This hugely enjoyable and highly entertaining version of the nativity story is told by the sheep – a set of witnesses not often called upon to give an account. Sadly, for various reason, they don’t get to see the baby in the manager, and completely misunderstand the tidings, but their story is nonetheless full of incident and very funny too.
As a group, they bicker constantly and are often quite rude to each other, but somehow after an eventful night, there’s a joyful reunion with their shepherds, and the true Christmas spirit wins out. As gloriously silly as its stars, the story is still an accurate reflection of the Christmas story and quite moving too. Droll colour illustrations add to the fun.
Tonight, the sheep can't sleep. The pasture is floodlit by a strange new star and their shepherds have disappeared. They must have been kidnapped by a UFO—or perhaps they've gone to meet the child rumored to have been born in a stable. The sheep set off to find their shepherds. They'd like to see this child too, and they heard there'll be a party! The sheep hike across country two by two, so none are lost. During this extraordinary night in Bethlehem, the quarrelsome sheep gradually become a real flock that pulls together.
This amusing retelling of the Christmas story through the eyes of the sheep reinforces the season's theme—be a little nicer to each other, forgive your quarrels, and listen to everybody, especially the children.
Ulrich Hub trained as an actor and now works as a director for stage and writes plays, screenplays and children’s books, which have won numerous awards. Jörg Mühle has written and illustrated many bestselling children’s books for all ages including the Tickle My Ears series of bestselling baby books, picture books and junior fiction.
