From award-winning Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho, the fourth book in the Luna Loves… series celebrates separated families at Christmas time, and shows the power of giving to bring people together.

Luna loves Christmas. Sometimes at Mum’s, sometimes at Dad’s, she gets two trees, two dinners, two advent calendars to open . . . but this Christmas, Luna’s family are doing something different. They’re volunteering, and Luna can’t wait for them to all be together at the community Christmas dinner!

Luna Loves Christmas is part of the Luna Loves series, including Luna Loves Dance which I reviewed a couple of years ago.

In this book, Luna is splitting her time over Christmas between her mum’s house and her dad’s, which she always does. However, this year her mum is volunteering with the local food bank and Luna is helping her deliver the food parcels to the local community.

The story is very sweet and it will most likely start a conversation about what a food bank is and why some people need help. There is also a separate story within as when Luna takes a parcel to an elderly resident she reads Luna a Christmas tale which is included inside.

The illustrations pop and the colours are warm and inviting. The whole book gives the reader a warm joyful feeling, especially towards the end when locals celebrate Christmas together.

Overall, a lovely sweet read that is definitely worthy of a read over the festive period with your child or guardian. It would also make a wonderful class read as there are topics within that would make good talking points.

Joseph Coelho, Children’s Laureate for 2022-2024, is a performance poet, children’s author, playwright and winner of the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education Poetry Award 2015 for his debut poetry collection Werewolf Club Rules. Joe has written plays for the Polka Theatre, Soho Theatre and the Unicorn Theatre and creates dynamic poetry theatre pieces for young people that he tours nationally. He also performs with the UK’s top performance poetry organisation, Apples and Snakes, visiting venues across the UK. Joseph has also been a guest poet on Cbeebies’ Rhyme Rocket.

Fiona Lumbers has drawn on anything and everything from an early age and always insisted she would be an artist when she grew up. Fiona moved to London in 2000 to study for an MA in Painting at the Royal College of Art. A combination of her obsession with picture books and the arrival of her first son led her down the path of illustration and she hasn’t looked back since. Nothing makes her happier than splashing watercolours and inks and conjuring up new characters – often influenced by the exploits of her two sons.