One of the highest rated stories of St. Nicholas in the Amazon Children's Books section is "The Legend of St. Nicholas: A Story of Christmas Giving." It is a picture book written by Dandi Daley Mackall and illustrated by Richard Cowdrey, rated 4.3 out of 5 stars by Amazon customers as of 2015.Continue Reading
The book tells a fictitious story of St. Nicholas as a young man and describes how he helped the poor and needy by secretly giving them gifts on Christmas Eve. With these acts of generosity, Nicholas meant to inspire people to be charitable and celebrate the birth of Jesus. The section at the end of the book describes characters from other cultures, based on the legend of St. Nicholas.
St. Nicholas, the basis of several Father Christmas characters in various cultures, is not a fictional character, but a real person, known as Nicholas of Myra. He was a Catholic bishop born in the Greek village of Patara in the third century. When he was young, his parents died during a viral epidemic, leaving him with a large inheritance. Following the teachings of Jesus, he used all his wealth to help the sick, needy and suffering. Consequently, he became the Bishop of Myra at a young age and earned widespread renown for his beneficence.Learn more about Children's Books