What's the Name of That Book??? discussion
This topic is about
St. Nicholas and the Valley Beyond
SOLVED: Children's/YA
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SOLVED. Unusual Christmas book about a boy named Wolfie and St. Nicholas [s]
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I received it as a Christmas gift in the mid-2000s (I think)!
I think I found itSt. Nicholas and the Valley Beyond: 2a Christmas Legend
One of the Goodreads review says: This oversized, beautifully illustrated book tells the story of a boy named Nicholas who wanders into a hidden valley where everyone is happy and likes to make things. There he stays and grows up and marries and forgets the world of poverty and hunger that he left behind. But something in his happy world is wrong, and he and his wife, with the help of a mysterious boy they name Wolf, set out to find the answer.
Also, a review on Amazon mentioned the wife being named Wilhelmina.
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A reviewer on Amazon mentions Wilhelmina:
"I got to know and help provide care for "Wilhelmina" in her later years - a central character in this delightful story. Even without the personal connection, the story should have broad emotional appeal to children of all ages. Colleagues at work who are from Snoqualmie, and have personal connections to all the characters, have enjoyed filling in additional background details that have served to expand my joy in now owning my own copy of this book."
http://www.amazon.com/St-Nicholas-Val...
Yes yes yessss!!! Thank you so much Tab! This really means a lot to me -- I've been searching for this book for such a long time now. I never thought that I'd be able to read it again. Just ordered a copy online!
I don't remember the story perfectly, but here's what I do remember: on Christmas eve, a poor starving waifish boy is stumbling along a cold wet alley when he finds a door/portal. The next morning, Nicholas (St. Nicholas) wakes up to find the boy at his door and he asks his wife Wilhelmina to feed him. After seeing him eat so ravenously, Nick and Willie decide to nickname him Wolfie. Over the course of the next few days, Nick and Willie take Wolfie throughout town. They visit an inn, a candy factory, and doll shop, etc. The candy factory and doll shop illustrations are incredibly whimsical and bright! When they reach the frozen lake, someone tells them that the lake is sinking. There's a bit about the dangers of walking into the fog at the cliff of the mountain, and there's a riddle that's echoed throughout the book about the star apple. The beginning reads: "Two hands can take me..."