This book tells the story of a not-so-silent night at one family’s house. The yippy-yappy bull terrier tries to tell everyone there is an intruder, but no one sees him except the dog. The only text is the dog’s barks, wuffs, yaps, and grrrs. It is very comical, and if you have ever had a little,... more

This book tells the story of a not-so-silent night at one family’s house. The yippy-yappy bull terrier tries to tell everyone there is an intruder, but no one sees him except the dog. The only text is the dog’s barks, wuffs, yaps, and grrrs. It is very comical, and if you have ever had a little, yappy dog you could imagine the noise they create. In the end the magic of Santa remains a secret, and he makes an almost clean get-a-way. The pictures are simple, but say a whole lot. They are all pencil sketches with a little color added here and there for emphasis. Santa is always in color except when he turns invisible to the dad. The red suit is vibrant and he is very round, which adds to the humor. The sleigh is not drawn by eight reindeer, instead it is driven by a chauffeur reindeer with a pitiful Christmas ornament hanging from his antler. There are funny details like the mom having underarm hair, but Christmas morning is cleaned up nicely. The story is told in a sort of comic strip style. There are different sets of panel pictures to tell the story, and there is only one two-page spread in full color toward the end. The limited use of color adds a dramatic effect when it is present. The little scrap of fabric acting like it is blowing away in the wind is a really magical touch.