The House of Wooden Santas

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian studies at
Concordia University, and the author of Kurlek, Margaret Laurence: The
Long Journey Home, and As Though Life Mattered: Leo Kennedy’s Story.

This story, which chronicles the 24 days before Christmas in a small
seaside village, has the basic ingredients of a beloved classic: a
struggling family consisting of a single mother and her 9-year-old son
Jesse, and a message of faith, hope, and love.

Like all classics, the story is both unique and universal. Jesse’s
mother is a talented crafts-woman who carves wooden Santas that are
simultaneously North American and archetypal. (Her collection includes
“Hockey Santa,” “Thinking Santa,” and “Reading Santa.”) She
carves one wooden Santa each day in a countdown to Christmas Eve.

Also featured are Jesse and a bullying classmate who becomes his
friend. Their school mounts a Christmas pageant. The landlady begins by
playing the villain, ready to evict Jesse and his mother for nonpayment
of rent, but in the end she buys carvings instead. The family’s future
is on solid ground, thanks to the carved Santas.

Newfoundlander Kevin Major is one of Canada’s most popular authors of
young-adult fiction. Imelda George of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia,
carves year-round, with Santas accounting for half her work. Beautifully
photographed in full-page colored settings, her imaginative Santas are
stunning.

The House of Wooden Santas blends a magical contemporary story with a
message of reconciliation. Highly recommended.