12 leaping lords, 22 dancing ladies, 30 fiddlers, 36 drummers, 40 milkmaids, 42 swans, 42 geese, 40 gold rings, 36 calling birds, 30 French hens, 22 turtle doves, and 12 partridges in pear trees? In this playful companion to Hilary Knight's The Owl and the Pussy-cat the presents never stop. When Bedelia Bear is faced with an accumulation of holiday offerings from her sweetheart, Benjamin, she turns her gifts into a very special event that everyone is able to share.

    His animal friends are hibernating, and he has nobody to play with-even all the birds have flown south. When he meets Jack Frost, the last thing he expects is to make a new friend... or to discover how enchanting winter can be!

    On each page, a deceptively simple item--stocking, snowman, reindeer--pulls readers into a nostalgic, exquisitely detailed moment of the yuletide journey: a trip in Santa's sleigh, supper with Mr. and Mrs. Claus, watching the elves hard at work, and finally arriving home in time for Christmas morning.Secret clues, plus hidden allusions to classic Christmas carols, elevate this from a gorgeous book to an interactive holiday treasure hunt--a natural fit for the whole family at Christmastime.

    Hurry, Santa! says his little mouse. You mustn't be late tonight. Santa is in such a hurry, but with one disaster following another, will he ever be able to deliver all the presents in time for Christmas Day?

    She follows him down the chimney and, to her surprise, sees a big tree inside. The harebrained hen can?t make any sense of it, but young children will cackle with delight as they follow Minerva around on her Christmas Eve adventure with the jolly fat fellow. She even gets a present!