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American Girl: Samantha #3
Samantha's Surprise: A Christmas Story
The two weeks before Christmas are filled with activity as Samantha finishes her homemade presents and makes peparations for visiting relatives
66 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1986
About the author
Maxine Rose Schur
32 books23 followersI am an author of several award-winning children’s books and I also teach children’s book writing. As recipient of the Sugarman Award given by the Washington Independent Writer’s Legal and Educational Fund, I was appointed the Guest Lecturer on Writing for Children to the Humanities faculty at Case Western Reserve University.
I have twice won the Sydney Taylor Award for the most outstanding contribution to Jewish Children’s literature. Also, I have worked full-time as a children’s writer for Addison-Wesley and wrote children’s fiction and non-fiction for Hampton Brown, Scholastic, Houghton-Mifflin, Harcourt Brace, The American Girl’s Collection, Heinemann, Radio New Zealand and the BBC.
This year I have two new children’s books coming out. The first is The Word Dancer, a middle grade fantasy novel that both explores and celebrates the power of words. The second one, Brave with Beauty, is an advanced picture book about Queen Goharshad who some historians now believe was the most powerful woman in world history. In the 14th century she reigned from her throne in Herat in what is now Afghanistan and sponsored a spectacular renaissance of science and the arts.
And, by the way, if you love Paris as much as I do, please check out the adventurous tale of a fashion-designing mouse who takes Paris by storm! Marielle in Paris is a fun picture book and a beautifully illustrated homage to Paris.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
May 18, 2017
Things to love about this book:
1. Handmade snowflakes
2. Nutcracker
3. Dolls
4. Papier-mâché box
5. Box of chocolates
6. Her red dress
Things I associate with Christmas even today:
See all of the above.
Seriously, when I was a girl, the year I read this, I thought: That's my dream Christmas.
That year, all I asked for was numbers 1-6. And I got all of those. My grandmother made me a red polished cotton dress just like hers on the cover. I got my first nutcracker, which started my obsession with them, and current collection of 300+. I got a doll, the box, and a box of Russell Stover. And other than the dress, I still have all of them. I don't know what happened to that dress. But I do have a picture of me wearing it, and I kept it framed on my dresser.
The point is, this book is classic, teaches a great moral about Christmas and acceptance, and it lingers in the hearts of young girls.
1. Handmade snowflakes
2. Nutcracker
3. Dolls
4. Papier-mâché box
5. Box of chocolates
6. Her red dress
Things I associate with Christmas even today:
See all of the above.
Seriously, when I was a girl, the year I read this, I thought: That's my dream Christmas.
That year, all I asked for was numbers 1-6. And I got all of those. My grandmother made me a red polished cotton dress just like hers on the cover. I got my first nutcracker, which started my obsession with them, and current collection of 300+. I got a doll, the box, and a box of Russell Stover. And other than the dress, I still have all of them. I don't know what happened to that dress. But I do have a picture of me wearing it, and I kept it framed on my dresser.
The point is, this book is classic, teaches a great moral about Christmas and acceptance, and it lingers in the hearts of young girls.
January 11, 2020
I loved these books as a girl, and they are still good rereading them as an adult. The story is simple and sweet, with vivid characters. I especially love Samantha’s character and how curious and brave she is.
The main reason I’m enjoying rereading them as an adult is the strong nostalgia and memories. I’m not sure that an adult reader would enjoy these books if they had not already read them as a child.
I remember being fascinated as a child by the beautiful Christmas traditions, and the gorgeous doll that Samantha wishes to get for Christmas. This is such a special little book to me. All my childhood Christmas dreams are in this book.
The main reason I’m enjoying rereading them as an adult is the strong nostalgia and memories. I’m not sure that an adult reader would enjoy these books if they had not already read them as a child.
I remember being fascinated as a child by the beautiful Christmas traditions, and the gorgeous doll that Samantha wishes to get for Christmas. This is such a special little book to me. All my childhood Christmas dreams are in this book.
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May 15, 2024the Edwardian Christmas aesthetic in this book is *chef's kiss* also I fear that Grandmary is not quite passing the vibe check
December 25, 2024
Nothing quite as nostalgic as diving into one of your favorite American Girl holiday books! Love the setting and the illustrations.
