Last Stop on the Reindeer Express

Mia recognizes that she’s been given a special treat that doesn’t come to all children whose loved ones live far away, which makes this title especially resonant for readers in her circumstance.

With jacket design featuring corner die-cuts and geometric patterns, this U.K. import is a stunner at first glance, featuring interactive elements throughout. When Mia's mother tells her the card she made for her grandfather won't reach him in time for Christmas, the girl is crestfallen. Then she spots a mysterious red mailbox and senses "something magical." Mia turns the box's knob three times, and a door (and a flap in the page) opens to a fanciful world in which a reindeer is waiting to fly her over exotic, intricately rendered locales to Grandpa's remote cabin. When she returns home ("No time had passed"), Mia and her mother celebrate a quiet Christmas, highlighted by a special gift from Grandpa: a toy reindeer. Dominated by turquoise and rose tones, Mountford's (Maurice the Unbeastly) folk-style art is an ideal match for Powell-Tuck's (The Messy Book) uplifting story. Ages 3-7. (Oct.)