Cowboy Christmas

by Rob Sanders, John Manders (Illustrator)

Overview

Three grizzled cowboys—Dwight, Darryl, and Dub—are stuck out on the range at Christmastime, roping steers and wrestling longhorns. Reminiscing about their childhood Christmases, they try to make the cowboy camp feel festive—and it's no surprise that a cactus decorated with tin cans, and cows dressed as reindeer, don't fill them with holiday cheer! But a surprise is in store for the Circle D dudes when Santa pays a visit to the cowboy campfire!

Illustrated by award-winning artist John Manders, this deluxe hardcover gives consumers what they expect from Golden Books: a high-quality book at a great value, ready for gift-giving.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780375869853
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	09/11/2012
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.30(d)
Age Range:	2 - 5 Years

About the Author

ROB SANDERS mentors teachers, and teaches and coaches over 500 student writers at Jackson Elementary in Plant City, FL. Rob also leads writing training sessions for teachers, and writing camps for children. He blogs on Picture This!, a blog for picture book writers.

Editorial Reviews

…the text is sure to elicit a giggle, and the simple story, complete with its jingling-bells ending, is the cheery kind children seem to cling to this time of year.
—Pamela Paul

The New York Times Book Review

For three cowboys out on the range, Christmas is looking mighty lonely. “‘No presents,’ said Dwight. ‘No stockings,’ added Darryl. ‘No Santy,’ groaned Dub.” As the cowpokes reminisce about the Christmas trees, cookies, and horses dressed as reindeer of their youths, camp chef Cookie suggests they create their own versions of those traditions. The results aren’t great (“charred sugar-molasses-bean cookies” are as bad as they sound), but a surprise visitor gives the cowboys a Christmas to remember. Sanders’s humorous, clipped prose and Manders’s loose, campfire-lit artwork are just right for the story’s down-and-dirty setting. As Dwight puts it, this one’s “a rip-roarin’ good time.” Ages 2–5. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Three lonesome cowboys stuck out on the range face a "low-down and miserable" Christmas without the usual treats and trimmings until a surprise visit from "Santy Claus" brightens their holiday. Dwight, Darryl and Dub are the three cowpunchers, working the range with their faithful father figure and grub wrestler, Cookie. The cowboys try to make do with their Christmas preparations, making bean-sprinkled cookies, decorating a cactus and fashioning reindeer costumes for their heifers. Cookie takes Christmas day off, but the cowboys return after a hard day on the range to find Santa in camp with a full dinner, decorated tree and wrapped presents for all. Sharp-eyed, older readers will note the Santa hat tucked in Cookie's back pocket when he returns to camp as well as the identical boots worn by Cookie and Santa, but younger children will believe that Santa delivers to cowpokes out on the range as well as to little girls and boys. Cartoon-style art, lots of cowboy lingo and the funny attempts at holiday decoration and baking add humor to the overall effort. Young buckeroos who like their Christmas stories punchy rather than sweet might just take a likin' to ol' Dwight, Darryl and Dub. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews