The Christmas Show

by Rebecca Patterson

The Christmas pageant doesn’t go QUITE as planned in this fantastically funny holiday tale for the forgetful kid in all of us.It’s almost time for the nativity play, and everyone has been practicing hard. The narrators know their lines, the Important Angel has brushed her hair, and the audience is in their seats, eagerly awaiting a special Christmas performance. But there’s one cast member whose listening skills haven’t exactly been the best, and no one’s expecting a spare shepherd to steal the show… This boldly illustrated picture book is full of festive fun, and a cheerful reminder that the unexpected can also be unexpectedly entertaining.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Christmas, Fiction, Family, Humor, School

32 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2001

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bella is having a bad day - a NO NO NO DAY! But in the end mommy makes everything better! Ever have a day where you just wanted to say 'no' to everything? I can remember lots of days like that! This book will help small children understand that it is better to talk things out in the end; you will find you have more choices that way!

[Archit · Rating 4 out of 5]

All days are not the same. Today is not a day for Bella
It starts with her getting irritated by her baby brother and the day continues like that. She throws tantrums all day long. It seems as if she's doing it on purpose but she can't help it.

A heartwarming ending to the story. Well written.

[Rana Heshmati · Rating 5 out of 5]

چه روزهاي خوبي ان اون روزايي كه دقيقا همينقدر بداخلاقم و بقيه تحملم مي‌كنن و منم پشيمون ميشم و خدا رو شكر مي‌كنم كه هنوزم دوسم دارن. :((

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone has a bad day once in a while, even Neo. In this story, young Bella starts her day off poorly and it continues to sour from there.

[Hoda Marmar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shows kids that we all have bad days, and that every day is a new start with a new chance, and that by smiling we can turn things around.

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just say NO NO NO to this book. Blech. It seems as if Patterson was trying to write in the same manner as Viorst's "Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day" and epic fails. Whereas kids can relate to Alexander (as well as adults) and know that feeling when everything goes wrong, this book just makes you believe in spanking. The kid in the book is a brat and her tantrums seem blase and annoying. I hated the kid, hated the book and wished I hadn't bought it for the library collection.

[Joella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes kids throw tantrums. Sometimes they are BIG tantrums. This is a story about a little girl who throws a tantrum ALL. DAY. LONG. And she knows it. But she doesn't know what to do about it. But she also knows what it is like when she doesn't throw a tantrum. And sometimes that is the most important thing to know.

I liked it. Mostly I liked it because I have seen kids that have been super grumpy for long periods of time. And I like that this particular girl understands just what kind of day she is having. Plus I like that even though she is upset, she still wants (even though she says she doesn't) her mom to cuddle with her, read her a story, and help her get to sleep. And SUPER KUDOS to the mom for putting up with the little girl and not loosing her cool. And kudos to all the moms who do that over and over again.

[Resia37 · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a dreadful book for kids! I understand what the author is trying to portray but this book pretty much gives the OK to any child to simply throw horrible tantrums all day long without consequence just because they are having a "bad day". An example of disciplinary action should have been displayed by page three. I'm throwing this one in the trash before my kids get the chance to observe this horrible acceptance of poor behavior.

[Samin Anvari · Rating 5 out of 5]

جدا از اینکه نقاشی هاش واقعااااا با مزه بود، بهانه گیری های احمقانه بلّا برام قابل درک بود.

[Faloni © · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ain’t no mommy like the one Bella and baby Bob have! Mom treats her children like royalty and stays conscious of the words that she says. This is a fantastic way to heat up the our community spirit, do you know? We can work on practicing 100 words of affirmation, and slightly turn those no, no’s into positive vibes. As parents, married or single, you must remember that children are always paying close attention. This book encourages independence and the mommy allows children Bella and Bob to build their own identities and purpose. As the days unfold, the author shows how being involved in your child's daily life encourages them to develop interests and their own characters. It will take effort and strength to be there for your children every day. This doesn't mean you have to follow your children around every second of the day, it just means that you have to be there for all of those unique “no no” moments and temper tantrums. It is illustrated nicely and displays the importance of adhering to a strict bedtime routine. The mom uses words of praise to talk to her children and she reads to them before they go to sleep.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Yesterday I woke up and Bob was crawling around my room, licking my jewelry. So I shouted GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" My kids (and I) laugh a lot when we're reading this book. The story and pictures really capture the capricious and hilarious (when it's not happening to you) tantrums that just happen sometimes, no matter our ages. It was a library pick and we've read it probably 20 times this week. The kids (7 and 4) giggle whenever Bob comes onto the scene especially. Quite entertaining! And, we have also used it as a tool to have some conversations about when we feel like we're having a No No No day, and what are some of the ways we can feel better.

[Taddow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not a big fan of children’s books that entail a lot of the characters yelling or complaining (I get enough of that from my kids as it is) but my kids really love this book and they have it memorized. We read it so much and they get all excited when we do. One of my kids had a liquid “accident” and our copy of this book was the casualty of that incident so we had to throw it away. There were some rough times in the house until my wife was able to find a cheap replacement (I was surprised how much this book was going for from some of the sellers on Amazon).

[Liz Todd · Rating 2 out of 5]

Full of rotten behavior. Not very redeeming in the end, either.

[Coralie · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know. I hate to give any book a two star rating, but, honestly, I didn't like this one. I read it to my little brother last night. Our mom picked it up for him the other day, but only glanced at it. It's not really a bad book, per say, but I didn't care for the message.

It wasn't particularly well-written, though it wasn't written in error or grammatically incorrect, and the illustrations weren't particularly enchanting either. Now, I'm no artist and they're far better than I could have done, but they didn't draw my attention and make me stare either, so nothing really special there.

My main issue was the plot of the book. We spend the entire book reading about this absolute brat. Kay, kids are brats sometimes. I get that. No hard feelings there. It's realistic. I don't have a problem with a brat MC. I do have a problem with the fact that it was never truly addressed. Spoiler, the kid apologizes at the end, but it's literally one word. "Sorry" and then Mom just kind of glosses over it and says "It's okay." Then the last page is the kid having a fantastic day the next day. The point of the book did not escape me. The kid apologized. The mother forgave her. All was well. Bad days happen. Tomorrow will be better. That's the idea behind the book. But through this whole book (I'm reading to a six-year-old who doesn't think on more than one level at a time like adults do) this toddler is a complete and utter spoiled brat. Rejecting authority, being rude, being selfish, etc. And at the end of it all, all we get is a glossed over "it's all good." There was no, "I know we have bad days, but this behavior is unacceptable." There was no mention of it while the kid was being a brat. Kids don't have that long of an attention span! If you don't address the issue when it happens, the kid doesn't connect anything to the behavior! And the whole time I'm reading this, I'm just wondering what message I'm sending my brother. "It's okay to act out." "It's funny to act out." "You won't have any consequences for acting out." and so forth.

Look, maybe it's the physiology I've read and studied or the educator in me, but this just wasn't one I enjoyed. It's not one I'd buy or recommend, and it's not one I'll read again to either my siblings or any of my own kids.

[Amitha · Rating 5 out of 5]

(blogged this here)
From the moment Bella wakes up, nothing is right. Her baby brother is in her room ("GET OUT OF MY ROOM!"), her mother tries to giver her an egg for breakfast ("I CAN'T EAT THAT!"), and I won't even mention what happens in the grocery store (except to say that the snide looks from the other customers in the store is classic)!

I bought this book for my daughter's 3rd birthday and she (and the other birthday guests) wanted to read it as soon as it was unwrapped. Just the cover alone is hysterical. Everyone (especially the adults) laughed as we read about Bella's day and recognized my daughter and her cousin on every single page. So, so cute. I highly recommend this one!

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

We got this book for free from Dolly Parton's Imagination Library when my daughter was 1 or 2. She loved the book as a little toddler and even had it memorized from reading it so much. The story is about a little girl who is just having a bad day. She's saying NO to everything and being in a bad mood throughout the day. Of course there is a lesson in the end for little kids.

It's a cute book to read out loud because you can get "loud" as you read the little girl screaming NO NO NO :) My daughter enjoyed this book a lot for awhile before she grew out of it. I think she would still think it was cute now, but she has so many books we haven't been around to it for awhile.

[Keris · Rating 5 out of 5]

How I love this book. I read it to Joe whenever he's had a big shouting day of his own and it always makes me laugh. It makes him feel better too. (Tonight he asked me to snuggle up like the Mummy does in the book and tell him it will be better tomorrow.) I'm not a huge fan of the illustration style, but that's a nitpick because it really is wonderful.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would give this more stars to get it to genius level. All parents, children, and people in general can relate to days like this. The illustrations are amazing at conveying this girl's tirade from boiled eggs to itchy tights. We feel ya. Bonus that the mother keeps her cool, reminding us that all No Days will come to an end so we'd better not murder anyone.

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

LOL. Great expressions on the characters and very funny illustrations. This one's a winner.

Non-parents will be breathing a sigh of relief that they don't have to deal with this stuff in real life!

[J9 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book my 6 yr old as well as my twin 3 yr olds loved. A solid reading level 1 book, this cute story keeps all ages engaged with the bright colorful pictures and cute story. A great addition to any children's library.

[Erika Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading this book out loud to my kids, and they love listening. The text of this book is fun and encourages over the top, dramatic reading. And the illustrations are equally fun and really match the quirkiness of the girl telling the story. Love this cute little story!

[Bec · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a thrilling plot and a brilliant twist at end. The characters are so complex and honestly I could not choose a single favorite character. This book kept me on the edge of my seat and it was such a good read. Kudos to the poor mom in the story.

[Donalyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bella wakes up in a cross mood and the her entire day is one grouchy, annoyed, stressful moment after another (for both her and her family).

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think everybody has No No No days and I love that this little girl realized she had been onery, apologized and the mom freely forgave her! So much fun!

[James Koppert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aggie has never enjoyed a story book so much

[Sadia Mansoor · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tale of a lil TOO grumpy & cranky girl :/

[Kaela Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is definitely one I could see reading to my class when they might be having an ‘off’ day.

[Readasaurus Rex · Rating 5 out of 5]

We have read this book a million times. A cute story about a girl having a bad day.

[Sarah Newman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the message of this book - sometimes we all have bad days, and that’s okay.

[Morgan Lowery · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just want to read my no no no day
NOW