The Polar Express Deluxe Gift Package [DELUXE EDITION] (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Liam Neeson (Reader)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Fifteen years and one Caldecott Medal after its publication, Chris Van Allsburg's The Polar Express is as fresh and magical as ever. And now an anniversary edition, including the hardcover book, a CD and audiotape featuring a reading by actor Liam Neeson and music by composer Michael Moss, and a special bronze ornament designed by Van Allsburg, renews the wonder and charm of this holiday classic.

One Christmas Eve, a bathrobe-clad boy boards the mysterious Polar Express train on its way to the North Pole. Arriving in the mystical polar city, the boy is thunderstruck when Santa chooses him to be the recipient of the very first gift of Christmas. Shyly, the boy asks for his true heart's desire--one silver bell from the harness of Santa's reindeer. His wish is granted, and the train begins its return trip. But alas! The boy has a hole in his pocket, and the cherished sleigh bell is lost... forever?

Author-illustrator Van Allsburg, who also received the Caldecott Medal for Jumanji and a Caldecott Honor for The Garden of Abdul Gasazi, is a creative talent beyond compare. The timeless splendor of his unique, breathtaking illustrations and quiet story will undoubtedly stay with the reader for a lifetime. (Ages 3 to 8) --Emilie Coulter

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-Chris Van Allsburg's Caldecott-winning Christmas classic (HM, 1985) is 15 years old, but it is a timeless story that just keeps getting better. Actor Liam Neeson's authoritative, unhurried narration brings the story to life. Peaceful, unobtrusive orchestrations punctuate the text like falling snow. As the Polar Express pulls into town one Christmas Eve, offering a magical, unforgettable trip to the North Pole, a young boy boards the train. When Santa offers him the first gift of the season, the boy chooses one bell from the harness of a reindeer. On the return trip, the bell is lost, and Christmas for the boy seems to be ruined, until the bell reappears under the Christmas tree, with a mystery of its own, solved only by a belief in the spirit of Christmas. This release won't sit on the shelf long. Parents, teachers, and librarians everywhere will be grateful to have someone else read this tear-jerker in their stead. This well-written, impeccably presented package deserves all the attention it will get.
Kirsten Martindale, Buford Academy, GA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children; 15th anniversary gift ed edition (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0618077367
• ISBN-13: 978-0618077366
• Product Dimensions: 15.6 x 9.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (250 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #946,867 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

152 of 157 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Is Santa Claus real?, November 1, 2000

By	Quaker Annie "reader" - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This book opens the possibility that Santa Claus -- as presented to most of us -- may not physically exist. It does this in a way that will allow children and their parents to ease into that question, a graceful move from the belief in a living St. Nick, to a belief in the spirit of Christmas.

It begins like this: "On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I breathed slowly and silently. I was listening for a sound -- a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear -- the ringing of Santa's sleigh.

'There is no Santa,' my friend had insisted, but I knew he was wrong."

From here, we follow a beautifully illustrated story of this young boy's quiet night ride with other children, on the Polar Express train to the North Pole, a "huge city standing alone at the top of the world, filled with factories where every Christmas toy was made."

Our narrator is the fortunate child, picked by Santa, to receive the first gift of that Christmas. He knows exactly what he wants, a simple gift that will help him continue to believe in the magic of Christmas, a silver bell from a reindeer's harness.

He gets his wish, but loses it on the train ride home. However, there's a happy ending -- evidently Santa has found the bell, and put it under the tree. The boy and his little sister admire the beauty of the sound it makes, but their parents say, "Oh, that's too bad....It's broken."

Many years later, the boy's sister and all of his friends can no longer hear the bell.

"Though I've grown old, the bell still rings for me as it does for all who truly believe."

My youngest son at ages 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 has chosen to firmly believe with the narrator, but he's moved around in his reaction to the notion that Santa isn't real. From -- "that's ridiculous, isn't it?" to "Mom...it is ridiculous, isn't it?" This book will let him hold onto the Christmas spirit for as long as he wants, and to return to it whenever he needs it.

This version comes complete with CD's/tapes with readings. Buy the less expensive edition, add a silver bell, and (if you can), read it with the child yourself to give a really special gift.

A wonderful book for those who want to believe in the spirit of Christmas every day of every year.

52 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply breath-taking...Christmas through the eyes of a child, November 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Polar Express (Hardcover)

"On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I breathed slowly and silently. I was listening for a sound -- a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear ...." And so begins one the of the most beautiful stories of all time. Although I am now a senior in college, The Polar Express has remained the most valued and cherished book in my ever-expanding library. A childhood Christmas gift, Chris Van Allsburg's timeless masterpiece has become a fixture at our family gatherings each and every holiday season. Every member of the family, from the youngest to the oldest, appreciates it's simple but elegant story-telling style illustrated by the soft and soothing silhouettes of Van Allsburg's full-color art. The Polar Express is the story of a young boy and his magical journey aboard a mythical train to the North Pole. The reader is taken along this incredible ride and rediscovers the true joy and pure spirit of a child at Christmas. Van Allsburg's beautiful illustrations become as important to the story as the words themselves. These life-like pictures encourage children of ALL ages to explore their own imaginations and to become active participants in the young boy's journey. In the end, the young boy has grown into an old man, but the spirit of Christmas still rings for him, "... as it does for all who truly believe." I hope you enjoy this book half as much as I do.

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Polar Express, November 29, 1999

By	Kathleen Teer Egan (Collingswood, New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Polar Express (Hardcover)

I started reading this book to my children 15 years ago when they were toddlers. I would keep it with my Christmas decorations and bring it out every holiday season. Once they grew too old to be read to, I still brought it out every year and put it on the coffee table. Last year I started reading it to my two-year old son. I still cry with nostaligia each time I read The Polar Express, remembering the magic it held for my older children and how we read it over and over. Well, my second son loved it so much, it never go put away with the Christmas decorations. We read it together constantly, even during the summer! This is a book that never loses its magic -- for children and adults alike. I plan to give this book to my neices and nephews this Christmas.