This is the story of a small boy, suddenly orphaned and alone in
a small fishing village. He is cared for by a different family
each year and wanting to somehow show his appreciation, he uses
his skills as a woodcarver to create and leave small Christmas
gifts for the children in each home he has visited.

From this small beginning the person of Santa Claus slowly becomes a
reality. The Christmas Eve tradition of leaving gifts, how the sleigh
and reindeer became part of the task,and even how the name of Santa Claus
and his traditional red and white clothing were developed are all
explained in this delightful tale.

This is a long hardcover children's book, perfectly written to be
read aloud to young children in the weeks prior to Christmas. I first
read it to my children in the late 60s and then lost the book. I recently
rediscovered this newly published version which includes information
on who the author might really be (probably Hokie,the illustrator)
and a section for recording who read the story to whom and when.

I highly recommend this book if you are a true believer in the spirit
if not the person of Santa Claus, and last Christmas presented the
book to my 18 month old grandaughter. It is a story her mother remembers fondly.

The original was a large paperback, published in the late 60s by a
childrens' book club. If you find a copy, please let me know at
hansenb@usa.net.

Merry Christmas in July !

I thank the Lord for great men like Dr. Baxter

Biblically based and extremely thought provoking book which certainly serves to open the eyes of those who are ignorant of this subject.

For those who think that all there is to this world is flesh and blood, this is an absolute must-read.

Highly recommended.

This book of essays is enjoyable on a number of levels. One of my favorite chapters is the one in which he contrasts fiction writers with poets. This chapter is full of broad and exaggerated generalizations (which he has foretold and apologized for in advance) which are both thought provoking and often very funny. The chapter on melodrama is also very insightful and harking back to an earlier essay about dysfunctional fiction in which the characters are all victims and no one is a clear protagonist or antagonist, he shows how pure evil (a clear cut villian) is the essential ingrediant in melodrama and that is why melodrama continues to interest readers while lots of serious fiction doesn't register. He further shows how melodrama underpins some of the great fiction - using Chekov, that most unmelodramatic writer, as an example.

I really enjoyed this book and read it at one sitting - which is probably not good. There is so much that is thought provoking in these essays that they deserve more time and a lot of rumination. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in serious fiction today. It will give you a lot to think about.

Reading this book transforms people's writing, deepening their approach and understanding. Take a look at his ideas about counterpointed characters, or about what replaces the idea of "conflict" in fiction.

An amazing, brilliant book.

Baxter Black captures and celebrates the comical that exists in the self-deprecating and unpretentious manner of cowboys. The story of his two cowboy pals doing the summer rodeo circuit all over the western states, with hopes of winning enough money to make it to the national finals, explores that rich vein of American humor between guts and glory and human comedy. There is a fine line between fearlessness and foolishness, and few sports make failure not only ignominious but dangerous (being thrown and getting not only a faceful of dirt but broken bones to boot). It's no accident that in the rodeo arena the hardest working cowboys are surely the clowns.

Black's book achieves one other enjoyable objective; it represents the friendship between two men, a subject that has found its way into the buddy movie, but is seldom treated in literature of any kind. These two guys are different enough to play off each other's strengths and weaknesses, but they're no odd couple. Their devotion to each other, their companionship on the road, their late night talks attempting to make sense of the world they inhabit -- not to mention their adventures with porcupines and "wild women" -- all of it is an entertaining celebration of being best pals.

St. John's book about rodeo cowboys is out of print, but if you can find a copy, I heartily recommend it as a companion to this wonderfully entertaining novel by Baxter Black.