Letters to Santa Claus by Pat Koch, Head Elf

Letters to Santa are synonymous with the holidays. How else is Santa Claus supposed to know what's on those holiday lists? When children (and even adults) address their letters to Santa Claus, quite often they wind up going to Santa Claus, Indiana, a little town in southern Indiana. After being asked to play Santa Claus while being stationed in New York during World War I, Raymond Joseph Yellig promised that if he made it through the war, he would forever be Santa Claus. Since his death, his daughter Pat has worked with a team of elves, to continue to answer the letters that begin to arrive in the small town come November.

This book, Letters to Santa, features many letters written by children and adults asking for things as simple as warm underwear to a tricycle to a new husband. Many of the letters ask Santa to please remember those who are less fortunate. Many of the children writing come from households which might not necessarily be as affluent, so their letter to Santa is their only hope of getting a Shirley Temple doll or a computer.

Images of the actual letters sent to Santa have been included in this book. Organized by decade with letters dating back to the 1930s, this book is quite entertaining to look at. From the letter from Richard Sims telling Santa how he'll leave a bottle of beer and a liverwurst sandwich out for him on Christmas Eve to the letter from Sabrina just wanting her parents to stop arguing, this book will make you feel the hope that we all still look for as the holiday season approaches.