Ella and Olivia #12: Christmas Wonderland product reviews

My daughter, aged 8, was introduced to the Ella and Olivia series of books earlier this year when we were accepted to review another story in the series. Ever since then she has been hooked. These are a wonderful, easy to read story, not to long and not to many big words. They are written in away that that tbey could be read together with an adult in one sitting, or if they child is reading well, easy enough for them to read alone.

Priced at around $10.00 they are definitely worth every cent. Ella and Olivia, Christmas wonderland, would make a wonderful gift under the Xmas tree, or even as a stocking stuffer. Its a lovely Christmas story about the neighbourhood getting together and having a fair. Theres even Christmas tree decorating, which is exciting for any child, even when its in a book. Like another reviewer, we liked that Ella and Olivias little brother is getting older and being included in the storyline.

My daughter loves that the books all talk about things that kids do or experience, and she loves that she can relate to the storylines with things that are happening in her own life, or have happened. We read this one together in an evening but she is also now reading it again alone. Just a chapter a night. Its only 5 chapters so she will finish it in less than a week, but it is awesome that she is rereading it again already. She loves it.

The covers are simple, featuring Ella and Olivia, but they are bright and appealing. A nice light easy read that is most definitely sure to please any Ella and Olivia fan or little girl this Christmas (or anytime of the year).

My eldest daughter is a big fan of the Ella and Olivia series. We have every story and I was really pleased to see another Christmas novel come out with our favourite family in it. It's unusual to have more than one "Christmas special" but there you go.

In this book, Ella and Olivia's street is having a fair and every household is doing something special as part of the celebration. The street and what each household was doing, reminded me a little of our local suburb of Harrowfield. We go there every year to see the houses compete against each other in their street light competition. So reading along to the story was very familiar for us.

The family are Australian, so while that is not the same as being in New Zealand, it's pretty similar. They talk a little about the heat. And they have fake snow as well. The other cool thing, that I enjoyed was that the little brother Max had grown a little and in this book he was being allowed to help with decorating the Christmas tree. I hope that continues, as I think it's realistic that he will get older and be more of a pain or become a source for more stories at least.

My eldest and I sat and read this book in about 30 minutes. But it would probably take an early reader a bit longer to get through the 5 chapters. This is quite a re-readable tale. I think I could happily read it a few times over December. The price is good for the size of the book. This would be a great Christmas gift for a primary aged child. If you have a child who likes reading but is just starting out, or who needs to practice during the summer holidays, this is for them.