The Gift from Saint Nicholas

by Dorothea Lachner, Maja Dusíková (Illustrator)

It is Saint Nicholas Eve and Anna and Misha are worried. It's been snowing for days and all the villagers are trapped in their houses. ""Saint Nicholas Day won't be any fun if we can't get out to see Grandfather Gregor or any of our friends,"" says Misha. ""If only Saint Nicolas would blow a path through the snow!"" Saint Nicholas hears the children, but the mysterious gift he leaves in the village square is not at all what they had in mind. It is, however, exactly what they and the entire snowbound village need most, and it leads to a joyous celebration that's true to the spirit of the holiday.

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Holiday, Inspirational

32 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1994

Reviews

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

With just one gift, Saint Nicholas fulfills a whole village’s dearest wish. His gift, a timeless treasure, will last for a lifetime when properly cherished and nurtured. A heartwarming story about the gifts we don’t realize we need until they’re out of reach.

[Manybooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dorothea Lachner's picture book The Gift from Saint Nicholas (Ein Geschenk vom Nikolaus in its original German) is not in any way religiously oriented (Saint Nicholas is thus neither depicted or presented as the historical Greek Bishop of Myra nor as clad in ecclesiastical garments, but simply appears as a jolly European Santa Claus like entity who provides gift and holiday cheer, even when the weather outside is frightful, coldly snowing and socially isolating).

And both Lachner's narrative in The Gift from Saint Nicholas (and by extension J. Alison James' translation as well, although I have not been able to obtain a copy of the German original so I can only provide a personal feeling and speculation that James' English language adaptation does feel and read authentic and story-like) and Maja Dusíková's accompanying illustrations for The Gift from Saint Nicholas are evocative and sweetly tenderly uplifting (a perfect mirror of and for one-another, text and images gracefully and realistically present both the isolation of the snowed in village and the resultant joy which Saint Nicholas' communal gift ends up providing to its residents); and Saint Nicholas using skis for his trip into the snowed in village, well, that really does tickle my imaginative fancy.

Now I am actually not going to reveal exactly what is contained in the large mystery parcel Saint Nicholas leaves in the centre of the village in The Gift from Saint Nicholas except to point out and proclaim that while indeed both unexpected and different, the gift is exactly what the villagers require, exactly what is needed to cheer their winter weary hearts and to celebrate both the season and neighbourly togetherness. Highly recommended, although unfortunately both the German original and the English translation are seemingly not in current print (and Ein Geschenk vom Nikolaus especially, is currently pretty ridiculously, even obscenely expensive as a used book, which is why I have not purchased a copy, which is why I have made due with The Gift From Saint Nicholas, with the translation, as it was or at least used to be available at my local library).

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I so enjoyed this story about the surprising gift St. Nicholas brings to a usually friendly, cheerful town that is snowed-in and reluctant to come out of their homes, even to celebrate St. Nicholas Day together. The illustrations are wonderful, warm and very evocative of their European setting. And I love that St. Nick comes into the village downhill on skiis--no lounging in a comfy sleigh pulled by reindeer for this jolly elf! ;-) It's also nice to see a book celebrating the tradition of St. Nick's Day (December 6th) which is largely unknown/not celebrated here in the US though my family celebrated it thanks to our German background.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank Floris Books for my copy.

Delightful old tale of Santa granting children their wishes with a twist of a lesson. Anna and Michael aren't sure how Santa is going to get to their snowed in village. But Anna has faith that Santa will put on his skis (no reindeer in this story) and find a way to pull the village together for Christmas. And he does...to everyone's delight. The illustrations that accompany the story are beautiful and old world looking.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Gift from Saint Nicholas.

Originally published as Ein Geschenk vom Nikolaus, this delightful holiday picture-book from Austrian children's author Dorothea Lachner, and Slovak illustrator Maja Dusíková, is the perfect selection for a St. Nicholas Day celebration! When the deep snow keeps everyone in Misha and Anna's village in their homes, the two children worry that their St. Nicholas Day celebration will be ruined, and make a wish that St. Nicholas will blow a path through the snow. The saint, hearing their plea, sends a gift that, while not exactly what they asked for, accomplishes what they want...