August 4, 2018
I've been reading this book every Christmas since I was 7-years-old. It's a tradition! I love everything about it. It is so perfectly Christmassy and loving and joyful! Samantha was always my favorite American Girl growing up, and I still appreciate her as an adult, finding her realistic as a child but still strong and compassionate. Great read!!
July 6, 2024
Samantha had everything I could ever want at Christmas: taffeta and velvet, bejeweled gingerbread, fresh pine decorations you can practically smell through the book, a romp through a true candy shop, steaming cups of hot chocolate, and a precious little nutcracker doll.
I mean damn, girl. You just get everything, don't you?
I mean damn, girl. You just get everything, don't you?
December 23, 2023
✩ 5 stars
~
“Grandmary says homemade gifts are the best ones because give yourself when you make them.”
~
“Grandmary says homemade gifts are the best ones because give yourself when you make them.”
December 21, 2024
“Samantha had never seen anything like it — a grown up lady who knew how to play”
We see Samantha making super sweet handmade gifts and decorations 🥰🥰
She even wrote a book for a baby she knows. haha
Case in point: She selflessly gave her own doll away, but she won't ask for a new doll for Christmas.
She doesn't ask for anything!
I loved the part where she gets to know her future aunt and realizes what fun she really is.
✨✨📚💙📚✨✨More in-depth reviews on my weekly Youtube videos.
We see Samantha making super sweet handmade gifts and decorations 🥰🥰
She even wrote a book for a baby she knows. haha
Case in point: She selflessly gave her own doll away, but she won't ask for a new doll for Christmas.
She doesn't ask for anything!
I loved the part where she gets to know her future aunt and realizes what fun she really is.
✨✨📚💙📚✨✨More in-depth reviews on my weekly Youtube videos.
December 19, 2024
I just love Samantha.
December 11, 2024
I loved this and I finished it in one sitting! I loved the ending. Easy and enjoyable quick read for the holiday season!
January 30, 2023
not as crazy about this one as the others, but still so good and holds up!!
June 21, 2024
This one is very cute, but I feel like we lost the plot a bit.
December 1, 2024
There’s nothing quite like the original AG books 🫶🏻
June 1, 2024
Re-reading as an adult, here's what stands out:
- Samantha's excitement for Christmas in the beginning is delightful.
- Her petulance at things not going her way is a little tiresome but also completely relatable.
- Watching her warm up to Cornelia is really sweet - and I admire her for not holding onto her grudge with both hands the way I would have done at that age.
- The progression of gifts she considers for Cornelia makes me giggle, though you could also argue that it's a very overt expression of the largesse and privilege Samantha grows up with - which in some ways makes it seem silly that she gets so worked up over asking Grandmary for the doll. I wish we got some indication of cost - how much is the doll compared to all the potential presents for Cornelia? How much pocket money does Samantha have at her disposal? I assume the author chooses not to give us firm numbers because inflation would make the amounts seem trivial, but the ease with which Samantha considers buying perfume and fancy bath salts and lace-trimmed handkerchiefs, when it never crosses her mind to buy (or save up for) the doll for herself is curious.
- That darling Nutcracker doll, which characters specifically note is just like in the ballet? Maybe someone has been to Russia?? Although the Nutcracker ballet premiered there in 1892, it wasn't deemed a success, and wasn't performed outside Russia until 1934.
- Gard and Cornelia get engaged at Christmas and have already decided on a March wedding?? Have they already been planning for a year? We know they have a big wedding because there's a short story about it.
- We have a different author for this book. Nellie is nowhere to be seen; nor (thankfully) are Eddie or Edith. Without Nellie, we lose the focus on class issues and the dark side of life in 1904, and this becomes a fairly simple Christmas story.
More Samantha babble:
Meet Samantha | Samantha Learns a Lesson | Samantha's Surprise | Happy Birthday, Samantha | Samantha Saves the Day | Changes for Samantha
Nellie's Promise
Samantha's Winter Party | Samantha and the Missing Pearls | Samantha Saves the Wedding | Samantha's Blue Bicycle | Samantha's Special Talent | Samantha's Short Story Collection
The Curse of Ravenscourt | The Stolen Sapphire | The Cry of the Loon | Clue in the Castle Tower
The Lilac Tunnel: My Journey with Samantha
- Samantha's excitement for Christmas in the beginning is delightful.
