This is the second in a series of three articles about our favorite Christmas books for children. The number three book was B is for Bethlehem. Today I am reviewing our number two book which is One Wintry Night which was written by Ruth Bell Graham and illustrated by Richard Jesse Watson.
There are only two characters in this story. Zeb Morris who is a young, mountain-smart buy and “the woman” who is the narrator and a grandmotherly figure. Zeb gets caught by a winter storm while hiking in the mountains and he comes upon the home of the woman, who takes him in. She spends days telling Zeb the real Christmas story.
The woman tells the Christmas story by starting at Creation. She calls the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil the “Testing Tree”. As she shares with Zeb about the Fall she says, “From the beginning of time, we needed Christmas.” (pg 23) She weaves her story through the Old Testament visiting Noah, Moses, Samuel and Daniel along the way. When she arrives at the birth of Jesus the story is told from the viewpoint of Aaron and Anna, two children who lived in Bethlehem. Zeb doesn’t understand how a baby could save the world so the woman continues the story-fast forwarding to when Aaron and Anna are grown and observing the Passover, and they hear the news of Jesus’ arrest.
Beautifully written and illustrated, One Wintry Night, is the perfect family read-a-loud. Whether you know the Bible or not, you can’t help but be captivated by Mrs Graham’s lovely storytelling. Mr Watson’s hand painted egg tempera illustrations are breathtaking.
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