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Christmas with the Rural Mail
A gentle poem describing the journey of a mail sleigh through rural Nova Scotia at Christmastime, delivering packages and parcels to children, Christmas with the Rural Mail is a Canadian holiday classic. The poem is carefully crafted to fit Maud Lewis's colorful paintings, and the mail sleigh passes children skiing and tobogganing, oxen and Clydesdale horses pulling heavy loads, and the train station, among other classic rural winter scenes. Lewis's artwork is ideal for babies and toddlers, with its bright colors and simple forms, and the paintings and poem together perfectly evoke Christmases gone by. This is a sturdy board book edition great for young readers.
- GenresPicture Books
24 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
12 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 29, 2024
Lance Woolaver's featured poem for his 1979 picture book Christmas with the Rural Mail, his verses are textually caressing, are sweetly tenderly gentle and that with regard to both contents and also lyrical style (nicely rhyming and almost a bit song-like) Woolaver delightfully expressively shows the journey of a mail sleigh through rural Nova Scotia at Christmastime (and with abundant snow) delivering packages and parcels to the houses on its route and of course especially to and for waiting children.
And that Christmas with the Rural Mail has Lance Woolaver feature a mail sleigh instead of a mail truck and that the only ways of getting around are generally horse drawn sleds/carriages, the railroad (and with a total absence of any and all automobiles), this in my opinion shows that Christmas with the Rural Mail is obviously meant to describe the late 19th century or very early 20th century and that with regard to a sense of geographic place (and indeed also of time), Christmas with the Rural Mail is delightful and spot-on rural Nova Scotia themed and that both Woolaver's engaging poem and Maud Lewis' captivatingly colourful accompanying artwork present a marvellous and magical combination of text and images, with Lance Woolaver's verses totally reflecting Lewis's folk art paintings and vice versa (and that the bright and snowy pictures of pictures of children skiing, skating and tobogganing, of Maud Lewis' signature oxen and Clydesdale horses pulling heavy loads, of bright and indeed also not ever threatening snowscapes, of sheds offering fish for sale and a picture of the Bay of Fundy with a large ship probably unloading its cargo for the waiting train to transport, all of these paintings are wonderfully visually rural Nova Scotia during winter themed and the final image of Christmas with the Rural Mail showing a bright and cozy Christmas scene with a magnificent and lit Christmas tree and a baby in their cradle waiting for the present that is arriving via the rural mail of Woolaver's poem).
Finally, just to say and to point out that while Maud Lewis' artwork for Christmas with the Rural Mail is ideal for toddlers, with its bright colours and simple forms, Lance Woolaver's poem might perhaps be just a wee bit too long and involved for very young children (although in my humble opinion, if Christmas with the Rural Mail is read aloud and in manageable bits and pieces, this should most definitely also work really nicely for/with toddlers, and that the artwork is and as already mentioned above absolutely suitable and appropriate for the very young, but yes indeed, that Christmas with the Rural Mail should actually both textually and illustratively work really nicely for everyone young and old, and that for me personally, Woolaver's words and Lewis images combine superbly for a five star reading and visual experience experience in Christmas with the Rural Mail and celebrate both Christmas and also winter as a season, and as such also as a season of and for fun snow and ice based outdoor activities).
And that Christmas with the Rural Mail has Lance Woolaver feature a mail sleigh instead of a mail truck and that the only ways of getting around are generally horse drawn sleds/carriages, the railroad (and with a total absence of any and all automobiles), this in my opinion shows that Christmas with the Rural Mail is obviously meant to describe the late 19th century or very early 20th century and that with regard to a sense of geographic place (and indeed also of time), Christmas with the Rural Mail is delightful and spot-on rural Nova Scotia themed and that both Woolaver's engaging poem and Maud Lewis' captivatingly colourful accompanying artwork present a marvellous and magical combination of text and images, with Lance Woolaver's verses totally reflecting Lewis's folk art paintings and vice versa (and that the bright and snowy pictures of pictures of children skiing, skating and tobogganing, of Maud Lewis' signature oxen and Clydesdale horses pulling heavy loads, of bright and indeed also not ever threatening snowscapes, of sheds offering fish for sale and a picture of the Bay of Fundy with a large ship probably unloading its cargo for the waiting train to transport, all of these paintings are wonderfully visually rural Nova Scotia during winter themed and the final image of Christmas with the Rural Mail showing a bright and cozy Christmas scene with a magnificent and lit Christmas tree and a baby in their cradle waiting for the present that is arriving via the rural mail of Woolaver's poem).
Finally, just to say and to point out that while Maud Lewis' artwork for Christmas with the Rural Mail is ideal for toddlers, with its bright colours and simple forms, Lance Woolaver's poem might perhaps be just a wee bit too long and involved for very young children (although in my humble opinion, if Christmas with the Rural Mail is read aloud and in manageable bits and pieces, this should most definitely also work really nicely for/with toddlers, and that the artwork is and as already mentioned above absolutely suitable and appropriate for the very young, but yes indeed, that Christmas with the Rural Mail should actually both textually and illustratively work really nicely for everyone young and old, and that for me personally, Woolaver's words and Lewis images combine superbly for a five star reading and visual experience experience in Christmas with the Rural Mail and celebrate both Christmas and also winter as a season, and as such also as a season of and for fun snow and ice based outdoor activities).
February 11, 2025
This is a board book and these are aimed at toddlers. However, the text is a long , but interesting Christmas poem which is unsuitable for the toddler and preschool group.
The illustrations are folk art style paintings done by Maude Lewis a Canadian folk artist who became much more famous after her death than prior to it. She was very poor during her lifetime as well as handicapped. I love her work as it is untrained folk art of many rural life scenes.
The illustrations are folk art style paintings done by Maude Lewis a Canadian folk artist who became much more famous after her death than prior to it. She was very poor during her lifetime as well as handicapped. I love her work as it is untrained folk art of many rural life scenes.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews