The Legend of the Candy Cane Book Review and Free Coloring Page

The Legend of the Candy Cane, written by Lori Walburg, and illustrated by Richard Cowdrey, is a book that will quickly become a family favorite with its inspirational story and its beautifully illustrated pictures. 

I was so excited when The Legend of the Candy Cane arrived in the mail. I couldn't wait to open the package and read the book with my daughters. Before I even opened the book,  I knew that we were going to love it. How you ask? Simply because we love inspirational stories and we absolutely adore beautiful artwork that instantly draws you into a book. 

The Legend of the Candy Cane was as wonderful as I thought it was going to be and it even exceeded my expectations as well. Don't let this book fool you that it is only appropriate to read during the Christmas season, this should be a book that you read all year round with your children. The message that the candy can symbolizes the miracle of Christ's birth, is a message that we should hold near and dear to our hearts always.

The story begins with a man riding up to a dilapidated building that is for lease. The man turns to his furry animals that are traveling with him and says, "This will do just fine". The people in town do not know who the man is or what his purpose is for coming to their town.

One day a brave little girl, Lucy, knocks on the door of the mysterious store and asks if the man needs any help. The man agrees to let Lucy help unpack some of his boxes. 

To Lucy's delight, she realizes that the kind man, John Sonneman, is opening up a candy store. after seeing some of her favorite treats begin to fill the different shaped glass jars, she comes across a candy that she had never seen before.   

When Lucy asks Mr. Sonneman what the red and white striped candy is, he explains to her that it is a very special Christmas candy.  He then teaches her the different ways in which the candy cane symbolizes Christ's birth: from the Shepherds staff, to "J" for Jesus, the blood that our Savior shed for each of us, and his resurrection. 

Lucy and Mr. Sonneman then decide to go and do something wonderful for the town right before Christmas Eve. What you ask? I am going to have you read the story yourself to find out. It is however, something that changes the town and helps everyone remember the miracle that happened when our Savior, Jesus Christ, was born. 

Needless to say, my family all loved this book. It is well written, it kept my 8 and 10 yr. olds attention, the story is inspirational, and the artwork is absolutely adorable. Young children would enjoy the story as well. The artist in me personally feels like artwork can make or break a story, and I felt Richard Cowdrey's illustrations beautifully enhanced Lori Walburg wonderful writing style. 

I decided I wanted to make a coloring page for my daughter's to go along with The Legend of the Candy Cane.  The purpose of the printable was to help them remember what the Candy Cane represented, and to also think of a gift that they could give the Savior this year.

Now, for you my readers, I wanted to share this printable with you for free. You could have your children color and fill out the paper all by themselves, or you could write their answer down for them. 

CLICK HERE and enjoy your free copy of my Candy Cane Symbolism paper to go with The Legend of the Candy Cane book. 

You can also CLICK HERE to purchase your own copy of The Legend of the Candy Cane Board Book from Amazon, or CLICK HERE to purchase the Board Book from Barnes and Noble. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program (http://booklookbloggers.com). I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

This "The Legend of the Candy Cane Book Review and free Coloring page" first appeared on my blog, Learn and Grow Designs, on Jan. 10, 2015.