Breast cancer cost Nutmeg Brown her fiancé, her job, and her cleavage, but not her love for Christmas. She’s had enough pity from family and old friends, so she travels to Christmas Creek to celebrate anonymously. Army specialist Craig Brockman has lost more than a foot and an eye. He’s lost his pride and can’t face his family—least of all for Christmas. When his friend, Nutmeg’s brother, asks him to anonymously deliver an old toy to his sister, he comes face to face with a wish he’d lost long ago. A dose of Christmas Creek magic works over Nutmeg and Craig—but only for a time. As contradicting wishes are sorted out and the dream world fades, both Nutmeg and Craig must face reality and grab for the one wish worth fighting for. --- Christmas Creek romances are a fun way to get into the holiday spirit. They are sassy, standalone romances centered around a town which celebrates Christmas all year round. Each story has a happy ending and can be read in any order, but of course, they are more fun if read together. Deck the Hearts, #1 Can Holly’s jolly Christmas spirit help Grinchy Gordon Gills save the town of Christmas Creek? Her Christmas Chance, #2 A woman with cerebral palsy and her tomcat disagree about the attractive ex-con living next door. Will a dose of Christmas magic reach through his dark secrets? A Christmas Creek Carol, #3 A reclusive writer, Ebony Cruse, is given a one-star review on her life by characters in her past, present, and future. Kitty, It's Cold Outside, #4 When mailman Mick Jolly delivers a kitten to an abandoned millhouse, he is ensnared by a beautiful Victorian woman caught in a Christmas curse. A Christmas Creek Caper, #5 Someone’s stealing packages off the Christmas Creek porches. Sheriff Brad Wing is on the case—until he’s caught with his hands up and his pants down. Toy Soldier Christmas, #6 Breast cancer survivor, Nutmeg Brown, finds a broken toy soldier under her Christmas tree. It’s love at first sight with a wooden toy or is it? Red’s Christmas Woodsman, #7When Ruby Red Rumsey visits her grandmother’s Christmas Creek cottage, she finds a hunky woodsman asleep in her grandmother’s bed.

A beautifully illustrated version of the classic fairy tale about a tin soldier’s adventure and his love for a ballerina, retold with a twist. With her signature warmth and lyricism, Newbery winner Cynthia Rylant has crafted a new version of the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale about a tin soldier who falls in love with a ballerina. As in the original story, the tin soldier’s love for the beautiful ballerina is thwarted by a goblin. The tin soldier is separated from the other toys and washed down a sewer, where he encounters a rat and gets swallowed by a fish, but somehow, against all odds, he manages to end up back home only to be cast into the nursery fire. Rylant adds her own twist to the end of the tale, however, for in this version, the tin soldier and the ballerina are melded to each other, rather than melted, in the heat of the fire, so they’ll never be parted again. Rylant’s expert storytelling paired with Corace’s stunning illustrations create a beautiful, unforgettable tale of everlasting love. Praise for The Steadfast Tin Soldier “Gracefully written. . . . The book’s large format gives plenty of scope for Corace’s distinctive illustrations, precise ink drawings brightened with watercolor, gouache, and acrylic paints. Sometimes brilliantly colorful and sometimes more subdued, the scenes can be crowded with dozens of toys or other visual elements, but they show up well from a distance. The subtle depictions of the goblin and his shadow are particularly fine. A softened vision of the literary fairy tale.” —Booklist “Text and illustrations weave seamlessly to create an involving, fast-paced update of a much-loved tale. Rylant's retelling is abridged, yet sprightly, and Corace’s watercolor, gouache, acrylic, and pen-and-ink illustrations add nuance and whimsy to Andersen's original.” —School Library Journal

Owen is a toy soldier who is far from perfect, yet he dreams of being a part of a family. Will he ever find the perfect family for him?

