When Joachim opens the first window on his advent calendar, his excitement mounts as the countdown to Christmas Day begins. But soon he notices that strange things are happening behind the little windows, and everyday something mysterious and new appears. Meanwhile Elisabeth and the angel Ephiriel are on their own very special journey, and it is only when the last window on Joachim's calendar is opened that the true magic and wonder of Christmas is revealed. Josten Gaarder, author of the international bestseller Sophie's World, has taken the story of Christmas and given it an alluring, mystical, modern twist that transports readers back to the Bethlehem of baby Jesus without ever losing sight of the wonder of it all. With illustrations by Rosemary Wells, The Christmas Mystery is lifted into the realms of the classics by the richness and poetry of Gaarder's language, making it so much more than just another book for Christmas. --Susan Harrison