We've saved the best till last, a Christmas Eve classic that's going to really warm the cockles of your heart.

Our final Booky Advent Calendar book this year is the fabulous "The Christmas Eve Tree" by Delia Huddy and Emily Sutton.

It's the night before christmas, and just as the shops are about to close a young homeless boy spies a rather forlorn looking tree in a store.

No one wants to buy it, everyone prefers its taller brothers and sisters but the boy begs and pleads with the shop owner, who gives the tree as a final Christmas gift to the poor lad.

Down by the river, as the cold night draws in, the tree is dressed and decorated by the boy. But there's more christmas magic afoot, as they both find themselves at the centre of an amazing christmas miracle.

Be prepared to dive for a box of tissues with this one, it tugs on your heart strings and if you're snuggled up tonight with a cup of cocoa, spare a thought for those who may have to spend the night out on the streets with this story of hope and kindness.

"The Christmas Eve Tree" by Delia Huddy and Emily Sutton is out now, published by Walker Books (kindly supplied for review). 

Merry Christmas Everyone! See you in 2018!

For our final Booky Advent Calendar entry on Day 24, Christmas Eve in fact, we've got something truly stunning.

Has there ever been a more magical Christmas destination than New York City in the USA? So good they named it twice?

In "Red and Lulu" this amazing destination weaves a touch of christmas magic for a tale that starts out in the deep dark pine forests.

Red and Lulu live an idyllic life in the woods, but when their home is unceremoniously chopped down, and poor Lulu ends up transported away with it, it's up to Red to try and track her down.

He searches everywhere, and finds her in the most unexpected place. Could this lovely pair make a new home in the Big Apple?

This is a beautifully written and superbly illustrated Christmas story woven with all the ceremony and magic surrounding the Rockefeller Centre Christmas Tree which is what Red and Lulu's pine-tree home becomes.

It's so full of amazing christmassy atmosphere this book, yet Matt also tells a cautionary tale of green issues and deforestation, and the displacement of animals and birds when trees are taken in this way.

The book works on both levels really beautifully and we're pretty sure it's destined to become something of a christmas classic.

"Red and Lulu" by Matt Tavares is out now, published by Walker Books (Kindly supplied for review). 

Booky Advent Calendar Day 23 sees the return of a book series we've really enjoyed over the last couple of years.

Mighty girl Poppy Pym is back in Laura Wood's latest book in this fantastic set for a festive adventure par excellence!

"Poppy Pym and the Beastly Blizzard", clad in its christmassy cover dives straight into an action packed adventure for Poppy.

When a mysterious runaway van crashes into St Smithen's on the first day of the new school year, Poppy knows it's going to be an action-packed term!

But when accidents continue to happen at St Smithen's, Poppy can't shake the feeling that her every move is being watched.

With the Christmas holidays looming, secrets lurking in every corner and rumours of a dangerous beast on the loose, Poppy must unravel her biggest mystery yet.

Can Poppy unmask the hidden spy before someone gets hurt?

This is the perfect book for your middle grade bookworms to keep them thoroughly absorbed over the Christmas hols with a brilliantly paced adventure full of awesome character and appeal.

"Poppy Pym and the Beastly Blizzard" by Laura Wood is out now, published by Scholastic (kindly supplied for review). 

Day 22 of our Booky Advent Calendar and here's a gorgeously cute little story for your really tiny ones.

Who could resist a story about a brave little penguin.

In "Snow Penguin" our curious little penguin hero decides to explore the ice and the snow and the sea.

On his travels he sees two blue whales, a family of sea lions and a whole school of orca, but soon Penguin starts to miss his own family.

Sometimes coming home is the best adventure of all.

Tony's rhyming style is a joy to read aloud. Coupled with Alison's cuddly and fun illustrations, this is a lovely little bedtime read for snuggling up with - and if by now your kids are practically hopping from foot to foot with excitement about the big day coming up, this'll definitely relax and calm them down a tad.

"Snow Penguin" by Tony Mitton and Alison Brown is out now, published by Bloomsbury Children's Books (kindly supplied for review). 

Clad in a new festive and glorious clothbound cover, this timely reissue of Quentin Blake's take on "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens is a looker from the word go.

Everyone is probably familiar with the classic tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and his miserly ways, but Quentin brings the story to life in his trademark ink and colour drawings, dazzling and delighting us in equal measure as each of the familiar scenes unfold.

Scrooge is a horrid wretch at first, wizened and penny-pinching, he won't even let his employee Bob Cratchitt have a day off for Christmas.

But when Scrooge tucks himself up in bed that night, he's visited by three ghosts - the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas yet to come - who show Scrooge what will happen if he continues to live his life in his miserly manner.
This is one of Dickens' most powerful stories, and it's really not surprising that it has become as synonymous with Christmas as it has (in fact most folk lay the blame at Dickens' door for kicking off that whole Victorian tradition of Christmas as we have come to know (and love) it today!)

It's an utterly gorgeous book though...!

The beautiful illustrations underpin a child-friendly version of the original story.

