Read this one to youngsters at Christmas time and start a new tradition or read it yourself for the warm fuzzies and smiles it is sure to evoke. Granted, the concept has been done many, many times … toys and Christmas decorations with an “awareness” slowly being left behind as the household grows up … but really, does it ever get old? And, “A Fairy Extraordinary Christmas Story” does have a very touching and yet amusing twist at the end.
Tallulah is a Christmas Fairy tree-topper. Ever since she was manufactured she had an awareness of being. On her first Christmas atop a tree a shooting star blazes outside the window and with that magical occurrence Tallulah realizes that she and all the other decorations are “alive”.
As we meet all the other decorations and ornaments we hear the story about how they are brought out every year and then, sadly, have to be returned to the attic when Christmas is over. But, maybe not so sad after all since the attic is where all the decorations for all the holidays reside and soon enough Tallulah meets the Easter (Bunny) and Halloween (Skelly and Witch) decorations as well.
As must happen, the children grow up and move out and then one year the parents decide that decorating is too much trouble. Confused by the sudden quietness of the house and the fact that it’s Christmas and they are still in the attic the decorations decide to take matters into their own hands. The result is an adventure that warmed my heart and made me smile.
It felt like Christmas came a little early when I was offered an opportunity to read this. I never pass up a chance to read a story by A.J. York because I always know they will be short and sweet.
A Fairy Extraordinary Christmas Story is the perfect little book to get you and your little ones in the mood for the holidays.
The book is a lot like Toy Story, but holiday decorations come to life along with the toys, and it took me less than and hour to read. Don’t let the small page count fool you though. I became very attached to Tellulah the Christmas tree fairy and all her decorative friends. And the sap in me couldn’t help but tear up a little bit during this very sentimental story.
If you are looking for something to bring a smile to the faces of your young children and maybe convince them to be a little bit more careful with the fragile ornaments this Christmas, this is the story for you!
This book is suitable for all ages!
Here's a cute Christmas story to get you ready for the Christmas season! A.J. York's A Fairy Extraordinary Christmas Story focusses on Tallulah, a Christmas tree topper. After her first Christmas, she is stored in the attic with the other holiday decorations. When the attic hatch closes, the decorations come to life and build a strong community, encouraging each as the seasons and holidays come and go.
After a few years, some toys arrive in the attic. The decorations realize this means the kids have grown up. When the Christmas decorations aren't taken downstairs, all the toys and decorations band together to bring the family together. It's a sweet, charming story, perfect for younger readers. Shades of Toy Story, The Velveteen Rabbit, and other children's favorites show up. A Fairy Extraordinary Christmas will delight and make you smile.
AFECS is a short treat, but it’s a delightful one. Just as the tale is a brief one, my review will be equally so, but in this case it is a good thing. Sometimes short and sweet is the best way to go!
Aimed at middle-grade children, AFECS manages first and foremost to touch on something that is hard to capture in a meal for kids, and that is a true sense of wonder. I know that isn’t a very concrete element, but it’s an important one to help a dish transcend its normal boundaries. What I mean to say is that, despite its intentions, the story managed to resonate strongly with me, despite my nearly forty years on the planet.
What we essentially have here is a modern Christmas fairy tale in the old sense of the term. It doesn’t talk down to the children who may be reading it, but it doesn’t try to position itself as something more urbane or worldly. This gives it a feeling of timelessness and that is crucial for this kind of tale to be more than just a momentary distraction for any reader, young or old.
If you’re a parent looking to add a new holiday treat to your childrens’ literary world, I can say no more than A Fairy Extraordinary Christmas Story is a delightful Christmas cookie, festooned in timeless wonder! Even if you have no children of your own but have an interest in fairy tales or simply still keep your child-at-heart well-fed, you can do no better than to add this to your holiday reading plate. Bravo!
A Fairy Extraordinary Christmas Story is set out in short chapters, and would be perfect for a girl aged 6-8 as a chapter or transitional book. It reminded me very much in tone of Rumer Godden’s classic Christmas story Holly and Ivy, but with a slightly more modern twist.
Tallulah is a fairy doll. The first chapter sees Tallulah being made in what you could almost believe is Santa’s workshop, if you were magically and festively inclined.
Tallulah is packed in a box and arrives at the house where she is to take pride of place at the top of the Christmas tree. That year, two figurines on the mantelpiece who come to life, show Tallulah the ropes and she is delighted with everything she finds out.
Over the years, Christmas changes for the family, and for the decorations. In between festivities, they are packed away in boxes in the loft, and come to be good friends with all the other seasonal decorations, including an Easter bunny and a Halloween skeleton.
One year, many years after Tallulah had first arrived at the house, the decorations do not get taken out of the loft, and the toys decide to take matters into their own hands with surprisingly magical results.
This is sweet, and charming and very festive. It’s got masses of feel good appeal, and I know that as a small girl myself I would have absolutely loved this story and read it time and time again. It is really lovely.
Considering I was accosted by ‘elves’ handing out mince pies on the street only the other day, I figure it’s time to crack out the Christmas books. What better, then, than a novel about beloved Christmas decorations that come alive when we’re not looking.
Although the premise may not be entirely original, the execution is excellent, and York’s take on the classic childhood desire for living toys is special. Perhaps going a little too quickly at times – I would have liked to see more of the Sarah character, experienced more of her interactions with Tallulah – the end result is a novel which highlights the timelessness of those decorations that stay in the family through generations.
The narrative focuses in on Tallulah, a decorative fairy meant to go at the top of a Christmas tree. The reader is then taken through her experience of self-awareness, meeting other decorations like herself, and living in storage with other festive creatures. Something like three decades pass during the short novel – hence, my feeling that it is a bit too quick – yet perhaps that allows the reader to fully understand the experience of the decorations; they only see snapshots of the Andersons’ life in their designated holidays (Christmas, Halloween, Easter).
The conflict is resolved in an ode to friendship, yet oddly tinged with bittersweet resignation. I think this is the most interesting and original aspect of York’s work, and where it differs significantly from equivalents like Toy Story – the ability for the ‘decoration’ characters to accept their role as seasonal. Being in storage is not a punishment, but a state of being. It is simply when they are deprived of their chance for a ‘holiday’ that they take matters into their own hands. It leaves the reader with a sense of contentedness which concludes the novel wonderfully.
The pull of this story is certainly more one of emotional engagement than one based on suspense, which is comforting in a Christmas story. For children, it’s the secret hope of proof that toys really do come alive at night, and for adults it recreates the memory of excitement of Christmas time and the fine line between decoration and toy.
I recommend it as classic feel-good Christmas story with an emotional twist, for children with fine sensibilities, and a love for festivities and friendship stories. For adults, it hits the nostalgia chords, combining the childhood experience of Christmas with the separation that necessarily comes with adulthood.
