Marguerite’s Christmas

Fearful of the outside world, an elderly woman named Marguerite plans to spend Christmas alone watching television, rather than with her family. When the doorbell rings, Marguerite, who has spent the evening reflecting on her own frailty and her departed friends, imagines it’s the Grim Reaper: “This is it. Her time has come.” Instead, it’s a man requesting to use her phone—his family’s car has broken down outside. Marguerite watches the family from the window as they open their presents in the dim light of their stalled vehicle. Pulling from a variety of midcentury influences (plaid curtains, linoleum, wood-paneled station wagons), Blanchet’s screenprints are unequivocally gorgeous, while simultaneously emphasizing solitude and loneliness. The tow truck arrives before Marguerite can bring the family refreshments, yet she is rejuvenated by the interaction. This melancholy story offers layers of visual and psychological subtlety for introspective readers who prefer blue Christmases to white ones. Ages 8–up. (Nov.)