What a delightful Christmas-themed story! Father Christmas And Me is perfect for the middle grade target group, and I can see this story both being the perfect gift to put under the tree for the younger readers and a wonderful read to bring out that Christmas spirit closer towards the Holidays. I didn't realize beforehand that this is actually the third book of a series, but thankfully I was still able to enjoy this story as a stand-alone as the characters have a completely new adventure in Father Christmas And Me. That said, judging this third book and how wonderful it is, I'm sure the other books are worth your time as well. With an interesting plot, a relatable main character they can see themselves in and just enough action to keep them invested in the story, I'm positive this will be a hit for any middle grade reader looking for that Christmas spirit. It has elves, it has rabbits, it has a magical setting and a bad guy to be defeated. The illustrations brought a smile to my face and I had a wonderful time reading following Amelia and her cat Captain Soot around. All in all a perfect Christmas family read.

Christmas time or not, I still had an excellent time reading this one. Father Christmas And Me would be such a wonderful read together with the younger ones to pump up that Christmas time close to the Holidays! The illustrations fit the text wonderfully and definitely add a little something. The plot itself is interesting without being too complicated to follow and I think the target group will be able to relate to Amelia very easily. Entertaining, endearing and without doubt worth the read.

Matt Haig is a national treasure. Everything he writes for kids is so damn good that it's enough just to know that he's the author of said book "Father Christmas and Me", the final book in Haig's Christmas trilogy, surely doesn't disappoint. It evokes the cozy smells of warm gingerbread, cinnamon, nutmeg, and peppermint. It's the type of story to cherish aloud or silently snuggled next to a warm fire, while cuddling underneath a purring kitten. It's the type of story that lies deep in ones heart, magically evoking the spirit of Christmas.

It isn't always easy, growing up as a human in Elfhelm, even if your adoptive parents are the newly married Father Christmas and Mary Christmas.

For one thing, Elf School can be annoying when you have to sing Christmas songs everyday - even in July - and when you fail all your toy-making tests. Also it can get very, very cold.

But when the jealous Easter Bunny and his rabbit army launch an attack to stop Christmas, it's up to Amelia, her new family and the elves to keep Christmas alive. Before it's too late . . .

This book was a lovely story, it had fantastic characters that a child would be able to understand and recognise. The plot was also easy to follow and was structured well. Will be passing this on for my 8 year old to read towards Christmas time

There's a lot to love about this book, but it's certainly not the best one of the three, and cannot get to the heights of the middle volume. Here we just begin with too much that isn't particularly necessary - and it's not a humorous diversion either - when we see all the differences between Amelia's world and the one of Father Christmas and the elves, as she is forced to go to Elf School. Yes, hidden in that are the relevant bits - and they get increasingly more glaring that they're the relevant bits, so when the story calls back to them then you can see it coming a long way off; but they didn't have to be swimming in too much meh. Still, there is also a lot to like - the adventure that comes almost to be a parallel to early Artemis Fowl books, and the sheer hefty and lovely spirit of it all. That in the end comes at you in lovable spades, so the book has to be commended. It could also have been a fair bit shorter and wittier early on.

Reviewed initially from the 2017 UK edition.

ARC Copy...it was a heart warming yet humorous Christmas tale involving the daughter of Father Christmas (who doesn't fit in), elves, chocolate and some very evil rabbits (read story for context!). Nice illustration too which convey the heartwarming and humor aspects.

I think I missed something....this seems to be part of a series that I don't know the backstory on. Nevertheless, it was in interesting book - definitely a different twist on Christmas - and I think that my students would enjoy it. Both the upper level and high interest / low level kids would be able to read this and enjoy it. It has pen and ink illustrations and Christmas story ideas that I've not seen anywhere else before!

I loved Matt Haig's "How to stop Time" and was really happy when I was approved for this one.
I know that it's considered children's fiction but it's a wonderful book that can be appreciated by adult as well.
It's well written, with a lovely plot, and sometime reminded me of Terry Pratchett.
It was a very pleasant reading experience.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Canongate Books and Netgalley for this ARC

Another fantastic read. Loved the story and imagine children would love to have this read to them nearer the festive season

FATHER CHRISTMAS AND ME was an interesting children's book about a human girl, Amelia, living in Elfhelm with Father Christmas and all of the elves. It is the tale of her struggle to fit in and find her place in the world.

I did not know it was the third book in a trilogy until the very end. I'd recommend that if you're going to read FATHER CHRISTMAS AND ME, you may want to read A BOY CALLED CHRISTMAS and THE GIRL WHO SAVED CHRISTMAS, just so you have both Father Christmas and Amelia's background stories, but you do not need to read them in order.

Definitely a great children's book, though, about trying to see the good in people, no matter how different your backgrounds. And the importance of hope.

