Synopses & Reviews
It's Christmas and Nella is beside herself with excitement! She and her sisters have been given a real gift—a beautiful Baby Betty doll. But it's hard to share something you've waited your whole seven-year-old life for, and Nella grabs the doll for herself. It isn't long before she discovers that a doll can't do the fun things she and her sisters do together. So, as Christmas day fades, Nella shares it with her sisters. Set in the Depression era South, here's a heartwarming story that captures the essence of the holiday.
Synopsis
Newbery Honor winning author McKissack and Caldecott Medal winning illustrator Pinkney have outdone themselves in this heart-warming story infused with humor and the true spirit of Christmas.
Christmas always comes to Nella s house, but Santa Claus brings gifts only once in a while. That s because it s the Depression and Nella s family is poor. Even so, Nella s hoping that this year she and her two sisters will get a beautiful Baby Betty doll.
On Christmas morning, the girls are beside themselves with excitement There is Baby Betty, in all her eyelash-fluttering magnificence. Mine Nella shouts, and claims the doll for herself. But soon she discovers that Baby Betty isn t nearly as much fun as her sisters. Would it be more fun to share this very best gift with them after all?"
About the Author
PATRICIA MCKISSACK is one of
the most acclaimed authors writing for children today. She has written many award-winning books, including
Never Forgotten, a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book;
Porch Lies, an ALA-ALSC Notable Children's Book;
The Dark Thirty, a Newbery Honor Book;
Let My People Go, recipient of the NAACP Image Award; and
Mirandy and Brother Wind, a Caldecott Honor Book. Her other books include
The All-I'll-Ever-Want Christmas Doll, Goin' Someplace Special, and
Precious and the Boo Hag. Patricia and her husband, Frederick McKissack, are the recipients of the Coretta Scott King–Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement.
JERRY PINKNEY is the illustrator of five Caldecott Honor Books, including Mirandy and Brother Wind. He has won the Coretta Scott King Award five times. He lives in Croton-on-Hudson, New York.