ON THAT CHRISTMAS NIGHT

Joslin retells the story of the birth of Jesus in a conversational tone, covering events beginning with the arrival of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, with a reprise of the angel Gabriel’s visitation, through the Nativity, the flight into Egypt and on into the childhood of Jesus as the son of a carpenter. The smoothly written narrative includes imagined dialogue for the characters as well as Biblical text reworked as speech, and some background explanations, on King Herod, for example, that put the Nativity story into a more complete context than many Christmas titles for children. Cann’s attractive watercolor illustrations include rich colors and lots of motion: swirling clouds and trails of stars, angels with flowing hair and robes and marbled-paper effects for trees and costume details. This is a visually appealing and well-written presentation that will be a welcome resource for both parents and church-school programs. (Picture book. 5-8)