I am Santa by Kristy Haile - BLOG TOUR/BOOK REVIEW/GIVEAWAY {CLOSED}

Title:  I am Santa
Author: Kristy Haile
Publisher:  Happy Bean Publishing
Publish Date:  October, 2010
Paperback, 343 pages
ISBN 10: 0982704313

ISBN13: 9780982704318

Cover Description:

What would it take of you to believe in your child when nobody else did?  What would you do if all of a sudden your son truly believed with all of his heart that he was indeed the New Real Santa Claus?

Enjoy this journey into a little boy's imagination as he struggles in a world of doubt, continuously striving to turn non believers into believers.  I believe my son is the New Real Santa Claus no matter what other people may believe.  The question is, do you believe?

My Take:  I'm going to do this review post a little differently than my others.  Tell me how it works for you.

What it's about:  It's about a little boy named Nicholas who believes he is the "new real Santa".  On a trip to the mall with his mom and older sister, he talks to a man who LOOKS like Santa Claus.  His mother, in the interest of encouraging his imagination, buys him a Santa suit that he picks out at the toy store on one of their trips there.  Nicholas wears his Santa suit ALL of the time, even past Christmas through New Year's.  If he could, he would wear it through the year, but there is a point where even an encouraging parent must draw the line.  We meet the elves at the North Pole, and find out details about their work that we never knew before.

His sister Holly eventually believes that he is Santa Claus too, however, she is embarrassed by her friends' reactions to her little brother being Santa Claus.  But she loves him, and is backed up by at least one of her friends in defending him.

The story is narrated by Nicholas' mom, who also ends up believing that her son is the new "real Santa Claus".  She has a more difficult time convincing her husband Garrett of this.  She shows a lot of faith, love, and encouragement to Nicholas, and has to deal with the disapproval of many adults who, of course, have quite a bit to say on the subject.

Pros:  This is a cute story about a little boy and his mom.  I liked how her love for her children came through on the pages, and I LOVED that she didn't automatically discourage her son's imagination.  She tells of everyday events, and some not-so-everyday events (I don't think it's everyday that you find out that your son is Santa Claus!) in a believable fashion that every parent can relate to.

Cons:  This book could have definitely used a proofreader or an editor.  It is filled with typos, misspelled words, missing and misplaced punctuation, and even mismatched tenses within the same paragraph.  I also have some problems with the narration.  I realize that it is in the voice of the mom telling the story, but the use of "anyways" and "when that had happened" to repetitive phrases, like "Holly and Nicholas love it whenever their dad makes them pancakes because he can seriously make them whatever design of pancake they want.  Garrett makes every design of pancakes.  He makes every thing from alligator pancakes, to pirate hook pancakes and every design in between, including Nicholas's favorite Santa hat."  (and no, "every thing" is not a typo on my part) just threw me for a loop every time I came across them.  .

Wrap-up: All in all, if you can get past the editorial errors and the dialect, it is a sweet story.  As a mom myself, I could definitely relate to the mom's dilemma here.  How do you encourage your child when other people are constantly telling you not to?  How do you divide your time and attention equally between more than one child?  What happens when your child is an important and famous figure (like Santa Claus?).
                                                             

QUOTES:

"I am the new real Santa Claus and whether you want to believe in me or not is your choice.  However, if you would like to maintain your current status on the nice list, you should really watch your behavior, especially your behavior towards the new real Santa Claus!"

Couldn't there be like a five birthday party limit per child per year?

"The little cousins really believe their cousin Nicholas is the new real Santa Claus and they are taking turns getting on his lap to tell him what they want for Christmas."

Book Rating:   3.0 out of 5 stars

BUY IT:  Through the publisher website.

WIN IT:  Dorothy at Pump Up Your Book was kind enough to allow one of my readers to win a copy of this title!  Thanks, Dorothy!

MANDATORY ENTRY:   How do you encourage your child or another young one's imagination?  Bebe Boy James used to have imaginary friends with exotic names; I never said, "Dude!  That's crazy talk!", I simply asked him what they looked like and if they were nice.  If they WEREN'T nice, I took out my imaginary sword and chopped off their heads!

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ELIGIBILITY:  Open to US and Canada

End Date:  Friday, December 10, at 11:59 PM EST

This book is part of my 2010 Holiday Reading Challenge list

This book is part of my Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge List

Disclosure:  I received a complimentary copy of this title to facilitate my review through Pump Up Your Book.  No other compensation was received, and I was not required to post a positive review.