THE BARNYARD SANG IN THE MERRIEST WAY

In Hawthorne’s picture-book adventure, a devout family works together to find a place to celebrate the Christmas holiday.

The Tanner family travels cross-country to their grandparents’ farm in Evergreen, Louisiana, for an anticipated Christmas celebration. However, they become concerned when a when the heat fails to work at the local church after a cold snap. Where will everyone celebrate? This fun adventure celebrates family and community, and Ketsviil’s illustrations offer a bright, engaging color palette to convey the upbeat tone of the Louisiana-set narrative. The often-crowded pictures balance a sense of chaos and structure, which fits the trajectory of the overall story, which effectively moves from problems to solutions. The dialogue also ably presents the family’s faith-centered culture, as when they use “Glory Be!” as an exclamation and “Make our hearts clean and clear” as a mealtime prayer. The engaging text features some humor, as well, but its use of varied typefaces tends to distract from the story. The plot structure is also a bit loose, as if the author is more intent on presenting a rhyme scheme than a straightforward narrative; the rhymes, in turn, are uneven and inconsistent. Still, the final resolution is a pleasant one and it makes for an enjoyable tale of winter celebration.

A rollicking story of a religious Southern family at Christmastime.