Merry Christmas, Strega Nona

dePaola, Tomie. Merry Christmas, Strega Nona. New York: Scholastic, Inc., 1986.

Merry Christmas, Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola

I have always enjoyed the Strega Nona story of Tomie dePaola. It wasn’t until this year that I came across Merry Christmas, Strega Nona. Strega Nona loves Christmas and insists that all Christmas preparations be done without magic because Christmas has a magic of its own. Strega Nona has always provided a Christmas Eve feast for the people of the town. She keeps sending Anthony on errands to help get everything ready. Just before the Christmas Eve service Strega Nona discovers that Anthony has “forgotten” to do much of what she asked so there will be no feast. Anthony actually surprises Strega Nona with a Christmas Eve feast provided by the people of the town.

Tomie dePaola has a distinct style for his illustrations which is again evident in the illustrations of Merry Christmas, Strega Nona.

If you don’t already have Merry Christmas, Strega Nona you will want to add it to your Christmas picture book collection. Using my Amazon affiliate link helps to support this children’s literature blog.