A Pioneer Christmas is social studies in an attractive package. As a companion book to Barbara Greenwood’s 1999 A Pioneer Thanksgiving, it follows the same format: narrative interspersed with reference sections. The fiction component relates the activities of the Robertson family as they prepare for Christmas and for the arrival of Andrew and Sophie, who are travelling from the east coast. As the holiday approaches, there is no sign of the young couple. The Robertsons fear that they will be caught in a winter storm and that Sophie, who is almost nine months pregnant, won’t be strong enough to manage in the snow drifts. The anticipation of the visitors’ arrival is focused through the consciousness of Sarah, one of the older children in the family.

The non-fiction component consists of single-page information sections with instructions for making Christmas crafts, descriptions of games, lyrics for carols, and brief historical explanations of various traditions observed by pioneers of European descent 150 years ago. The book is well designed: its alternating format sustains interest, the layout is spacious and attractive, and the index is useful for returning to information quickly.

The pencil illustrations by Toronto-based artist Heather Collins are versatile, capturing the soft, historical mood of the tale and yet showing things clearly in the reference sections. This book fulfills its purpose nicely, giving an accessible overview of pioneer Christmas traditions for kids in Grades 3 to 7, though it seems better suited to the younger end of that range.