A gorgeously written Christmas fairytale about the Nativity, told from the perspective of the donkey Mary rode to Bethlehem. The prose is real and funny and dips into the exquisitely divine. The illustrations are both adorable and mesmerizing with stars swinging from the heavens on strands of light. A few reviewers have complained about a unicorn being included, but if you bear in mind that the Nativity was as much supernatural as natural (angels, etc), I think the unicorn was a lovely addition. Whether or not you believe Jesus was the Son of God, the Nativity is a beautiful, magical story, and Jeanette Winterson's beautiful, magical retelling of it is a must-have for fairytale collectors and Christmas story lovers. I'm getting it for several of my friends and family for Christmas. I haven't seen the paperback edition, but the hardcover is a really lovely book with a gilded ivy design all along the crimson binding, front and back and spine, and the goldleaf continues in some of the illustrations.
Is it for children? I think adults would enjoy it more than children because they can appreciate it more fully, but it's really up to the adults. I would say it's a book best shared by adults with children. There are lines like the other animals teasing that the donkey "will make an ass of himself" and the donkey eating "as only an ass can eat", and the birth is described as well, not graphically at all, but the prose is real and true and still beautiful-- "It was life, bloody and raw, and wet and steaming in the cold like our breath..."
Just to give people a taste of Winterson's prose:
"The kings came inside even though there was no inside left now that we were blown inside out, time past and future roaring round us like a wind, and eternity sitting above us, like angels, like a star. The kings kneeled and one of them, the youngest, began to cry."
I've included a few photos of the illustrations. I cannot recommend this book enough.
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5 gilded, glorious stars
A gorgeously written Christmas fairytale about the Nativity, told from the perspective of the donkey Mary rode to Bethlehem. The prose is real and funny and dips into the exquisitely divine. The illustrations are both adorable and mesmerizing with stars swinging from the heavens on strands of light. A few reviewers have complained about a unicorn being included, but if you bear in mind that the Nativity was as much supernatural as natural (angels, etc), I think the unicorn was a lovely addition. Whether or not you believe Jesus was the Son of God, the Nativity is a beautiful, magical story, and Jeanette Winterson's beautiful, magical retelling of it is a must-have for fairytale collectors and Christmas story lovers. I'm getting it for several of my friends and family for Christmas. I haven't seen the paperback edition, but the hardcover is a really lovely book with a gilded ivy design all along the crimson binding, front and back and spine, and the goldleaf continues in some of the illustrations.Is it for children? I think adults would enjoy it more than children because they can appreciate it more fully, but it's really up to the adults. I would say it's a book best shared by adults with children. There are lines like the other animals teasing that the donkey "will make an ass of himself" and the donkey eating "as only an ass can eat", and the birth is described as well, not graphically at all, but the prose is real and true and still beautiful-- "It was life, bloody and raw, and wet and steaming in the cold like our breath..."Just to give people a taste of Winterson's prose:"The kings came inside even though there was no inside left now that we were blown inside out, time past and future roaring round us like a wind, and eternity sitting above us, like angels, like a star. The kings kneeled and one of them, the youngest, began to cry."I've included a few photos of the illustrations. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2015
A gorgeously written Christmas fairytale about the Nativity, told from the perspective of the donkey Mary rode to Bethlehem. The prose is real and funny and dips into the exquisitely divine. The illustrations are both adorable and mesmerizing with stars swinging from the heavens on strands of light. A few reviewers have complained about a unicorn being included, but if you bear in mind that the Nativity was as much supernatural as natural (angels, etc), I think the unicorn was a lovely addition. Whether or not you believe Jesus was the Son of God, the Nativity is a beautiful, magical story, and Jeanette Winterson's beautiful, magical retelling of it is a must-have for fairytale collectors and Christmas story lovers. I'm getting it for several of my friends and family for Christmas. I haven't seen the paperback edition, but the hardcover is a really lovely book with a gilded ivy design all along the crimson binding, front and back and spine, and the goldleaf continues in some of the illustrations.
Is it for children? I think adults would enjoy it more than children because they can appreciate it more fully, but it's really up to the adults. I would say it's a book best shared by adults with children. There are lines like the other animals teasing that the donkey "will make an ass of himself" and the donkey eating "as only an ass can eat", and the birth is described as well, not graphically at all, but the prose is real and true and still beautiful-- "It was life, bloody and raw, and wet and steaming in the cold like our breath..."
Just to give people a taste of Winterson's prose:
"The kings came inside even though there was no inside left now that we were blown inside out, time past and future roaring round us like a wind, and eternity sitting above us, like angels, like a star. The kings kneeled and one of them, the youngest, began to cry."
I've included a few photos of the illustrations. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Is it for children? I think adults would enjoy it more than children because they can appreciate it more fully, but it's really up to the adults. I would say it's a book best shared by adults with children. There are lines like the other animals teasing that the donkey "will make an ass of himself" and the donkey eating "as only an ass can eat", and the birth is described as well, not graphically at all, but the prose is real and true and still beautiful-- "It was life, bloody and raw, and wet and steaming in the cold like our breath..."
Just to give people a taste of Winterson's prose:
"The kings came inside even though there was no inside left now that we were blown inside out, time past and future roaring round us like a wind, and eternity sitting above us, like angels, like a star. The kings kneeled and one of them, the youngest, began to cry."
I've included a few photos of the illustrations. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2014
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2014
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2011
Top reviews from other countries
hillbank68
very charming and original ; beautifully illustrated ;a special book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 1, 2010
Elaine
I had to skip one bit of the story and ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 7, 2015