The Night the Lights Went Out on Christmas

PreS-Gr 3—"It started out kind of innocently,/just lights within a tree./Then the mailbox got all lit up,/then the chimney, then the eaves." In this illustrated version of Paul's original Christmas song, one family's annually increasing holiday lawn decorations lead to a neighborhood competition that results in a light show so full of light-up Marys, giant menorahs, and massive inflatable snowmen that it can be seen from space and eventually triggers a worldwide power outage. In the darkness, the community realizes that the most beautiful light show is the one playing out in the stars above their heads. A download of the song is included with this title and is an important addition. Without Paul's folksy musical accompaniment, some of the lyrics' rhymes feel forced and inconsistent, but the detailed, digital illustrations of glowing electric lights and lawn tchotchkes pop off the page, and the message of remembering what's important about the season is presented without falling into sentimentality.