Synopsis
Susan Hepler, Ph.D. - Children's Literature
On Christmas Eve, just as Dora is telling the babies and her monkey friend, Boots, about Santa, he arrives at her house with a problem. The reindeer are sick and he cannot deliver presents. When he asks for help, Dora offers the Explorer Stars to fly the sleigh. Then, with the help of the stars—and Boots—they deliver presents to all of the whales, fish, turtles and animals in the ocean, the animals on the tallest mountain, and all of the children. Saltador, one of the stars, even delivers a present to the moon while Helada Star causes the trees to frost into beautiful patterns. Santa gives Dora a music box for her troubles. Cartoonish characters, in the style of the popular children's television series decorate the pages. Round-eyed children, Dora's Spanish family, and many animals are posed with the props of the season while a few Spanish phrases are simultaneously translated to give the book the bilingual flavor of the television series. This title is #17 in the "Dora the Explorer" series and also appears in Spanish under the title Navidad estelar de Dora. 2005, Simon Spotlight/Simon & Schuster, Ages 3 to 7.