Shirley Hughes has given us a delightful picture book for Christmas this year The Christmas Eve Ghost.
Inspired by her own childhood in Liverpool in the 1930s, Shirley Hughes gives us a look back at how things were for people during very hard times. The two children, Bronwen and Dylan, are frightened by some strange noises on Christmas Eve, some very ghostly noises! Their mother has gone out to the shop at the end of the road, and in going out to find her, they literally run into their next door neighbour. She takes them into her house where they have never been before - will this visit help solve the mystery of the strange noises?
As usual with a Shirley Hughes book, the pictures are full of the tiny details of daily life. The close relationship between the children and their mother is shown as they go through the day. Much of the detail is of historical interest, depicting the lives of the family and the community in which they live. This is a wonderful book to share with children, as there is a fair bit of text and some of the pictures may need some explanation. As we live through our own times of austerity, it is fascinating to see how an earlier generation coped with theirs.
Lucy and Tom's Christmas, Angel Mae and Snow Lady are other seasonal Shirley Hughes picture books to enjoy.
You can watch Shirley talk about the making of The Christmas Eve Ghost here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfRvSeE1RRg
