The Great Santa Stakeout
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
A delightfully devious Christmas story from beloved librarian Betsy Bird and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat.Freddy Melcher is Santa's #1 Fan. He has Santa posters, Santa action figures, and even Santa underwear. But there is one prize Freddy desperately wants: A photograph taken with Santa, fresh out of the chimney.Oh, is it risky! It's awfully hard to sneak anything by someone who can see you when you're sleeping and knows when you're awake. That's why Freddy has been extra good this year . . . at hiding his plans.Will Freddy get away with his delightfully devious scheme to outwit Santa Claus himself and capture the ultimate selfie?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
More than anything, Freddy Melcher wants to meet his idol, Santa so he concocts a surefire plan to snag a Santa selfie "fresh out of the chimney." Bird supplies all the elements a heist needs to succeed: obsession ("Freddy had Santa posters, Santa action figures, and Santa underwear"), elaborate plans ("Step 1... String the roof with cans, so the sleigh can't land undetected"), and minute-by-minute reportage ("It was almost midnight"). Santat lights the story's comic fuse with a spread of Freddy's treasured collection of Santa toys (one action figure boasts "64 points of articulation"), provides blueprints, creates night shots with eerie blue-screen light, and supplies in-your-face close-ups of the ensuing chaos. Though it feels a tad one-note, Freddy Melcher's feverish desire to meet his favorite celebrity makes him the kind of over-the-top comic character whose inane schemes provide laughs whether they succeed or fail and naturally suggest further stakeout possibilities. Ages 4 8.
