A review by theespressoedition
A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig

inspiring lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

"Impossibility is just a possibility you don't understand yet."

This book is pure MAGIC from beginning to end.

When I saw the announcement for the Netflix adaptation, I knew I had to read the book as soon as possible. Matt Haig is already one of my favorite authors of all time and I had this feeling that I'd really enjoy the book. However, whenever I pick up a middle-grade book, I lower my expectations a bit because I don't typically love them so much as just breeze through them. 

I chose to listen to the audiobook and I'm so glad that I did. Stephen Fry was the narrator and his voice acting made the story all the more enchanting! It brought the characters to life in such a beautiful way. I was able to picture every moment of the story vividly in my mind as I listened!

How Matt Haig manages to bring such depth and inspiration to a children's book is more than my brain can handle. I'm constantly in awe of his writing and now that I've experienced his adult fiction, non-fiction, and children's fiction, I can say with ease that he can truly do no wrong in my book.

There were moments that made me want to cry, moments that had me laughing aloud, and other moments that made me pause the story just to ruminate on what was said. If we're thinking in terms of middle-grade books, this was top-notch. If we're forgetting that it was middle-grade and just thinking about it as a work of fiction, it was phenomenal. I can't think of a single negative thing to say!

Watching the movie after finishing the book, I can definitely state that the book was better. Now, the movie was excellent, but the plot and characters were changed a lot, losing out on some of the meaningful aspects in my opinion. However, my favorite character (Miika) was just as adorable and funny and the magical quality was still there, so I appreciated that!

I can't wait to pick up the next two books during the holiday season next year. I'm looking forward to continuing to expand my imagination with these stories!
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