A Star So Bright

Its novelty format is the most distinctive element of this sweet if familiar rhyming rendition of the Nativity story. Animals, alone or with their young, “see a star shining bright,/ Filling the world/ with its silvery light.” Large-scale illustrations take advantage of the oversize pages, letting readers share the perspectives of smiling bear cubs or foxes as they gaze skyward. A foil star gleams through the star-shaped diecut that grows slightly larger on each spread as the story draws closer to Bethlehem. On the final page, where a lamb joins other animals visiting a slumbering, swaddled infant Jesus, the star is revealed in full sparkle: electronic lights blink all around it. Ages 3-7. (Oct.)