you only have a few moments to read to your little one. It only told of one good deed of the saint. It does tell of his faith in our Lord but still not much detail. I would like more on his childhood and how he grew to be so loving and kind. I would like more detail on his faith. If you know of such a book please let me know. yrosemarie@yahoo.com

In our house, we don't stress Santa Claus at Christmas, we try and stress giving to others who need it and that it is Jesus's birthday. But we don't outright say Santa is a myth.

This book does a great job for young kids in describing who Saint Nicholas was, why we might model giving after him (the story describes a single act of his) and how he is referred to in other places (Father Christmas and Santa Claus). It makes it a bit easier to deal with Santa.

When I ordered this book I did not notice that the publisher was Concordia, which is Lutheran. As a Catholic, I was disappointed that St. Nicholas was so "Protestantized" and presented as if he was a pastor of some generic church rather than a Catholic bishop! This fact was lost on my young kids of course, and they did enjoy the story, but it annoyed my older kids who were listening in. I just wanted to put that out there for any other Catholics that might be considering buying this book for their children to be aware of the rather non-Catholic presentation.

Just read this book to my dd & she states that she "really loves it". We teach that Santa Claus is based on a real man who died long ago, and that he did very kind things because of obeying Jesus Christ's teachings. We'll enjoy having this book around this Christmas season to remind us of the caring & loving acts of Saint Nicholas. This story covers 1 incident in his life which show his kindness & generousity & gives emphasis as to why he was like that - because that was his way to show Jesus' love to others. The author comments on how he's now known as Father Christmas. There's a note to the "grown-up" that explains a few facts concerning Saint Nicholas and a glossary that explains some words/places. We love the colorful & life-like pictures. Hope this review will help someone! Have fun reading!

As a clergy person, I wasn't sure how to pursue a story telling circle at our Children's Christmas party at the church, but this book was a near perfect fit. The story is concise and easy for school-age listeners. I was delighted that the author included a inspiration connection to Christmas as a time of giving and God as the first giver. The illustrations are colorful and convey the story well to the children. My only reservation was the size of the book; a bit on the small side. A extra large edition would be great!