The Church Mice at Christmas by Graham Oakley
Published by Templar books

Reissued to mark 40 years since it was first published, this book remains one of my favourite children’s Christmas stories and I’m not alone. A few years ago, the then Curator of Manuscripts at the British Library wrote a review for The Church Times, praising Graham Oakley’s books.

This book begins “One morning a few days before Christmas…..so it was all settled”. Of course, it wasn’t.

Having listened to many sermons on the subject of the meek being blessed, Sampson the cat has taken a vow never to harm the mice who live in Wortlethorpe Church, As a result, he finds himself taken advantage of, humiliated and generally outvoted on everything.

Arthur and Humphrey, leaders of the Church mice, get away with murder, well, not murder exactly, but to fund a Christmas party, they decide to offer Sampson as first prize in a raffle. Needless to say, as with all the Church Mice books, things don’t turn out quite the way the mice intended.

Packed with exquisitely detailed drawings and with a delightful and whimsical Christmas themed plot, this is a book I’ve re-read many times and bought as a Christmas gift for most of the children I know. It’s an absolute gem.

Although recommended for children aged 2-6, there are a few scary drawings so I’d suggest it’s more suitable for children towards the upper end of that age range, say from age 4.