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Through the Animals' Eyes: A Story of the First Christmas
From dogs watching over the shepherds' flocks when angels appear, to a charmed cobra performing in Herod's court as the king tries to deceive the wise men, Wormell's trademark animal imagery brings a new perspective to the story of the first Christmas.
64 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
1 person is currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Christopher Wormell
107 books30 followersChristopher Wormell is an English printmaker, principally known for his illustrated books.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 13, 2022
***Actual Star Rating: 1.5 Stars***
This book was a disappointment to me just since from reading its title I had a whole different concept of what I would be reading upon opening its cover. Instead the story is a summarized variation of the Nativity that is put into bold, large text that is easy to read and understand so thus may work as a good book to introducing children how to read if you can overlook everything else.
Instead what makes this book is the illustrations and thus the half star added on. Here the reader will find that the majority of the illustrations are dedicated a full page to themselves while the rest are given full spread treatment. Otherwise the color palette is very simple and limited although the blending of colors at times is gorgeous, the illustrations themselves seem basic with a lot of facial details missing and the inclusion of animal species in the story that most readers haven't seen before such as the cobra, the Griffon vulture and the oryx just to name a few.
And now for my expectations.... The book states that it is Through the Animals' Eyes but again the text is adapted from the Bible while the reader isn't taken through the eyes of the animals. Instead the reader is given an observer's view of events that most often just include an animal like a profile of a lion, a cowering wolf weirdly enough since with a Canaan dog I wouldn't have thought he would have be close to the flock and the hares. Meanwhile most of these animals are often shown in similarity as having young ones just like the Virgin Mary with Jesus such as the griffon vulture, the cow, a lamb and the young hare in its hollow.
But I guess to make up for the disappointment there is a glossary included in the back that tells the reader what all the new included animals are and gives some history as well as information on them. There is only one entry that is a bit confusing as it states the animal is very rarely seen in the wild but then in the next breath it states that it was declared extinct in the wild in 1932, which is most definitely contradictory. All in all, though, this was my most favorite part of the book followed by the illustrations.
In the end this is one book that I would most definitely say to readers to pass on even if it is a child-friendly telling of the Nativity.
This book was a disappointment to me just since from reading its title I had a whole different concept of what I would be reading upon opening its cover. Instead the story is a summarized variation of the Nativity that is put into bold, large text that is easy to read and understand so thus may work as a good book to introducing children how to read if you can overlook everything else.
Instead what makes this book is the illustrations and thus the half star added on. Here the reader will find that the majority of the illustrations are dedicated a full page to themselves while the rest are given full spread treatment. Otherwise the color palette is very simple and limited although the blending of colors at times is gorgeous, the illustrations themselves seem basic with a lot of facial details missing and the inclusion of animal species in the story that most readers haven't seen before such as the cobra, the Griffon vulture and the oryx just to name a few.
And now for my expectations.... The book states that it is Through the Animals' Eyes but again the text is adapted from the Bible while the reader isn't taken through the eyes of the animals. Instead the reader is given an observer's view of events that most often just include an animal like a profile of a lion, a cowering wolf weirdly enough since with a Canaan dog I wouldn't have thought he would have be close to the flock and the hares. Meanwhile most of these animals are often shown in similarity as having young ones just like the Virgin Mary with Jesus such as the griffon vulture, the cow, a lamb and the young hare in its hollow.
But I guess to make up for the disappointment there is a glossary included in the back that tells the reader what all the new included animals are and gives some history as well as information on them. There is only one entry that is a bit confusing as it states the animal is very rarely seen in the wild but then in the next breath it states that it was declared extinct in the wild in 1932, which is most definitely contradictory. All in all, though, this was my most favorite part of the book followed by the illustrations.
In the end this is one book that I would most definitely say to readers to pass on even if it is a child-friendly telling of the Nativity.
November 15, 2020
Like another reviewer I was super excited to see the cover. The purple fabric is so royal and I was eager to see inside. #DontJudgeABookByItsCover This book is just simple the traditional Christmas story with some beautiful art 🖼. It was a bit less than what I had envisioned from the cover.
