It's Christmas Eve and Santa has chosen Emit the Elf to be his navigator this time out but poor Emit, no sooner do they get started than he falls from Santa's sleigh. He falls straight into New Years Eve and from there it's a race through the year and all of its holidays all the while Emit (time spelled backwards, don't ya know) tries to find Santa and his sleigh so that all the presents can be delivered. We move from New Years, through Valentines Day, St. Patrick's Day, Over a Rainbow, to Easter, a visit to a Birthday girl, into the 4th of July via a leftover birthday balloon, down Trick-or-Treat Lane in a pumpkin sleigh, enjoy a Thanksgiving Day parade and finally back into Christmas where Emit learns that it's all about more than just presents!

In the end, it's the combination of Emit's repetitive "Has anyone seen Christmas?/Has Anyone Seen Christmas Day?/I need to get back to Santa/For I fell out of his sleigh and the gorgeous image rich pictures that bring so very much to the story all on their own. Using a combination of water color, pen & ink, chalk and acrylic mediums, Popko really gives Has Anyone Seen Christmas that extra something that makes it extra special, taking it from regular story book to visual feast! Kids and adult alike will enjoy the text and simply gorgeous pictures and younger in particular readers will love Emit's repetitive refrain; it allows them an "in" to the story that they can count on! I think this would make an excellent addition to any families Christmas collection, truly a pleasure to read! I rate it five stars of Christmas goodness. For an extra treat, look for the hidden Santa's worked into the pictures. ( )