Nicolas Saboly

The traditional Provençal Christmas carol, Bring a Torch Jeanette, Isabella ("Un flambeau, Jeannette, Isabelle," in the original French), which is attributed here to Nicolas Saboly, is presented in picture-book format by children's author and artist Adrienne Adams, creator of such holiday titles as The Easter Egg Artists and A Halloween Happening. The lyrics of the song are accompanied by Adams' distinctive illustrations, which depict a small town's annual Christmas Eve procession to their show more church, where they observe a Nativity tableau.

I'm not as familiar with this song, as with some of the other ones I have been exploring, in my little seasonal effort of read Christmas carol picture-books, although I do have memories of my mother singing the refrain. Sadly, I do not own a recording of it, and therefore wasn't able to listen to the music, while reading. Still, I found Bring a Torch Jeanette, Isabella to be an engaging holiday picture-book, particularly as I am a fan of Adams' work. Her tone here is a little more somber than elsewhere, but that suits the act of devotion being depicted, and its nighttime setting. As a side note, I was a little confused to see that this is described as a 17th century song, on the title-page here, when Wikipedia claims that it was first published in 1553. I have no idea which is in the right... show less

In my quest to see Adrienne Adams' work, since she was given Caldecott Honors for [b:Houses From The Sea|1582701|Houses From The Sea|Alice E. Goudey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366142171s/1582701.jpg|3257215] and [b:The Day We Saw The Sun Come Up|2318116|The Day We Saw The Sun Come Up|Alice E. Goudey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1366154090s/2318116.jpg|2324636], which I have not found in the Clan system, I checked this out. It is one of my favorite carols, and it is a nice enough story. show more In a sense, it's wordless, because the carol is just the background, and it's the pix that tell the story. It's quite simple - we just watch a village spend the day getting ready for, then gathering to, a Christmas pageant.

The note that explains the tradition, celebrated for over three centuries in Provence, France, is on the jacket flap of my edition. If you do decide to buy this book, be sure to find a copy that includes the note... or at least research the tradition online.

The style of the pictures isn't my absolute favorite, but it is colorful, detailed, and suited to the carol and the tradition. show less