Father Christmas and Me was originally released in October 2017 but the paperback version is due to be released this October. Not wanting to miss out on a bit of Christmas in July, I decided to request it on NetGalley.

I enjoyed the plot of this book; the story focuses on the importance of being accepting of everyone, no matter how different they are to you. Amelia faces the challenge of reuniting the elf and rabbit communities after years of anger and confusion about how the came to be separate in the first place.

As an adult, I love children’s books, and if you’re reading this alone or with a child you will definitely note a few references to the current political climate, including fake news and shouts of “Lock her up!”. It made me laugh but it also has a serious message to us all about how we should never just take one person’s opinions on face value.

My only minor criticism of this book is that I did not feel like it quite had the magic of Christmas like the first two books. Otherwise, a great read and can be enjoyed without having read the first two stories.

Thanks to NetGalley and Canongate books for providing a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Complicated

The blurbs for this book make it sound like a light and lively happy-funsy Christmas story, and a jolly wrap to the Christmas trilogy. Well, it's more complicated than that. Even some of the drawings by Chris Mould, who is a genius and can make anything happy-funsy, have an edge and a touch of darkness to them.

The angle here is that Amelia Wishart, who saved Christmas in an earlier book, has left her human orphanage and has come to live with Father and Mary Christmas at Elfheim, (aka Father Christmas' headquarters). This should all be fun and candy canes, but it isn't. The elves of Elfheim may sing and spickle dance and make toys and such, but they are conservative, devoted to order and rules, and not very welcoming to non-elves and outsiders. Our heroine, who never really had a place in the human world, finds that she's having trouble adjusting to Elfheim and feels affirmatively unwelcome there. Adding to this slightly grim story, Vodol the nasty elf, who used to run a fake news newspaper until it was shut down, has opened a new newspaper in which he reports that all news but his is fake news. He seems especially intent on attacking Amelia and forcing her out of Elfheim as unwelcome and a security threat.

This is the main thrust of the book. We don't get to any of the attack of the Easter Bunny stuff until we're more than two-thirds into the book. Until then it's all about making Amelia feel like an unwelcome outsider. She does have some allies, and she does meet some wonderfully realized characters, (the Truth Pixie is a deadpan hoot), but mostly it's Amelia-go-home, deport the humans, and yellow journalism. (And, c'mon man, at one point the evil Easter Bunny actually declares - "It's time to make Easter Great Again".)

How Christmasy does all of that sound? It all felt to me like a not particularly veiled commentary on current events, and while I'm generally sympathetic to the author's point, it was not an especially clever or witty commentary. So, you get an odd double level here. On the top there is this exceptionally heavy handed message. Under that there are clever bits, interesting supporting characters, and amusing set pieces. It was interesting enough and ambitious and unique enough to be worth attention, but, boy, it sure didn't feel like much of a Christmas story.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

A fun book for elf lovers of all ages...
As my niece says, “It’s never to early for Christmas.” This is a fun book that I would recommend for those who love Christmas, a good story, or elves.
The main character, Amelia Wishart, is an orphan from London who is adopted by Father Christmas and Mary Christmas. They live Elfhelm, which is part of The Magic Lands, along with her cat, Captain Soot. Father Vodol is the bad guy, who influences the elves and their nemesis, The Easter Bunny.
The author does a fantastic job at incorporating parts of Christmas (that we sometimes forget as we age) into the story. Some examples of what to expect: chocolate coins as elf currency, stores such as the Figgy Pudding café, classes at Elf school Amelia takes (Laughing Even When Times Are Tough, Christmas Studies, Spickle Dancing), elf magic (drimwickery), the sled name is The Blizzard 360, the Truth Pixie and the Lie Pixie, life lessons (how you should and shouldn’t treat people), the naughty guy lives on quiet street, and so much more I won’t want to say as I do not want to spoil the book. Just read it, you won’t be disappointed.
The book reads like a chapter book but instead of “Chapter 1”, there are titles like “A Lesson on How to Love Life” and “The Cat and the Reindeer”. Illustrations are found throughout the book. They have a vintage feel to them and fit perfectly with the story. The ending is heartwarming and will bring a smile (or more) to you.
Parental warning: there are brief mentions of Amelia’s mother being sick and her death, death of a Flying Story Pixie who fell in love with a troll (died in his ear wax), kidnapping talk by an elf (he was kidnapped when he was younger), one threat by Father Vodol towards Amelia that if she doesn’t lie her pixie friend will end up dead, locking of the humans in a cage and they must escape death by chocolate (drowning). All of these serve a purpose to the bigger story (acceptance, all are welcome in Elfhelm, help others, do right, do not lie, Christmas must go on so Father Christmas can deliver presents to the kids in the world, and other valuable life lessons).

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*I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

An adorable Christmas story sure to amuse a child who still wants to believe....
While the illustrations lacked, the story led the child reader to use their imagination to guide them thru the magic of the story.