Dashes of colour make Quentin Blake's illustrations even more amazing than they usually are (and having recently seen his work for "The BFG" up close, we're always completely amazed at his inking skills - turning the most innocuous inky squiggle into something that looks like it could leap off the page at any minute!)

"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens and Sir Quentin Blake is out now, published by Pavilion Children's Books (kindly supplied for review).

Three cheeky and endearing little owls make Christmas truly special in our Booky Advent Calendar book for Day 20. 5 more sleeps to go but let's find out just how busy these three little owls are.

These amazing mums lay an egg each before jetting off on an incredible journey all around the world, carrying with them a wicker basket to gather up treasures and amazing things to eat to help the poor folk of the village celebrate christmas in style.

Translated by John Yeoman from the late Emanuele Luzzati's fantastic original story, the book is given even more of a magical touch by Quentin Blake, who lends his trademark illustrative style to this wonderfully flowing story to really help it come alive.

It's that rare thing - a Christmassy book that isn't actually that Christmassy, it doesn't ram the festive season down your throat, but delivers a lovely message of hope with three truly fab little characters full of fun and energy.

"Three Little Owls" by Emanuele Luzzati, John Yeoman and Quentin Blake is out now, published by Tate Publishing (Kindly supplied for review). 

Here's a fantastic little activity book for the very young, with 20 play pieces that are easy to slot together and make.

"Make and Play: Nativity" by Joey Chou is a chunky board book that allows little ones to make their own nativity scene complete with Mary, Joseph, wise men, angels, shepherds and of course a tiny baby Jesus himself.

This is one of the most attractive make and play books we've seen, the art style is really fabulously cute and the models are very easy to build.

We love how the scene builds up as you complete each page until you end up with something that looks a bit like this:

You even get a tiny little crib! So cute!

There are 20 play pieces to build for loads of fun.

"Make and Play Nativity" by Joey Chou is out now, published by Nosy Crow (kindly supplied for review). 

We're covering a mixture of early / middle grade readers and picture books in our Booky Advent Calendar for the first time this year, and we're delighted to see another entry in the fantastic Jasmine Green series of animal stories from Helen Peters and Ellie Snowdon.

In "A Kitten Called Holly" Jasmine and Tom rescue an abandoned kitten.

Jasmine is desperate to keep her. But her parents decide to sell Holly - and Jasmine is NOT happy with her new owner!

Can Jasmine and Tom give Holly the best ever Christmas present - a good home?

Brilliant touching heartfelt storytelling that will make you laugh and cry, but with the sort of endearing ending that is destined to see this become a well-loved children's classic.


Don't forget to look out for Jasmine's other adventures! A Piglet Called Truffle A Duckling Called Button and A Sheepdog Called Sky.

"A Kitten Called Holly" by Helen Peters and Ellie Snowdon is out now, published by Nosy Crow (kindly supplied for review). 

Nosy Crow are really spoiling us this year with one of the strongest publisher line-ups for Christmas books. We're getting close to the big day now, with only 7 more sleeps to go and so we're celebrating with another brilliant entry on our Booky Advent Calendar.

Meet "Oliver Elephant" by Lou Peacock and Helen Stephens, the beautiful little tale of a tiny little chap called Noah and his beloved soft cuddly toy Oliver.

Oliver plays with Noah, and the two friends have fun in a huge department store while Noah, along with Mum and baby sister go Christmas Shopping.

The two friends love playing peekaboo, hiding in a dolls house and dancing on tables (not the sort of behaviour we'd encourage little ones to try out in shops, but fine for fuzzy elephants!)

The fabulous bakin' boys are back, and this time they're ready for a festive adventure in the latest awesome middle grade book from Tracey Corderoy and Steven Lenton.

In "Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: Jingle Bells" the awesome pooches are all set for a festive mystery, and must pitch in to help Santa solve a terrible crime.

Someone has stolen all the christmas presents! It might take a sensitive doggy nose or two, and perhaps even a smattering of snow for these two intrepid hounds to piece together all the clues and reveal the nefarious thief! And that's just the start of their adventures as there's also a sea monster and a rather bizarre moggy to deal with too!

Three hilarious read-aloud stories give kids a head start as they make the shift from picture books to early readers, with characters that are already familiar from their many picture book adventures.

Following on from "Spooky School" and "Up, Up and Away" this is a fab festive adventure from Tracey and Steven, who have once again absolutely nailed it with a brilliant page-turning early reader book.

"Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: Jingle Bells" by Tracey Corderoy and Steven Lenton is out now, published by Nosy Crow (kindly supplied for review). 

It's Day 15 of our Booky Advent Calendar and you know what that means? Even more christmas book loveliness - this time with the latest in the fantastic "Princess" range by Caryl Hart and Sarah Warburton.

This time we meet a mighty girl princess with a difference in "The Princess and the Christmas Rescue.

Princess Eliza isn't your ordinary everyday princess. Though she likes dresses and shoes, she much prefers a toolbox and a stack of materials to make her own incredible inventions and creations with.

Her parents despair! Why can't Eliza be a bit more...well...princessy?

