A beautiful retelling if the nativity. Such a lovely book to share with key stage 1 and EYFS children. I can’t wait to share it with my class this Christmas again. The illustrations are stunning too.

A lovely retelling of the nativity story with beautiful illustrations. An excellent addition to any class library.

This was a gorgeous alternative retelling of the Nativity story, featuring a more modern Mary and Joseph and a multitude of more minor characters from the story. As the question is asked who will welcome the baby Jesus, animals from around the stable begin to offer a manger, wool and a lullaby.
Told in a gentle rhyming pattern, this is a beautifully illustrated Nativity story with a difference and I won't hesitate to use it in future as part of collective worship or RE teaching.

I loved the illustrations and the colour palette in this lovely children's book. I can see it been read by the whole family near Christmas. Wonderful!

What a lovely Christmas gift this book would make! Lovely gentle story of the nativity with each animal, tree, stones etc offering a gift to the new baby who offers the best gift of all I return - love! Engaging illustrations .
My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me access to an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Once Upon a Silent Night is a rhyming picture book which is meant to be about the birth of Jesus, although no names are given. A couple find there is no room at the inn, so they arrive at the stable, asking “will anyone welcome my child?” The animals, in turn, all say they will welcome the baby.

The illustrations are lovely, but they are set in a snowy, European landscape; there’s a fox, badger and deer, and the houses have pitched roofs. Even worse, the white couple are dressed in modern, western style clothing. Children are perfectly capable of understanding that the original story took place in a landscape which may be unfamiliar to them, but most of all I think it is inappropriate to change the characters’ cultural heritage.

I definitely wouldn’t use this book with children as it reinforces unhelpful stereotypes.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is such a beautiful look at the Christmas Story - told through the eyes of those who were there and the gifts that they offered.

Simple text in each page blends perfectly with illustrations that glow on the page.

There are so many books about the Christmas story - this one brings a new and modern look which I think will appeal to children and adults. I could imagine it being a beautiful primary school concert!

I will definitely be using it with my own child and recommending it to all who I know.

This beautiful retelling of the Nativity story is inspired by the medieval Christmas carol 'The Friendly Beasts' in which the stable animals recount their parts in the story of Jesus' birth.

In this picturebook, the extraordinarily gorgeous artwork by Katie Hickey accompanies Dawn Casey's simple, rhyming text. The combination draws you into the story from the opening spread. Here, woodland creatures look across a snow covered landscape rendered in a palette of warm blues and pinks. Their gaze is focussed on a small wooden stable, from which a golden glow shines above the half-door.

As the heavily pregnant woman and her husband arrive, followed by a donkey, they are dressed in contemporary winter clothing; you can almost feel the texture of the woman's Scandi-style, woollen jumper. She wonders who will welcome her baby, and is answered over the subsequent pages of the book by each of the stable animals, their faces shining with joy.

I love the way that the natural world and the supernatural, in the form of angels, have been seamlessly combined in this addition to the Nativity canon. Although I have seen this as an e-book, I believe that it will be published in hardback and it will make a treasured gift for young children. I think that it will be a very popular addition to the Christmas story collections of nurseries, preschools, Early Years and Key Stage 1 classrooms where the text will be memorised and the illustrations pored over repeatedly.

Once upon a Silent Night by Dawn Casey & Katie Hickey

A perfect way of telling the story we all know ..
The illustrations are wonderful , and can easily open up further conversation with the small child you are sharing it with. I can see this book read to individual children and In a group such as Rhyme time at a library or a playschool situation.

With no room at the inn, a couple due to have a child any time asks for help – and gets it, from the animals nearby, the trees, the paving materials, the angels, the moon – everything is willing to give what it can for the unborn baby, without question. Unforced, or unshowy, rhyming couplets, and very pleasant illustrative qualities indeed, both bring this nativity to light. The fact it's a bit of a modern dress one, with a hipster beanie for the Joseph character, might divide adult opinion, but there's not really that much to quibble about.

Thank you so much to Bloomsbury Children’s and netgalley for the earc to read and review.

What a beautiful book, from the literal most stunning illustrations to a story we all know told in a different way. It’s so beautiful.

The story is the struggle to find a kind place to birth baby Jesus but shares a different perspective and shows the care and love of the animals in the barn, the night sky and how kindly it shon for him.

The illustrations by Katie Hickey throughout this book are breathtakingly beautiful and capture the story perfectly. They will really add to the beauty of this story when reading.

This is a great book for those that are religious as it shares a story that is beloved, but I think this is also a wonderful picture book for those that aren’t, as it is just a beautiful story with incredible illustrations and would be a nice easy enjoyable read.