“It is more blessed to give than to receive.” This Bible verse – Acts 20:35 - is often repeated in some form around Christmastime, and it serves as the basis for The Three Gifts of Christmas,
a picture book in the Princess and the Kiss series written by Jennie
Bishop and illustrated by Preston McDaniels. The books are didactic in
nature, intended to encourage children to embrace pure-heartedness;
while other books in the series symbolically focus on issues of
temptation, particularly in the realm of abstinence, this one is all
about gratitude and generosity.
The main character is an unnamed
princess whose devoted parents are dismayed to see that after years of
having gifts lavished upon her by them and others in the kingdom, she
has become ungrateful. She feels entitled rather than appreciative. As a
result, they decide that drastic measures must be taken in order to
help her adjust her attitude. They gently inform her that while the
usual festivities will go on as before, this year, no one in the royal
family will receive gifts from the kingdom’s subjects, and the princess
will be given only three gifts by the king and queen, a reminder of the
Magi who brought gifts to Jesus. At first, the princess is distressed,
but she comes to realize the care with which each gift was chosen, and
this in turn makes her more open to sharing those gifts with others even
though she received far fewer than in years past.
The book is
written with an austere air, giving it the feel of a fairy tale from
long ago. The description of the gifts is especially rich and loaded
with symbolism. Bishop does veer toward the over-the-top at times, and
the princess’s transformation from a petulant whiner to a grateful giver
occurs so instantaneously that her acts of kindness seem a bit
anti-climactic. It might have been more effective to see her struggle a
bit more. In this regard, we see the princess as an ideal, and her
actions toward the end are something to aspire to, while her behavior at
the beginning is to be avoided. Most children will fall naturally
between the two extremes.
McDaniels, who has previously worked with the prolific Cynthia Rylant,
a Newbery-winning author of several beloved series, brings a winsome
charm to the illustrations, which fit the text perfectly. His depictions
of the princess herself are especially winning and more effectively
convey the complexity of her emotions than the text. I especially like
the illustration of her as she receives her three gifts and her face
registers her anticipation as well as her hesitation in getting started
since it will be over so quickly this year.
In addition to
encouraging gratitude and generosity, the book incorporates the
Christmas story as presented in the Gospel of Luke, and it is written
from an overtly Christian perspective with didactic intent. While I
think Bishop could have been a bit less heavy-handed, I still found the
story enjoyable, particularly in tandem with the illustrations. Bishop
reads expressively on the included audio CD, and the music that plays
behind her reading, which incorporates several Christmas carols,
complements the story nicely.
While I prefer more organic stories of Christian generosity like Kate DiCamillo’s Great Joy, The Three Gifts of Christmas
gets the message across well and is a good reminder of the joy to be
found in true thankfulness and in the willingness to give to others.
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