They urge her to make some new friends, but her various attempts go slightly awry (gingerbread boys are notoriously slippery little customers after all!).

Heading out into the forest despite her parents' warnings, she finds a dear little cottage full of elves. These elves aren't just ordinary elves though, and they are fantastically busy making lists and wrapping presents for their unseen master.

But who is this mysterious figure? He's suffering from the flu so Eliza decides it's up to her to help these poor flustered elves to bring Christmas to all. So good are her efforts that Saint Nick finally arrives to whisk Eliza away on a fantastic Christmas Eve journey, and perhaps even deliver a special present to Eliza herself.

This is utterly magical christmas bookage in every way, from two of the most talented folk in kidlit.

"The Princess and the Christmas Rescue" by Caryl Hart and Sarah Warburton is out now, published by Nosy Crow (kindly supplied for review). 

Strange bouffant hair. Sharp suit. "I want it all" attitude and prone to childish tantrums? No this isn't a biography of POTUS, it's actually a very funny christmas book for our Booky Advent Calendar Day 14.

It's the run up to Christmas and if there's one thing Morris is sure of, it's that he wants his presents this year to be even more amazing than last year's!

So on the 12 days of Christmas, Morris' long suffering parents begin to pull out all the stops, ensuring their spoilt little diddums gets exactly what he wants.

The first present is small. That simply won't do.

The next present is larger, but Morris is sure his parents could do better. MUCH better.

So the chaos builds, as his poor mum and dad try every day to impress this fussy little 'prince' (yes, that's why he has a "P" on his badge, it's got nothing to do with being the president or anything. Oh nosirree).

By the end of the book you're wishing something rather unpleasant on this fellah - and you'll get your wish (though we were both a little disheartened to see that there's an almost happy ending).

Charlotte's favourite bit: Morris almost gets his comeuppance. Almost!

Daddy's favourite bit: Joshua knows how to write a storming slow-build of a book that rapidly descends into complete chaos as Morris' demands are met. An awesome idea, and yes we loved Amelie's rather cheeky 'homage' for sure!

(Kindly supplied for review)

"Morris Wants More" by Joshua Seigal and Amelie Faliere is out now, published by Flying Eye Books. 

On the 12th day of our Booky Advent Calendar, our postie gave to us...a great big bear hug of a book!

"Merry Christmas Hugless Douglas" by David Melling is a special festive story for everyone's favourite big fuzzy furry bear.

Hugless Douglas knows what Christmas is all about - snowing sheep, finding a tree, sledging and and making new friends like Rudi the Reindeer!

We're returning to a fantastic story that, way back in the archives, we first took a look at in E-Book form all the way back in 2012.

Back then, our review (and a previous Booky Advent Calendar entry for the iBook / Kindle version) spoke very highly of this charming and beautifully written story, brought to life with wonderful festive illustrations.

Secretly though, we always wanted this one to become a print book - and now it has, in fact we somehow missed out on reviewing this print book version for our last set of christmas roundup reviews - so we're happy to rectify that (thanks to Kirstie) with a closer look at the glorious print version.

'Angel's Great Escape' tells the festive tale of some unwanted christmas decorations, doomed to be thrown away by a very mean pair of humbug-scoffers (and their rather nasty little moggy!)

The decorations hatch a plan. They want to live with a loving caring family who will put them on their tree and display them proudly. It's time to escape!

As the snow crunches underfoot, Angel and her friends bravely venture out on a journey to find a new home. Unfortunately, a nasty scratchy moggy is in hot pursuit!

Christmas is saved! Thanks to the big guy in the red suit!

As soon as the calendar turns over for December, we're longing for Snow (though it's not much fun to try and commute through, it is lovely to imagine that the dusty cobweb-covered old sledge in the loft might get some action this year).

Imagine being tiny again, and looking out your window at the flurries and drifts of snow, and all the endless possibilities for fun that can be had.

That's what Sean Taylor and Claire Alexander perfectly capture in our Booky Advent Calendar book for Day 10, "The Snowbear".

Snow comes in the middle of the night, and Iggy and Martina can't wait to get out in it and make a snowbear.

Beautiful snowy landscapes and the sort of story that pinches your cheeks with that frisson of winteryness. Love it!

Oh my! A moment of danger and excitement.

Such beautiful characterful artwork to underpin a story that's destined to become a christmas classic

Jenny Colgan's endearing series continues with a special festive edition of her much loved "Polly and the Puffin" books, with fab illustrations from Thomas Docherty...

We've really been enjoying watching the rise and rise of one of the loveliest folk on Twitter, as her writing career kicks up a notch with a gorgeous selection of tales for younger children.

Anthology books were always a huge part of Christmas for me as a child. At least one relative would find a huge book of stories and make sure it ended up in my Christmas stocking...

This is the time of year where AT LAST we get to spend some time at home, and if there's one thing we love doing at this time of year, it's making things...!

We couldn't let our Booky Advent Calendar go by without featuring a few awesome festive Chapter Books in with the usual picture book fare, so we're delighted to see a new book from comedy genius Tom McLaughlin...