A review by findingmyshoes
The Autobiography of Santa Claus by Jeff Guinn

2.0

This book begins wonderfully; I was intrigued and delighted to get historical background on Saint Nicholas and the little tid bits of historical accuracy that were tossed in after the death of historical Saint Nicholas continued to interest me as I paged through the book. However, once the bulk of the history subsides and the "magic" kicks in, I really felt as though the author relied more on the a wistful "I do believe" spirit in his readers rather than plot or character development. Attila the Hun giving up war to join Santa Claus? That's just a little much for me.
Granted, when it comes to literature, I definitely have a very bah-humbug approach. I can definitely see this book as a heart-warming for another less-critical reader who can dismiss my tendency for bah-humbug, and rolls with the magic-is-real, eyes-all-a-glow, Christmas feeling. It explains in a lot of detail each and every aspect of the American Santa's life and throws in inciting historical facts that are fun to quote at holiday parties, and while it doesn't exactly rely on realism, it does do a nice job of tieing up everything with a festive red bow.
For those people looking for a engaging Christmas read, I would say look elsewhere, but for someone who is looking to make cheery holiday library, I would say this is an sound edition.