The Best of Children's Literature - Olive the Other Reindeer (Deluxe Edition)

by Jeff Bogle | More from this Blogger

12 Nov 2007 09:10 AM

Olive was a favorite in my house last year and now Chronicle Books has upped the ante by creating a hardback, pop-up version of this modern day holiday classic - to celebrate the book's 10th Anniversary. Let's take a look inside and see if it worth its weight and its hefty price tag ($19.95 - although I'm sure it can be had for cheaper online)

Olive the Other Reindeer - Deluxe Edition By J. Otto Seibold and Vivian Walsh

I must admit, off the top, that I love the story of Olive. I must also admit that I was apprehensive at best when I saw that a new, deluxe version of the exact same story was being released. I saw no real need to reproduce the same work but my opinion changed after opening up the book with my 3 ¾ year old girl. She was excited, having nearly forgotten about Olive (we put seasonal books away to keep them fresh for the specific holiday) but the tale came back to her quickly. What really made this dad and daughter read special were the added features of this deluxe edition. The ability to slide Olive back and forth while on her dog walk on the first page was a giggly hit with her. Unfortunately, the pop ups and other features fade away after a few pages and the ones that are there are not terribly obvious - we actually missed two of them the first time through - nor are they particularly impressive. Was that all? Did you just cough up $20 to slide a paper dog 2.5 inches? Not at all! What then is the reason to pick up with deluxe version of Olive the Other Reindeer? Easy, the last three pages featuring the tasty scratch and sniff gingerbread man (it smells so, so good!), seeing Santa place the antlers on Olive's head and, most impressively, the grand pop-up finale on the 2nd to last page (yes, a finale that is not exactly at the end). The finale is a huge and very intricate pop-up of Santa's Castle, including the reindeer stables. My girl's head was horizontal immediately, looking into the windows and appreciating all the details.

In short, the deluxe edition of Olive the Other Reindeer is worth the price of admission and reading it should quickly become a family Christmastime tradition.

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Learn more about Jeff Bogle

Jeff is married to a lovely redhead and is fortunate to have in his life an amazing young lady, age three.

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