- Her petulance at things not going her way is a little tiresome but also completely relatable.
- Watching her warm up to Cornelia is really sweet - and I admire her for not holding onto her grudge with both hands the way I would have done at that age.
- The progression of gifts she considers for Cornelia makes me giggle, though you could also argue that it's a very overt expression of the largesse and privilege Samantha grows up with - which in some ways makes it seem silly that she gets so worked up over asking Grandmary for the doll. I wish we got some indication of cost - how much is the doll compared to all the potential presents for Cornelia? How much pocket money does Samantha have at her disposal? I assume the author chooses not to give us firm numbers because inflation would make the amounts seem trivial, but the ease with which Samantha considers buying perfume and fancy bath salts and lace-trimmed handkerchiefs, when it never crosses her mind to buy (or save up for) the doll for herself is curious.
- That darling Nutcracker doll, which characters specifically note is just like in the ballet? Maybe someone has been to Russia?? Although the Nutcracker ballet premiered there in 1892, it wasn't deemed a success, and wasn't performed outside Russia until 1934.
- Gard and Cornelia get engaged at Christmas and have already decided on a March wedding?? Have they already been planning for a year? We know they have a big wedding because there's a short story about it.
- We have a different author for this book. Nellie is nowhere to be seen; nor (thankfully) are Eddie or Edith. Without Nellie, we lose the focus on class issues and the dark side of life in 1904, and this becomes a fairly simple Christmas story.
More Samantha babble:
Meet Samantha | Samantha Learns a Lesson | Samantha's Surprise | Happy Birthday, Samantha | Samantha Saves the Day | Changes for Samantha
Nellie's Promise
Samantha's Winter Party | Samantha and the Missing Pearls | Samantha Saves the Wedding | Samantha's Blue Bicycle | Samantha's Special Talent | Samantha's Short Story Collection
The Curse of Ravenscourt | The Stolen Sapphire | The Cry of the Loon | Clue in the Castle Tower
The Lilac Tunnel: My Journey with Samantha
August 26, 2021
Again, Samantha displays selflessness and kindness through her thoughts and actions. This book in the series, though, has Samantha's own feelings as the conflict, rather than someone or something else bothering her friends and family. She is presented with a lot of changes she does not like and reacts poorly - but as you would expect a nine-year-old to react - and she later repents of her negativity. The story ends sweetly. I especially appreciated how Cornelia and Gardner acted with Samantha; it shows the young reader how adults can be silly and fun and are not all like Grandmary.
January 13, 2024
I think this has been the weakest entry in the Samantha series so far. The Christmas setting is cheery, but no profound lessons are learned except, perhaps, that plans can change and sometimes that change can be good.
July 10, 2017
Awww much too adorable!! I love Samantha so much! Lol
July 6, 2020
I remember that Samantha's Christmas seemed so wholesome and good and upon a reread, I loved it still.
December 2, 2021
Cornelia tiene vibes de Miss Stacey de Anne with an E and I think that's beautiful
February 19, 2024
Childhood disappointments and joys. Love it!
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October 27, 2024samantha is dramatic and petty in a very 9 year old way. i love this for her.
November 7, 2024
Escapism at its finest.
I wonder if I had a crush on Uncle Gard when I read these books as a kid. I certainly do now.
I wonder if I had a crush on Uncle Gard when I read these books as a kid. I certainly do now.
December 13, 2024
I decided a few years ago that rereading an American Girl book every once in a while is good for my mental health. I’ve also decided to start rating them how I would have as a kid (aka all five stars)
July 9, 2023
Okay, this one was cute. And Samantha will never not be associated with Christmas.
July 31, 2020
A great choice for reading to my 4 year old. It isn’t Christmas time but a good story, for any time.
