Miss Mary's Christmas Mittens

by Trinka Hakes Noble, Rene Andriani (Illustrator)

Miss Mary is beloved by her students. She makes learning enjoyable and easy, and her brightly colored knitwear brings a smile to everyone's face. Walking to school on the last day before the Christmas break, Miss Mary envisions all the fun students will have at recess. They'll make snow angels, build snowmen, and play other winter games. But recess isn't fun. No one wants to play. The snow is cold and the children don't have any mittens. Not to worry, thinks Miss Mary. She will knit mittens for her students as a Christmas surprise. But the store has run out of yarn, with no more deliveries before Christmas. Oh dear, where can Miss Mary find the yarn to knit mittens for her students? The clock is ticking on this holiday surprise. Brought to life in charming colorful artwork, this uplifting and gratifying story of generosity and love reminds readers of all ages that the best gifts come straight from the heart.

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Holiday, Childrens, School, Knitting

32 pages, Hardcover

Published August 15, 2022

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet story focusing on the selfless, giving aspect of Christmas and the joy in doing for others. I absolutely applaud that. However, the delivery left me a bit underwhelmed. It's doesn't go quite far enough to be just silly-good-fun and who-cares-if-its-realistic but is also just ridiculous enough that it doesn't feel totally realistic. It is strange that not a single (apparently comfortably middle class) student in Miss Mary's class doesn't have a pair of mittens. It seems quite of another era that, when the local craft store has no yarn, Miss Mary doesn't have any other options for getting yarn (apparently, this town must be quite removed from all other civilization such that one couldn't drive to another store and I guess no one does online ordering?) and then more incredible still that she unravels every knit item in her home to make her own balls of yarn from which to knit the kiddos mittens and scurries about on Christmas morning dropping them off on the kids’ doorsteps. I sound like Scrooge here and I don't mean to -- it is clearly meant to be a fun story about ingenuity and giving even when it means self-sacrifice but, as other reviewers have noted, it almost feels like it went too far (ala The Giving Tree) and just wasn't as good as I expected but maybe I had my hopes too high after Trinka Hakes Noble’s wonderful Apple Tree Christmas.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Energetic, colorful, and caring, Miss Mary has certainly created a warm and safe classroom community for her students. Just as she's shared her love for various subjects and experiences in the past, she is eager to share her love for snow and winter during recess. But even though it's the first snowfall of the year, the students aren't able to enjoy their outdoor activities because they have no gloves or mittens, and their fingers are too cold. When she decides to knit mittens for all 20 of her students but learns that the yarn shop's supplies have been depleted, Miss Mary unravels all her own knitted objects and repurposes the yarn into colorful mittens that she then wraps and delivers outside their homes. When Christmas arrives, the children are pleased to be able to spend time playing in the snow and leave a special thank you for their kind-hearted teacher. While I love the message of generosity, self-sacrifice, and caring as well as the instructions for a small knitted ornament in the back matter, something about Miss Mary's sacrifice seemed problematic. Why should she feel compelled to use up all her knitted possessions in order to create something that could be used by others? Why did none of the youngsters' parents purchase or knit handwear for their children? Surely, that sort of cold weather gear would be an essential and fairly inexpensive purchase. As another reviewer noted, this story reminds me of The Giving Tree with its message about giving until there isn't anything left to give, a concept that might seem ideal on the surface but is more than a little problematic when it comes to relationships. The colorful illustrations are just as heartwarming as the story despite my concerns. It might be worthwhile to discuss other options for Miss Mary and those students and how she knew exactly where each student lived.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I requested a digital galley of this book because the cover art and blurb was so cute.

And the art of this picture book is really great. Overall, the story is too. But it just got a little "the giving tree" on me - this teacher, who presumably has given a lot of herself as a teacher, unravels her own garments to get enough yarn to knit mittens and scarves so her students can play in the snow (because they don't have any gloves? where are there parents?).... But what if SHE'S cold?? What about her clothes? (the students write a thank you in the snow...) It is a sweet story, but also sad in a way.

[Stacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a substitute teacher, I’ve seen kids that come to school without hats or mittens and then are miserable at recess because they are cold. When the first snowfall comes, Miss Mary, an elementary teacher, is excited to celebrate with an extra-long recess on the day before Christmas break. She envisions the kids making snowmen, snow forts, and snow angels. But, instead, the kids didn’t play in the snow because they didn’t have warm mittens on their hands. Miss Mary was sad that they were missing out on all the outdoor fun.

After school, Miss Mary had an idea. She went to the yarn shop, but all the shelves were empty. How was she going to make mittens for all of the children in her classroom by Christmas? Miss Mary returned home and then had a bright idea. She worked hard for the next two days and delivered the best gift to each of her students on Christmas morning.

I love this story of a teacher going over the top to make sure her students are happy and cared for. Miss Mary is a beloved teacher and makes learning fun and her students adore her. When she surprises them with a Christmas gift, her gift in return is the joy in her students’ laughter and the sound of them playing outside. It made her feel as warm as a mitten inside.

The illustrations are delightful. The expressions are clear and show worry, determination, joy, and cold children. The students in her classroom are diverse and I loved that Miss Mary has red hair. There is so much joy in this story and it warms my heart to read it. I can’t wait to share it with a classroom this season.

The end of the book features a pattern to make your own knitted ornaments. This would make a great holiday project to do with your child or maybe even to give as a gift to their teacher!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Mary is a lively and energetic teacher who knows how to make lessons fun. She is very excited when it snows on the last day before Christmas vacation and plans snow activities for an extra long recess. However, the students are too cold to enjoy the snow because they don't have mittens. A wonderful picture book with a great message about the joy of giving. A big-hearted Christmas picture book that will be useful in introducing the craft of knitting.

[Patricia N. McLaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this heartwarming story, an elementary school teacher demonstrates extraordinary generosity by knitting mittens for her students and delivering the Secret Santa gifts to their homes as a Christmas surprise. Colorful artwork shows how giving of oneself can benefit the entire community, especially when generosity is paid forward.

[Cathy Hodge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Mary wants to knit mittens for her students so they will play outside in the snow. When there is no yard to buy, she selflessly uses her own knitted garments to recycle into gifts for the children. In return, the students send Miss Mary a message. This is a very sweet story. Enjoy.

[Mary M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful!

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

So cute.... So loving!

[Mary Frances · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a delightful book if you have a knitter in the family. I don’t think that I will buy this for our Christmas collection, but I will check it out again.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming story about selfless giving, love, and appreciation. Darling illustrations perfectly match the text.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet story about a teacher who makes mittens for all her students for Christmas because none of them have any. Illustrations are cute!

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knitting and gifts and playing in the snow

[Marg Corjay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful, fun, bright colorful illustrations.