Having enjoyed this author's series of picture-books about quirky Meredith, the Witch Who Wasn't , I was curious to see how I would like her holiday title. It turns out that I liked it quite a bit! The heartwarming story, which emphasizes the importance of community - of spending time with family, friends and neighbors - rather than presents, is perfectly complemented by Maja Dusíková's charming illustrations, which reminded me a little bit of the work of Lisbeth Zwerger, but with a rounder, more "roly-poly" feeling. Her St. Nicholas on skis is particularly winsome! Recommended to young readers who celebrate St. Nicholas Day, or who are curious about it, and to all children who love Santa stories!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story translated from the Sweedish. Saint Nick gives the village a teapot which brings them all together. What a wonderful message about the importance of togetherness! I enjoyed the illustrations. The story should be read to elementary age students because of the length.

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, I love the front cover image of St. Nicholas as a downhill skier. Secondly, this is a really cute story about how Saint Nicholas cunningly answers the wishes of two little girls in an unexpected way. Definitely worth a read.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Santa Claus and the Christmas Surprise.

When their mountain village is snowed in for Christmas, Anna and Michael send their wish for a Merry Christmas winging to Santa, and that jolly holiday gift giver, thinking hard, comes up with the perfect present. Skiing down the mountainside, he deposits his gift in the center of the village, necessitating that everyone dig out to it, reconnecting all of the villagers who were previously separated, and leading to a wonderful community celebration...

When I picked up Santa Claus and the Christmas Surprise, I immediately recognized both the author and illustrator's names, and got very excited, having enjoyed their "other" holiday picture-book, The Gift from Saint Nicholas , quite a bit. Imagine my surprise when, getting it home, I discovered that it was the exact same book (even the same translation), simply with a new title. Originally published in German as Ein Geschenk vom Nikolaus, this lovely Christmas picture-book has been published in English again, by Edinburgh-based Floris Books, and I for one am glad! I am also glad that I revisited it, finding the story sweet and heartwarming - full of the holiday spirit! - and the artwork lovely. Recommended to anyone looking for beautiful Christmas picture-books.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a variant on Stone Soup... so even though I don't celebrate Christmas, I very much enjoyed the book. (Too bad it's just a bit too tall for the library shelves and is scraped along the top.)

[Nancy Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

i revisited this story this holiday season to find I had typed out the text probably over a decade ago. I'm reminded that I had planned to share this story in a storytelling session. Readers will enjoy guessing what is the present that Saint Nicholas could have left for the whole village to share. Especially when they are in the midst of a snowstorm and no one is leaving their home or are they?

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Santa brings the children a kettle--which they think is odd. But they use the kettle and invite everyone over for hot chocolate. It was the experience that made Christmas, not the gift itself. Kind of a magical message. Illustrations were very charming.

[Emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is more Santa than Saint Nicholas. Not what I'm looking for.

[Shiloah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartwarming children’s Christmas story.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet book about a Christmas surprise that Santa Claus brings to a village that brings them a happy Christmas.

[Marni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes our needs are so simple. A little connection, a little love.

[Tory · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title AND the events of this book imply that, for some reason, this year Santa was just not going to deliver any gifts to anyone. And in the end he only brought one gift to one village because they asked him directly. What’s going on? Is he only working part-time these days or something? Very curious.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the illustrations in “Santa Claus and the Christmas Surprise.” I enjoyed the ending of the book, too. Kids will enjoy its magic!

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

The art is a delight!

[Clwseattle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Santa Claus and the Christmas Surprise is charming all around, especially with wishes landing on Santa's beard and his searching for the perfect gift. The grands, not so much. The lesson of not getting exactly what you hope for but what you don't know you need was lost on them.

I prefer old fashioned and traditional illustrations as in Santa Claus and the Christmas Surprise as opposed to more loud ones which still, of course have their place.

4 Stars for Santa Claus and the Christmas Surprise.

[Octavia Octopus · Rating 5 out of 5]

My preschooler and I loved this Santa story! It's refreshing for Santa to leave a gift that must be shared and is an experience, which first yields a "what kind of gift is that?!" kind of response. Images of Santa skiing are particularly adorable. This book is actually altering how we approach Santa gifts at our house, for the better!

[Oak · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciated the focus on togetherness, and that santa didn’t enter anyones home. The watercolor drawings are beautiful!

[Lewis & Luther Bark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok. A made up story about St. Nicholas

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.