|
|
|
THE POLAR EXPRESS
by Chris Van Allsburg
Houghton Mifflin
ISBN: 0395389496
Ages 5-8
32 pages
About This Book
One Christmas Eve many years ago, a boy lies in bed, listening hard for the bells of Santa’s sleigh, which he has been told by a friend do not exist. Later that night he hears not bells but a very different sound. He looks out of his window and is astounded to see a steam engine parked in front of his house! The conductor invites him to board the Polar Express, a train filled with children on their way to the North Pole.The boy and his companions journey past tiny towns and forests full of wild creatures.They travel up and around mountains and across the Great Polar Ice Cap to the magical city at the North Pole.The train takes the children to the center of the city, where Santa and the elves have gathered for the giving of the first gift of Christmas.The boy is chosen to receive this first gift. Knowing that he can choose anything in the world, he decides on a simple gift: one silver bell from Santa’s sleigh. Santa cuts a bell from a reindeer’s harness and the delighted boy slips it into his bathrobe pocket as the clock strikes midnight and the reindeer pull the sleigh into the sky.
When the children return to the train, the boy realizes the bell has fallen through a hole in his pocket. Heartbroken, he is returned to his home. In the morning, his little sister finds one small box with the boy’s name on it among the presents below the Christmas tree. Inside is the silver bell! The boy and his sister are enchanted by its beautiful sound, but their parents cannot hear it.The boy continues to believe in the spirit of Christmas and is able to hear the sweet ringing of the bell even as an adult.
Back to top.
|
 |
|
Discussion Questions
1. The boy’s friend told him that Santa doesn’t exist, but the boy continues to believe.Think of a time in your own life that you have experienced this situation. How does it feel to keep firm when other people tell you you are wrong?
2. Notice how Chris Van Allsburg adds to his descriptions of the train ride to the North Pole by comparing one thing to another (give some examples). How does this kind of descriptive language add to the story for you?
3. The boy can ask Santa Claus for anything in the world.Why do you think he chooses a simple bell?
4. Why can the boy and his sister hear the bell while their parents cannot?
5. Why can the boy still hear the bell as an adult, while his sister and friends cannot?
6. What do you think Chris Van Allsburg wants the bell to represent?
Back to top.
|
|
|
|
