Letters from the North Pole: with Five Letters from Santa Claus to Pull Out and Read

Gr 2-4–Atkins’s picture book debut utilizes her notable film-prop design skills from The Boxtrolls and Isle of Dogs in an interactive and visually lush holiday tale. Children around the world are getting ready of Christmas. Each writes Santa a letter with a question and a toy design idea. Their response is delivered in a vintage envelope accompanied by a typed letter in verse and a patent schematic of their toy suggestion. By Christmas Eve, all the children are asleep and ready for morning. The book’s true beauty is its well-conceived interactive features and attention to period details. There are five envelopes holding Santa’s letters and toy drawings. Atkins’s thoughtful design is joyous in its expression of period details like elaborate script, postmarked stamps, varied typewriter key strikes, and toy schematics which appear hand drawn. Tobing’s digital illustrations of the children’s narrative complement Santa’s letters by utilizing the same jewel-tone palette.