Published by Simon & Schuster, 2018.
A Very Corgi Christmas is a great new addition to the world of Christmas picture books. It begins in Buckingham Palace on Christmas Eve. The palace is a hive of activity with people bustling about getting ready for Christmas. The royal corgis, however, are not amused. They think there’s too much fuss and bother. Only Belle, the youngest of the corgis, is excited by the Christmas preparations.
Belle looks out of the window and is lured by the bright lights of the big city where everyone seems to be enjoying Christmas. She stows away in the back of a post office van as it leaves the palace and she heads into the centre of London. Belle is soon overwhelmed by the noise and crowds.
Luckily, a friendly stray dog called Pip comes to her aid. Together, they see the sights and have a lovely time. I really like all the London scenes: the landmarks, the iconic images, the famous skylines. It makes it a really special book and the blanket of snow everywhere is beautifully atmospheric. Soon it’s time for Belle to return home but she finds herself missing Pip. Will there be a special surprise for her on Christmas Day?
A Very Corgi Christmas is a gorgeous book; the rich red and green cover with sparkly gold foil accents is really festive, and the illustrations throughout the book are lovely: lots of super detail gives you loads to look at and the dogs are really cute too. In the Buckingham Palace scenes there are also some nice references to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to look out for.
I thought there were also some lovely parallels with classic films of the 1950s. For me, the book’s premise of a member of the royal household going incognito amongst the masses brought to mind Audrey Hepburn’s character in Roman Holiday. The relationship between Belle the royal pup and Pip the stray also had hints of The Lady and the Tramp.
A Very Corgi Christmas is feel-good festive fun with two irresistible pups.
Rating: 💙💙💙💙💙
Suitable for children aged 2+
Thank you to Simon & Schuster for sending me this book to review.
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