The end of the book was certainly one of my favorite parts. Learning about animals like Arabian Oryx and Dromedary Camels 🐪 and Egyptian Mau 🐈 Don’t stop at the end of the story, make sure you take the opportunity to learn about the animals.
The end of the book was certainly one of my favorite parts. Learning about animals like Arabian Oryx and Dromedary Camels 🐪 and Egyptian Mau 🐈 Don’t stop at the end of the story, make sure you take the opportunity to learn about the animals.
December 6, 2019
This book concept had SO MUCH POTENTIAL, and I was excited to read it when I saw the title.
However, I was sorely disappointed when the story was the Bible story with just animal pictures overlayed, instead of a retelling of the story from animals' perspectives.
However, I was sorely disappointed when the story was the Bible story with just animal pictures overlayed, instead of a retelling of the story from animals' perspectives.
December 23, 2022
I'm on a mission to add more beautiful, less cheesy books to our Christmas picture book collection. I love this wood engraving style.
March 2, 2025
The pictures were great!
3/2/25 Read with my preschool class
3/2/25 Read with my preschool class
June 16, 2015
Everyone knows about the shepherds and the wise men and the Holy Family, of course, and a smattering of animals in the stable, but what about the other animals that might have been present around the time of the Nativity?
This is a book we've had for a couple of years but I haven't taken the time to sit down and look at it until this last Christmas. It's a unique telling of the Nativity, told through the eyes (mostly via illustrations) of animals. And it's not just the donkey and the sheep and the camels, but the wolves and the rabbits and the bees. The illustrations are evocative and striking, and the text is faithful and abridged, though probably not quite brief enough for my 18-month old boy. He loved looking at the colors and all the animals though, and overall it's a nice addition to our Christmas book collection.
This book is a little too heavy on the text for a 1.5-year-old, but the unique perspective and the dramatic illustrations make it a worthwhile retelling of the Nativity for our bedtime book rotation at Christmastime.
This is a book we've had for a couple of years but I haven't taken the time to sit down and look at it until this last Christmas. It's a unique telling of the Nativity, told through the eyes (mostly via illustrations) of animals. And it's not just the donkey and the sheep and the camels, but the wolves and the rabbits and the bees. The illustrations are evocative and striking, and the text is faithful and abridged, though probably not quite brief enough for my 18-month old boy. He loved looking at the colors and all the animals though, and overall it's a nice addition to our Christmas book collection.
This book is a little too heavy on the text for a 1.5-year-old, but the unique perspective and the dramatic illustrations make it a worthwhile retelling of the Nativity for our bedtime book rotation at Christmastime.
November 15, 2014
Mr. Wormell must be applauded for the Biblical accuracy of his retelling of Christ's birth... and the work shows amazing mastery of his medium. Honestly, though, I can only hope others are more moved than I by the pairing of text and art. (The lines, and play of light and shadow were too dark, for me).
The (large) format of this book, though, was a joy! Both text and lay-out make the over-all work accessible for those coping with low-vision issues. Even the dark lines mentioned above actually serve a happy purpose, here.
The (large) format of this book, though, was a joy! Both text and lay-out make the over-all work accessible for those coping with low-vision issues. Even the dark lines mentioned above actually serve a happy purpose, here.
May 10, 2015
The story of the first Christmas paired with stunning woodcuts gives the text a whole new perspective. Following the story, miniature versions of the artwork appearing throughout the book is presented along with paragraphs of information about each animal featured in the book.
PreK-2+.
PreK-2+.
December 28, 2009
Ick. No idea why, but this book DID NOT get me. At all.
December 18, 2015
Beautiful illustrations and information about the pictured animals in the back.
August 6, 2016
The Nativity Story is told in the background with animals featured in the foreground. Although it is not as simple as some Nativity Story retellings, it is good book to share with young children.
December 28, 2018
Wonderful woodcut illustrations. Text is fairly accurate (timing of the wise men is off). I'm sure we'll borrow this from the library again next year!
December 21, 2025
Beautiful artwork by Christopher Wormell accompanies the Christmas story.
November 18, 2014
A beautiful re telling of the christmas story. I thought the artwork was extraordinary.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews