A review of a Christmas book, written after Christmas.
'The Fairytale Hairdresser and Father Christmas', aka Kittie Lacey Saves Christmas!
This Yuletide adventure begins with Kittie at her busiest time of the year at her hair salon, Kittie's Cuts, on Christmas Eve, as every fairy tale character wants to get ready for the Christmas Day party. One of her clients is Jack Frost, who decorates the salon windows with his ice. Kittie also has to do up Father Christmas, and his elves and reindeer!
One of the elves, Crystal, is missing, and soon everyone finds her in a block of ice! Kittie uses her hairdryer to thaw the poor elf out. Crystal says it was the work of the Snow Queen, who has taken all the presents.
Kittie accompanies Jolly Old Sant Nick on his mission to confront the Snow Queen at her Ice Palace. The ever benevolent Kittie asks the angry, icy, blue queen why she's so mean. It turns out the Snow Queen is just lonely and has trouble making friends, and she bursts into tears. Kittie holds her hand and offers to be her friend, and invites her to the Christmas party, which literally melts the Snow Queen's heart.
Kindness saves Christmas, and apparently the Snow Queen's dangerous, life threatening actions are excused; no punishments, no reprimanding. Loneliness and poor social skills are good excuses for evil, right? Redemption arcs are that quick and simple, right?
Anyway, Father Christmas, Kittie and the Snow Queen deliver the presents across all of Fairyland just in time. Kittie dresses the Snow Queen for the party, where she befriends Jack Frost (a romance, too?). Saint Nick gifts Kittie 'Aladdin's Magic Carpet Travel' tickets - a well-deserved holiday for her (seriously, this might be her most exhausting adventure yet. Did she ever have time to sleep?!)
'The Fairytale Hairdresser and Father Christmas', or 'Kittie Lacey Saves Christmas!', but really, the book should have been called 'The Fairytale Hairdresser and the Snow Queen'. But what a cute, colourful, snowy, icy, optimistic Christmas tale. Not as much styling of elves' hair as the cover depicts, though.
And it has occurred to me: Kittie Lacey is a kind, caring, selfless, concerned, thoughtful, brave, organised, resourceful, versatile, determined, altruistic, positive person - basically goodness personified, making her a perfect heroine for a children's Christmas story. But in all aspects of her character and job, the things she is not, unlike the majority of her friends, are a princess, a queen, or a fairy. She is an ordinary person, using ordinary, nonmagical tools to save the day, as well as her brains and heart - while living in a fantastical, fairy tale world. She doesn't need magic powers or a royal title in order to be important to people; to be respected and loved by her community. It is her personality, hard work, perseverance, and caring for and helping others that make her a good person. An ordinary hairdresser can be a hero amongst "important", established people in a classist, monarchic, hierarchal system.
I think this is a fantastic lesson to teach kids, in showing them a heroine and role model like Kittie Lacey.
Cameos (all fairy tale characters who are nothing like ordinary-yet-extraordinary Kittie) include: the Beast, Goldilocks, Humpty Dumpty, Hansel and Gretel, Little Miss Muffet, Pinocchio, Snow White, Dr Charming, Alice, the Sugar Plum Fairy (of course), Rudolph and all of the other reindeer, Puss in Boots, Cinderella, Prince Charming, Rapunzel, Rapunzel's witch, Rose, Prince Florian, Red Riding Hood, Gingerbread Man, and many, many more.
Happy belated Holidays, everyone!
Final Score: 3.5/5
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