Mr. Christmas

The Mr. Men series has one of the largest catalogs of characters in the children's book arena.  The Man we will be focusing on today is a tree-shaped fellow who is related to the older gentleman known in the United Kingdom as Father Christmas. 

THREE PROS

*In terms of bang-for-your-buck, this particular story gives you more Men per square inch than almost any other  Hargreaves publication

*Something about Mr. Small receiving a jelly bean and its relative worth to him given his stature is a good lesson for kids to chew on

*As a geography buff, I enjoyed the fact that the story opens up the possibility for discussion of the Earth's poles and other planetary tidbits

THREE CONS 

*While it would have shortened the story significantly, Mr. Christmas' cordial denial of Santa's reindeer loan was probably not the best way to demonstrate the benefit of accepting a helping hand or taking the easy route when it does not involve taking shortcuts

*Mr. Greedy and Mr. Uppity both seem to have been improperly named -- perhaps the author considered these as euphemisms for who they really are (Mr. Glutton and Mr. Rich), but I consider them two adjectives I will need to spend extra time redefining for my son

*I would have preferred it if Mr. Christmas was referred to as such throughout the book instead of as "Christmas" -- a tiny amount of confusion can arise when trying to decide if the author is discussing the Man or the day 

ONE DAD'S OPINION
While I will probably never complete the whole collection of Mr. Men books to verify what I am about to say, I have to believe that this publication falls in the bottom half of the group.  It just doesn't pack the punch you would expect -- even with an appearance by the big guy himself (Santa).  In theory, a story like this could find its way into your hands every December just because of the subject matter. Instead, let me suggest you choose a different Mr. Men book that will entertain you the other eleven months of the year.

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