Christmas with Vera!
After opening this picture book/craft book with a two-page spread of charming portraits introducing the characters, Bastin invites readers into Vera’s Blue Cottage as she readies for the Christmas holiday. Vera, a fashionable mouse with a fantastic wardrobe, and friends cut stars out of apples, make dough ornaments and marzipan snowballs (recipes included), and more. The most accessible of the interactive crafts (most require adult involvement) is for a decorated toilet-paper tube called a Christmas cracker. A small gift to place at the holiday table, the crackers can be filled with small candies, toys, and messages (suggestions range from fortunes like “next year you will get all A’s” to a coupon that is “good for one back rub”). With a Tasha Tudor feel, this uneven blend of storybook and craft book will nevertheless get readers in the holiday spirit with endearing characters, festive borders, and richly detailed watercolor paintings. Grades K-2. --Patricia Austin