This First Christmas Night

by Laura Godwin, William Low (Illustrations)

See this small gray donkey,
this long, dusty road,
this promising star.

See this man, Joseph,
this woman, Mary.
Feel the frost on
this clear Bethlehem night.

Elegant, simple text and luminous art make this an almost hymn-like meditation on the meaning of Christmas and the Nativity story.

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Holiday, Christian, Religion, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

Published September 13, 2016

About the author

Laura Godwin grew up in Alberta, Canada. She has written many well-loved books for children, including Barnyard Prayers, Little White Dog, Happy & Honey, and co-authored The Doll People, The Meanest Doll in the World, and The Runaway Dolls. She lives in New York City.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy-to-read but evocative text describing the birth of that special baby is accompanied by lovely artwork created with Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. This lovely picture book would be an excellent introduction to the Nativity and one that might be shared with the entire family. The facial expressions are lifelike, and the gentleness of the animals in that manger as well as the curiosity of the visitors to the stable are rendered effectively here.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not Christian so I don't have a sense of how this fits in with other books like it, but I liked the peaceful, understated, image-forward way of telling a Christmas story. More is left to the readers than in the text, so I imagine parents reading this book to children may have their own ways of embellishing the story.

[Katrina Tangen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gentle, lyrical nativity story.

[E & E’s Mama · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple nativity board book for infants and toddlers.

(Note to self: found through ILL)

[Set · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty pictures, simple and soft bedtime rhymes about the first Christmas.

[Rose Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Luminous Christmas detailing the Christmas story focused around the senses. Even a child can understand them. The characters of the first Christmas night tell the story: first, the donkey, then Joseph, the wise men, the camels, the shepherds, the sheep, the cattle, the doves, the lamb, Mary the mother and the angels. Beautiful luminous illustrations.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice nativity book for your holiday reading.

Ages: 2 - 6

Cleanliness: nothing to note.

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[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 2 out of 5]

Godwin, Laura This First Christmas Night, illustrated by William Low. PICTURE BOOK. Feiwel & Friends (Macmillan), 2016. $17.

The text of this book about the Nativity is sweet and almost rhythmic. Unfortunately, the illustrations are dark, muddy, and lack detail and don’t add the needed umph to making this a top notch holiday book choice.

Pre-K, EL (K-3) – OPTIONAL. Cindy, Library Teacher
http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2016/...

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations--I especially like the use of light--but the text is pretty dull.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple and clear, perfect for reading aloud to younger kids if you want a toddler to have a basic understanding of the Christian nativity story.

[Ruth Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simple telling of the wondrous story of the first Christmas. Beautiful illustrations make a hushed and peaceful setting for the Nativity story.

[Brindi Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

the way the Christmas story is told in this book is delightful. so sweet.

[Danette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read with Naomi & Julia.

Simple and sweet.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clear and simple with elegant illustrations.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A hushed and soothing retelling of the birth of Jesus.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations were beautiful and the text simple!

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beautiful illustrations make this version of the story of the birth of Jesus a good one.

[Chelsea Hoschar · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘This First Christmas Night’ is a beautifully illustrated, simply worded tour through the very first Christmas. It is not wordy or long; actually it is quite short. It simply looks at each element of the Christmas story like the donkey, the inn, the stable, and the manger. It’s a beautifully done book and perfect for readers who need fewer words on the page. It will be one that students will love to read during the Christmas holiday season. This is a great Christmas book to have in a library collection.