- Board Books
- Ages 1–4
- Everyday Life
Dear Santa
The obvious festive companion to Dear Zoo, using the same lift-the-flap guessing structure for Christmas presents. A strong seasonal toddler pick: simple, cosy, interactive and highly repeatable in December.
- Best for1–4
- FormatBoard
- Length20 pp
- Read aloud~3 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Repetitive
- Conversational
Tone
- Warm
- Funny
- Silly
- Cosy
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
Dear Santa adapts the Dear Zoo formula into a Christmas setting. A child writes to Santa, and Santa sends a series of presents that are not quite right: too big, too small, too scary or otherwise unsuitable. Each present is hidden behind a flap, so toddlers get the familiar pleasure of guessing, lifting and joining in before the perfect gift is revealed. Rod Campbell's style is direct, uncluttered and built around early participation rather than complex storytelling. The seasonal angle gives the book extra giftability, while the repetition and flaps make it easy for very young children to understand and request again. This is the key Rod Campbell Christmas title: not as essential year-round as Dear Zoo, but probably the strongest festive early-years novelty book in his catalogue.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- Best fit · 1–4
- Read aloud · 0–5
- Independent · 2–5
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Excellent
Works well for
- Reading aloud
- Bedtime
- Gift-buying
- Reluctant readers
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
5 / 5 · Bedtime-friendly
Sensitive-child
4 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Christmas
- Lift the flap
- Toddlers
- Festive gift
- Dear zoo fans
Avoid if
- Not celebrating christmas
- Wants story depth
- Older than 5
Particularly good for children who are…
- Religious or cultural celebration
- Reluctant reader
- Starting nursery or preschool
In the classroom
How it works in school.
A lift-the-flap festive board book — a warm, interactive read-aloud for the youngest at Christmas.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The specific delight is the Dear Zoo formula at Christmas — flaps to lift, presents to reject, the perfect one waiting on the final page. A two-year-old who's loved Dear Zoo gets the festive version, with the same join-in anticipation.
- Magic powers
- Family belonging
Why parents love it
The Dear Zoo formula transposed to Christmas — same flaps, same guessing, same satisfying ending. Reliable December toddler-shelf pick. Not as essential year-round as Dear Zoo, but the strongest festive lift-the-flap board book in the catalogue.
- Nostalgia
- Quick to read
- Bedtime appropriate
- Shared humour
About the author & illustrator
Rod Campbell.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
More like this…
Books that share themes and topics with this one.
Buy or borrow
Pick up a copy.
- Bookshop.org ↗
- Waterstones ↗
- Amazon UK ↗
- Hive ↗
When you buy through the links above, we may earn a small commission — it never costs you more, and it never changes the books we choose. How we’re funded →