Perfect Christmas: A Carol of Calm in the Midst of a Mess

“The tree is finally standing, but it’s leaning to the right,” begins this amusing Christmas story from the husband-and-wife Bower team in which nothing is perfect, yet everything is just right. Gary Bower offers playful rhyming verse (“It’s time to gather everyone/ and sing of Christmas joys./ The music we call ‘caroling’/ the neighbors might call ‘noise’ ”), while Jan Bower’s illustrations brim with rich blues and reds, with subtle plays of light across her characters’ faces. Eyes shine and faces express amusement and glee (meanwhile, dad hurts his back shoveling snow, and the gingerbread house collapses). Rockwellian scenes of family life provide details galore to accompany the text and mirror the resilience with which the characters weather the mini-messes. Ages 5–up. (Oct.)