[I received a review copy of this book from the publisher.  No other compensation was received.]

Santa Clops is the gloriously subversive and refreshingly polite love child of Greek Mythology and The Night Before Christmas.  Read, laugh, and get a  weensy bit scared as you read  A Visit from Santa Clops and The Cave of Santa Clops.

In A Visit From Santa Clops learn about what happens when one father comes face to face with Santa Clops himself!  Be prepared to cheer for Dad as he stands up for his children!  Hold on to your Christmas stockings as Santa Clops checks his list twice!  Marvel at how delightfully polite Santa Clops can be and how he’s not afraid to admit that maybe, just maybe, he made a mistake.  Smile at the friendly banter that ensues and enjoy that Christmas warmth as Santa Clops proclaims, “Scary Christmas to all and to all a good fright!”

Following the story is a breakdown of who this Santa Clops fellow really is, where he lives, what he does on Christmas, the real reason why children should be good, and who actually IS watching them.

In The Cave of Santa Clops follow Mr. Odysseus Bones as he tells the neighborhood children about the time he encountered Santa Clops.  Travel with him down memory lane, back to when he was but a young lad with his parents in Antarctica, as he openly defies his parents and ventures off alone to the South Pole.  Ody gets stuck in a snow storm but is smart and capable and finds a cave to take shelter.  It is in this shelter that he comes upon “giant walking, talking, dino-penguin birds!”  As he eavesdrops on these tuxedoed, pterodactyl chicks he learns that if they eat the candy fish and repeat out loud the magic flying wish that they can fly!  [Note:  Buy Swedish fish to give along side this book.]

But there’s more!  Inside the cave is a screen showing the goings-on of naughty children and a sleigh — but this sleigh isn’t loaded with presents — it is loaded with COAL!  What will happen next?  Will Ody eat a magic fish and fly?  What happens when he discovers that this isn’t Santa Claus’s lair, but his cousin’s, Santa Clops?  Will the Santa Clops end Ody or will there be happy pleasantries and a fair-but-stern warning issued?

These books are so flippin’ fantastic that my dear-but-sometimes-delusional four-year-old son woke me up at six am two mornings in a row asking me if I would please, please, please, please read the Santa Clops books to him again!

These books are so flippin’ fantastic that I did!

Reading this book makes me wish that I was more creative.  Dino-penguins, awesome illustrations, visions of boogerthumbs dancing, and delightfully humorously rhymes are all so skillfully done that I’m in awe.

I thought I had everything I needed to celebrate the holidays — but little did I know how wrong I was.  Now that I have these books, the real celebration can begin!  Boo-yah!

A Visit from Santa Clops.  4 – 112+.  Wailgum Art Yarns .  February 2012. 36 pages. ISBN:  978-0985078034. Fiction?

The Cave of Santa Clops. 4 – 112+ CreateSpace. October 2014. 40 pages. ISBN: 978-1502365903. Fiction?

Where to Get it:

• [Affiliate Link] Amazon.com – A Visit from Santa Clops and Amazon.com – The Cave of Santa Clops
• [Independent Bookstore] Indiebound.org – A Visit from Santa Clops and The Cave of Santa Clops
• [Library] Ask your library to order it!

You Should Read A Visit from Santa Clops & The Cave of Santa Clops because:

• The art is awesome!  See below.
• You love Greek Myths and your favorite joke is, “Who does Polyphemus hate more than Odysseus? Nobody.”
• You want to laugh!  This book is very funny!
• You think boogerthumbs are better than sugarplums.
• You want to read a book that unabashedly and triumphantly breaks all kinds of rules about Christmas books.  It’s such a fresh take on Christmas.  I love sweet and heart-warming books with a passion.  I also love to have that sweetness subverted and then spun into its own unique experience
• You want to indirectly, but not-so-subtly, remind your children not to act like spoiled brats this time of year.
• You want to show them the importance of standing up for what they know is right!
• You want to show them that appearances are often deceiving.
• You know that giant talking dino-penguins are beautiful.
• You want to read an awesome and truly unique Christmas book.

© 2014 Gig Wailgum. Used with Permission.

© 2014 Gig Wailgum. Used with Permission.

Book Trailer:

Author and Illustrator Websites:

• Gig Wailgum [Video about Santa Clops]
• Santa Clops Facebook Page

More Reviews of These Books:

• Dial B for Books
• I’d So Rather Be Reading
• Reviews by Teri

Where Obtained:  I received a review copy from the author. No other compensation was received.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

FTC Disclosures:  Some of the links in the post above are Amazon affiliate links and others are IndieBound affiliate links. If you click on the link and purchase something, I will receive an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. Which goes to fund my family’s picture book habit.  It’s a vicious cycle, but we manage.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”