Ten-year-old Johnny eagerly plays at war with the army of nutcracker soldiers his toymaker father whittles for him. He demolishes imaginary foes. But in 1914 Germany looms as the real enemy of Europe, and all too soon Johnny’s father is swept up in the war to end all wars. He proudly enlists with his British countrymen to fight at the front in France. The war, though, is nothing like what any soldier or person at home expected. The letters that arrive from Johnny’s dad reveal the ugly realities of combat — and the soldiers he carves and encloses begin to bear its scars. Still, Johnny adds these soldiers to his armies of Huns, Tommies, and Frenchmen, engaging them in furious fights. But when these games seem to foretell his dad’s real battles, Johnny thinks he possesses godlike powers over his wooden men. He fears he controls his father’s fate, the lives of all the soldiers in no-man’s land, and the outcome of the war itself.

“Amazing . . . A must-have must-read bible for lovers of toy history and in particular toy soldiers. Absolutely glorious!” —Books Monthly Humans have made and collected toy soldiers from time immemorial. They amuse and comfort us, awaken our curiosity, turn aggressiveness into creativity. In The History of Toy Soldiers, Luigi Toiati, himself an avid collector and manufacturer of toy soldiers, conveys and shares the pleasure of collecting and playing with them. Far from a dry encyclopedia, it leads the reader through the fascinating evolution of the toy soldier from ancient times to the early twenty-first century. The author, as a sociologist with an interest in semiotics (the study of signs), offers truly original insights into why different types of toy soldiers were born in a given period and country, or why in a given size and material. The author’s writing is packed with factual detail about the different types of toy (and model) soldiers and their manufacturers, but also with anecdotes, nostalgia, wit and his enduring passion for the subject. Six hundred beautiful color photographs, many depicting the author’s own collection, complete this delightful book. “Toiati creatively delivers exhaustive details, captivating anecdotes and a sense of nostalgia that exudes the fundamental childhood joy of playing with toy soldiers combined with adult collectors’ wonderment at their charms.” —Toy Soldier & Model Figure “A book that will enter the annals of Toy Soldier collections as one of the best and most complete books on this topic.” —IPMS/USA “A great journey of exploration.” —Miniature Wargaming

The orphans Alan and Jane escape from their cruel miserly Uncle Barnabas, when he tries to have them drowned. They are taken in by gypsies, and during the course of their adventures visit Mary Contrary's Garden, the Noah's Ark House, the Tin Railway, and Mean Town. Eventually they return home, where they are taken in by the village's kindly widow.

This is the first full-colour history of the world-famous toy soldiers to chart the whole story of their development from Victorian table toy to 21st Century collectable. Prior to 1893 the family toy business of the Britain family was struggling as the toy industry was dominated by German manufacturers and importers. Then came the fateful decision first to import, then to design and manufacture, toy soldiers, an area the German firms were particularly strong in. Britains Toy Soldiers were born and soon their boxes stamped with the slogan 'Best Quality English Make' were being eagerly opened by little boys across Britain and then around the world. The rest, as they say is history and it is all captured here by James Opie, the world's leading expert on the subject, as he lovingly traces the varying fortunes of arguably the most famous British toy company. Illustrated with lavish colour photographs, many of them featuring items from the author's own collection, the book includes feature sections such as collectors' favourites and prices, high-value and famous sets, artistic highlights, quirks and mysteries. It is without doubt the most authoritative book on the subject and will be welcomed by the thousands of devoted collectors world wide as well as many more with fond memories of childhood battles with these beautiful toys.

There's lots kooky, Christmas fun of to be had with Mix and Match: Christmas! Flip the pages of this fun mix-and-match book to create some of the funniest, Christmas characters you've ever seen! Kids will enjoy making magical mischief by swapping the heads, bodies, and legs of Santa and his friends. There are six Christmas characters to play with, including a roly-poly snowman, Santa's elf, a Christmas fairy, and a toy soldier. With colorful illustrations to play with and fun text to read, Mix and Match: Christmas is the perfect stocking-stuffer for your child this Christmas.