April 22, 2020
I remembered absolutely nothing about this book, except that Samantha wore a red dress and got a doll. I enjoyed rediscovering the book as an adult, and appreciated Samantha's realistic emotions about how the visit from her uncle's girlfriend's would change her Christmas traditions. Although her attitude gets a bit tiresome, it is completely true to life, and I enjoyed seeing how she processed this and warmed up to Cornelia over time.
Also, Cornelia is a delightful person, and I enjoyed viewing her from the perspective of being her peer, rather than viewing her as an Very Grown Adult. She's so nice to Samantha, remembers what it was like to be a kid, is playful and fun, and strikes the right balance between being respectful and forward-thinking. Although the second book in this series made historical missteps in understanding the world of ideas, this book is near-perfect in its evocation of a Christmas in that era and of a young, modern 1900s woman.
This book is by a different author than the previous two, and the writing and plot structure are much improved. My only complaint is that the "peek into the past" section gives an unrealistic view of Christmases in that era by only focusing on how the wealthy celebrated. I didn't notice this much as a child, but I wish that the historical note had contrasted Christmas traditions across classes instead of making it look like everyone lived in luxury, with lots of toys and lavish meals.
Also, Cornelia is a delightful person, and I enjoyed viewing her from the perspective of being her peer, rather than viewing her as an Very Grown Adult. She's so nice to Samantha, remembers what it was like to be a kid, is playful and fun, and strikes the right balance between being respectful and forward-thinking. Although the second book in this series made historical missteps in understanding the world of ideas, this book is near-perfect in its evocation of a Christmas in that era and of a young, modern 1900s woman.
This book is by a different author than the previous two, and the writing and plot structure are much improved. My only complaint is that the "peek into the past" section gives an unrealistic view of Christmases in that era by only focusing on how the wealthy celebrated. I didn't notice this much as a child, but I wish that the historical note had contrasted Christmas traditions across classes instead of making it look like everyone lived in luxury, with lots of toys and lavish meals.
May 17, 2020
I’ve been rereading all of the American Girl books while listening to the “American Girls” podcast. And ugh, Samantha is such a bore in comparison to the others. I know I read her books as a child but couldn’t remember them now, 20 years later.
Samantha was a little more relatable in this story. But she also comes off as quite a brat, even though she kind of redeems herself in the end. I liked the part of the storyline where no one else is sharing her enthusiasm for the upcoming holiday. I think many people, kids and adults alike, have experienced something similar. And sometimes getting a bit pouty about it. Her entitlement also rears its head again, as she expected poor Mrs Hawkins to build an huge gingerbread house in like a day. I’m glad the Peek into the Past mentioned the crap hand servants got at the holidays because it was clear Samantha wasn’t thinking about them.
Samantha was a little more relatable in this story. But she also comes off as quite a brat, even though she kind of redeems herself in the end. I liked the part of the storyline where no one else is sharing her enthusiasm for the upcoming holiday. I think many people, kids and adults alike, have experienced something similar. And sometimes getting a bit pouty about it. Her entitlement also rears its head again, as she expected poor Mrs Hawkins to build an huge gingerbread house in like a day. I’m glad the Peek into the Past mentioned the crap hand servants got at the holidays because it was clear Samantha wasn’t thinking about them.
February 16, 2019
The book was about Cornelia coming with Samantha's Uncle Gard for Christmas. Samantha and Cornelia made a gingerbread house and Samantha got the doll that she wanted at Schofield's shop for Christmas. She gave Uncle Gard a pile of chocolates. And Samantha made her friend Nellie's doll a blue velvet cap. Samantha made Cornelia a box with pictures of flowers and berries on it. It was a very good Christmas and there were lots of surprised for Samantha!
December 4, 2019
Quick Christmasy read.
It's hard to know how to rate books that evoke the nostalgia of childhood. Pretty sure 8-year-old me would've given this bad boy 5-stars, while adult me would give it a solid 3 for enjoyment, so I'm giving it 4—after all I am no longer its target audience but I still really enjoyed the experience.
It's hard to know how to rate books that evoke the nostalgia of childhood. Pretty sure 8-year-old me would've given this bad boy 5-stars, while adult me would give it a solid 3 for enjoyment, so I'm giving it 4—after all I am no longer its target audience but I still really enjoyed the experience.
March 2, 2021
4.5 star
Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews