"The Must-have Holiday Treasure!"

"National award-winning columnist, Christopher Shoemaker, (with the skillful artistry of illustrator, Cesar De Castro) has crafted a beautifully illustrated storybook called The Great Mrs. Claus, filled with poetry, games, puzzles, hidden clues in a fun Mrs. Claus' North Pole Map, and the heartwarming story of the real Mrs. Claus, 'an often overlooked but smart and fiercely independently-minded woman with an enormous sense of humor.'

I highly recommend purchasing The Great Mrs. Claus for your family, your friends, and whoever else enjoys the holidays. It is sure to become a holiday favorite families will enjoy for many years to come."

Mac Duffy, Editor - Los Angeles Family Magazine

"Wow! So much more than I expected.... A friend told me about this book and she said my kids might like it. Well I have to tell you that I liked it just as much as they did. It's a great lap book with colorful pictures with a different & unique take on the traditional Christmas stories. The best part is it comes with a built in bookmark that doubles as a magnifying glass for the LARGE foldout game that is located in the book. My kids actually spent some time with the book just finding the neat things in the North Pole."

Busy Dad - Los Angeles, CA

"The final test of a successful Christmas book is whether or not you will be able to read it each year, and with three shots taken in a single expertly crafted art book, how could the creators miss? The tale of Mrs. Claus's first encounter with Mr. Claus is endearing, funny, poignant; a perfect picture of the blissful spirit of Christmas. The love that has gone into the crafting of The Great Mrs. Claus is evident in its careful binding, and detailed layout. A healthy addition to any yuletide library, this is a gift that gives and gives and gives again."
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BookReview.com - Madison, WI

"I love the way that it's bound with the padded cover and the magnifier book mark! The snowflake borders on the pages are also a really nice touch. It has the feel of a family scrapbook or photo album. It made me want to curl up with a little lap sitter in a big, comfy chair and pore over all of the details.

This is truly a gift from the heart and it will become a treasured, sincerely appreciated holiday heirloom at my house!"

Sindee Pickens, Youth Services Librarian - City of El Segundo

"Wow and WOW! on your book! This is a terrific, handsome, colorful, fun and professional book. Just awesome."

Tim Crescenti, CEO - Small World International Format Television

"The Great Mrs. Claus, is a heartwarming story that will both please and delight both the young and the young at heart. With beautifully drawn illustrations by Cesar De Castor that will immediately capture your eye and the brilliantly crafted lyrics by Chris A. Shoemaker, one cannot go wrong with this book. Capturing the essence of Christmas while spreading the message that 'you're never too young or too old to show love, It's what magic and soul and good things are made of '. The Great Mrs. Claus, is not only a book, but truly a work of art for the heart. Equipped with wonderful values, lively artwork, lyrical content, and an interactive map of the North Pole that comes with a magnifying glass, The Great Mrs. Claus is guaranteed to become a family favorite for generations to come."
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Angela - Ohio

"Hard at work on a sled for his nephew Rassle to use in the annual Glitterlit Mountain Downhill sled races, Sparky put everything on hold when Rassle and Klee-Klee came in to say goodnight to their favorite Uncle. When they informed Uncle Sparky that since they were now 9 and 12 years old, they no longer needed bedtime kisses, not even from Uncle Sparky. Fearing they were growing up quicker than he expected, he decided it was time to tell a tale that might change their minds about that goodnight kiss. The telling of this story would be easy, since Sparky had been one of Santa Claus's closest and most trusted elves for such a long time. Reaching back into his memory, he started the tale of the first trip that Santa made to deliver his toys. Back then Santa was a young, single man and when trouble struck he turned to Sparky for the help he needed to make it through one of the worst storms anyone had ever seen.

I enjoyed the playfulness of the children with their Uncle. The sneezing bit adds even more fun for the kids, even though at first it kind of seemed like that was why they didn't want to give him a hug and kiss goodnight. The story about Santa fist meeting Miss Suzie McEase, the soon to be Mrs. Claus was in the format of a poem. With the rhyming cadence of the story its pattern was easily formed, and then broken when the kids started getting restless (as kids tend to do sometimes). The rhythm was easily picked up again as the story got back on track. The story did the trick and thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Claus, both Rassle and Klee-Klee willingly gave Uncle Sparky a goodnight kiss. With the addition of the wonderful illustrations, that are by Cesar De Castro, the beautiful poem and the cute story to match, this is a good read-aloud story that kids will enjoy for many Christmas times to come. I read this to my 8 and 10 year olds (even though it is not Christmas time yet) and they enjoyed the way the pictures so accurately depicted the story, they laughed at Uncle Sparky's sneezes and at Santa falling down. They thought that Mrs. Claus was sweet, and so was Klee-Klee. They would like to hear this story again, whether it is Christmas time or not. They also really enjoyed the two seek-and-find pages, doublewide with a plastic magnifying window on a super long ribbon. One, a day time view of Santa's North Pole, the other a night time view of the North Pole, including a seek-and-find question and answer combination - what fun."

Debbie - Oklahoma

"This is a very large book with a lot of good and colorful artwork. It took me almost an hour to read it and find all of the hidden places on the map. Sparky had a surprise for his niece also. He would often give her clues, but would never tell her what it was that he was making until it was finished. I thought this was a fun book to read. This would be a book I would read again."
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Madeline McElroy (age 8) - Reader Views (readerviews.com)

"The Great Mrs. Claus is a wonderful, magical tale. The book itself is much bigger that I anticipated, but it needs to be to fully appreciate illustrations by Cesar De Castro.

It's truly a book that can be enjoyed by children, adults and especially as a family. It's the perfect book to curl up as a family in front of a fire, with marshmallows and hot cocoa, on Christmas Eve.

Chris A. Shoemaker has outdone himself in his first foray into the world of children's books."
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Tina Maree (www.librarything.com)

"We purchased your book a couple of weeks ago. What a pleasure and what a great book...filled with ideas for continued storytelling. Wonderful illustrations! The maps in your book are imaginative and will no doubt create future chapters."

Scott H.- Los Angeles, CA