Llama Llama Holidays: Llama Llama Holiday Drama by Anna Dewdney

SPARKLY CANDLES, YUMMY BREAD.
DRESS-UP CLOTHES IN GREEN AND RED.

HOW LONG TILL THAT SPECIAL DATE?
LLAMA, LLAMA HAS TO WAIT.

For a lot of us grownups, the rituals of pre-holiday days--the goodies, the music, wrapping presents, parties with friends and family--are the best part. But for the little ones whose dazzled eyes are on the prize--those long-awaited gifts from Santa under the tree--the big day is way too long in coming. The earlier the jingle bells start up, the more the tension builds, and many a toddler meltdown has been the not-so-merry result.

Anna Dewdney's insightful new Llama Llama Holiday Drama (Viking, 2010) documents the fun and the fuss over the holiday season perfectly. All the fun and frustration of those hustle-bustle days are seen in little Llama's eyes and reflected humorously in the eyes of his little stuffed llama who goes everywhere with him. As in her wonderful earlier Llama, Llama books, Dewdney shrewdly catches, from a child's eye view, the frustrations of daily life, especially the ones that build excitement over that time between the day the Halloween treats are all gone and that Christmas morning release.

LLAMA, LLAMA HOLIDAYS.
ADS, SIGNS, AND STORE DISPLAYS.

Mama Llama trudges through it all with little Llama in tow--choosing gifts for his friends, making what seems like millions of cookies, struggling to untangle the lights for their tree--and for a little Llama, it is all overwhelming.

TOO MUCH MUSIC. TOO MUCH FLUFF.
TOO MUCH MAKING. TOO MUCH STUFF!

Mama knows all too well what is likely to come next--big time Llama Drama! Leaving the lights in a tangle around them, she quietly takes him on her lap and gives him a cuddle.

WISHING, WAITING, WANTING THINGS...
WE FORGET WHAT THIS TIME BRINGS.

GIFTS ARE NICE, BUT THERE'S ANOTHER--
THE TRUE GIFT IS WE HAVE EACH OTHER.

It's not a new message, but Dewdney makes it once more and makes it well in a way that little ones can understand. There can be too much excitement, too many wants, too many gifts, but there can never be too much family time together for little ones, and in her first holiday outing, Llama Llama Holiday Drama, Anna Dewdney sticks up for those homey holiday hopes that really bring a "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night."