"Sophie wondered about her great-aunt a lot.
She's so mysterioso! Sophie thought. And this was true.
There were many strange goings-on up in penthouse 25C. Most people considered Auntie Claus just another eccentric New Yorker. But Sophie knew there was more to her than met the eye."

As if Auntie Claus's everyday red velvet gown with furry white trim isn't unusual enough, there is the diamond key that hangs around her neck. During her year-round tea and Christmas cookie rituals, she always leaves young Sophie with the words, "And darling, always remember my first and final rule--whether it's birthdays, Christmas, or Halloween, it is far better to give than to receive!" Oddest of all, every year she departs on a "business trip" right after Halloween and doesn't return until Valentine's Day.

One year, the spoiled and rather unpleasant Sophie (who, like her little brother, is all about "receiving," and as much as possible) decides to stop wondering about her great-aunt and start investigating. She stows away in a large box, is loaded into a Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator-style enclosure with all of her great-aunt's luggage, and is shot off into the sky. Landing with a thunk, she is greeted by Mr. Pudding, who assumes she is the new elf and sets her to work in the mailroom. As Mr. Pudding extols the virtues of hard work, Sophie thinks, "Rules, schmules." But her work hasn't quite yet begun. When Santa asks for one brave elf to volunteer to go to the coal mines and pick up the "B-B-and-G List," Sophie gets nervous. The B-B-and-G List is the list of bad boys and girls who will go without Christmas presents... or worse. She volunteers, thinking she just may be on that list. But when it's her little brother she sees on the list, Sophie finally learns the important lesson that Auntie Claus has been trying to teach her. When that happens, Sophie whirls up out of the coal mines into the Grand Ballroom of the North Pole, where Auntie Claus is revealed to be Santa's sister with much fanfare.

Award-winning illustrator Elise Primavera's gorgeous artwork is positively luminous, recalling the splendid Christmas television specials How the Grinch Stole Christmas and the Claymation version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in extraordinary compositions, compellingly portrayed characters, and unusual perspectives. Not at all surprisingly, Nickelodeon Films has already secured the rights to this action-packed, highly visual story to make a full-length live-action film in the year 2000. (Ages 4 and older) --Karin Snelson