Christmas Magic Arrives With the Best Gift Ever-a Dinosaur From Santa!

Tom Fletcher's The Christmasaurus is a delightful and creative read for ages 8-12 that will bring the magic of the season to life for young readers. Who would want an ordinary pet for Christmas if it was possible for Santa to bring a real live dinosaur? William Trundle loves all things connected with dinosaurs. The only thing that he wants this year is a dinosaur of his very own. Believing is the key to the Christmas season and believing in the magic of the season is important for both children and little dinosaurs.

All magical stories begin with "once upon a time" and Fletcher's The Christmasaurus begins long ago when the last egg belonging to a mama dinosaur rolls away and lands in the ocean. The big bang occurs and all the adult dinosaurs are gone from the earth. The egg is frozen when the Ice Age comes and remains frozen for thousands of years. Santa's elves are digging at the North Pole one day and they discover the egg. The shiny egg actually has something inside! They must get the egg back to Santa because he is the only one who will know what to do with the egg. The elves carry the egg back to the North Pole Snow Ranch and Santa decides that he must sit on the egg to keep it warm. Santa is the only one who has a bottom large enough to cover this strange egg! Santa is faithful day after day, and finally the egg hatches. It's a Christmas dinosaur! The little Christmasaurus is sad because he knows that he is different. He wants to be like the reindeer, but that is not possible.

The North Pole is buzzing with activity to prepare for Christmas Eve. Down below, William writes his letter to Santa and asks for the coveted dinosaur. Santa receives the letter and gets to work creating a stuffed dinosaur that looks exactly like the Christmasaurus. The stuffed dinosaur is placed on the sleigh ready for the big ride of the night. Santa is unaware that the Christmasaurus is also on board for the Christmas Eve ride to deliver all of the toys. Fletcher's version of the Grinch with his character of the Hunter creates havoc and the Christmasaurus actually arrives at William's house to begin some exciting adventures.

Fletcher writes with creativity and imagination. His elves enjoy singing, and he includes "The Elves Songbook" as an addition to the book. He also includes a list of his top 10 favorite things about Christmas.

The Christmasaurus was published by Random House Children's Books, a division of Penguin Random House Publishing. It is recommended for ages 8-12 and has an ISBN of 978-1-5247-7330-4. This is a must-read for the season.

Tom Fletcher's The Christmasaurus is a fun choice for a holiday book for students to add to their reading list. Teachers who teach reading and language arts for ages 8-12 will find this delightful book to be a source for a wealth of ideas for the holiday season.

*Read The Christmasaurus in a group reading session with a few chapters read aloud each day. The book can also be assigned for young readers to read on their own for later creative writing projects.

*William wants a dinosaur for Christmas. Take a class poll of what your students want for Christmas.

*Call attention to the songs and poems that Santa's elves sing as they work at the North Pole Ranch. A creative writing assignment provides students the opportunity to write their own song or poem for the season.

*Fletcher has his own version of the Grinch with his character of the Hunter. Offer a creative writing assignment that presents students with the opportunity to compare the Hunter with the Grinch.

*Call attention to Fletcher's top 10 favorite things about Christmas at the end of the book. Students can make a list of their top 10 favorite things about Christmas.