Customer Reviews

The Twelve Days of Christmas : A Pop-Up Celebration

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Even though I am a teenager, I love Sabudas' The Twelve Days of Christmas. This book is magical because when you turn to each page you see a magnificent array of creativity. Each time I read it (many times!) I study how all those paper designs work so perfectly. I especially love the jewelry box, swans, and reindeer. It is a real treat for your eyes as well as your imagination. I recommend it for all ages, and would be a perfect gift for the holiday season.

This is a book I get out every Christmas and is displayed with great care. My children love this book but can only look at it under my supervision due to the delicate nature of the detailed pop-up pages. Would make a great gift for anyone and is truely a favorite reading during the holidays.

A wonderful version of the traditional song. There are many different folds and techniques used in this fairly compact book as well as interesting literary devices which lift this well out of the commonplace. Each odd numbered day of the song is given one and a half pages which are full of a miracle of cutting and folding.( apologies for the rhetoric but I LOVE this book ). The pages are in large blocks of colour which offset beatifully the mostly white pop-up creations and the, very different, white text.Each even-numbered day folds out from the half page left into an equivalent full page which is also coloured with white card pop-ups which are delicate paper cutouts All of the gifts are truly represented, but with a twist. All are also common gifts or images of a traditional Christmas. e.g The five Gold rings are shiny gold rings set on a white reindeer's antler-tips. The eight maids a-milking are Christmas cookies on a tray. The wonderful swans are in a snow-globe that also incorporates perspex through which we see not only the swans swimming , but also the snow falling! One has to look hard to find the eleventh lady dancing on the music box. The use of colour on each page is superb. Not one part of the book detracts from any other part. We are now all lookign forward to finding a copy of Sabuda's ABC book . This also has the same use of white cut-outs moving against a single colour background. There is so much that is excellent about this book that it would take a long time for the novelty to wear off. There are several layers to it and never does Sabuda seem to rely on the tricks of paper engineering to carry the book. It stands out in so many areas. With my children ( and others) we have readit, sung it, played with it, copied it and discussed the traditions behind the song and the gift versions in the book. Yet whenever it comes down off the shelf ( It is a seasonal treat or for rainy or sick days - or College assignments! ) everyone gets excited all over again.

I know some folks like a lot of color, but there is something amazingly elegant about that pure white paper set against the colored page.

I have only one comment. The last page of the book contains the 11 ladies dancing and the 12 pipers piping. The 11 ladies dancing is fantastic. The twelve pipers piping was a little disappointing; especially given that they are next to the extraordinary music box.

Perhaps the pipers should have been done in color instead of grey, or maybe the Christmas tree ornaments should have been various colors to give them a little more of that Sabuda flair.

That said, get the book. It is worth every cent.

The classic Christmas song is illustrated in all of its verses in this charming book. The pop-up pictures are delightful, and some of the depictions actually are exquisite, halfway between oragami and sculpture. The art is the work of a visionary. This is a lovely book for children, but adults really may appreciate it more than little ones do.

I sent this book to my friend's children. They both loved this book so much that it's the first thing that they take out of the Christmas closet each year. It's been 3-years, and they still rave about the books. In fact, sitting down to read them has become a Christmas tradition.

How pop-up master Robert Sabuda manages to come up with so many innovative ideas and intricately complicated folding techniques is beyond my comprehension. This book is so well thought out, and perfectly captures the song activities. By no means simply a children's book, any adult will be fascinated by the action of this book. It will capture the imagination of everyone in the family!

"Wow" is all I can say about this book. We read this book as a family activity and our three boys, (11, 9, 4), absolutely loved it. It makes you feel like a kid again. The pop up art is amazing and lovely.

The 12 Days of Christmas is an entertaining experience for children and a visual feast for adults. One of the best christmas books around. We give many for gifts and they are always well received.

This is the most beautiful, brilliant Christmas book I have ever seen. It is for all ages, not just 4-8. Sabuda pays attention not just to how the pop-up image looks when the page is open, but also to the way in which the image emerges. The simplicity of images, use of color, and imagination all combine to make this a perfect book.