Crystal the Christmas Angel by Theresa Oliver

All of the angels in Heaven are preparing for a big event, and Crystal, a little angel, wants to be a part of it. But the more she tries, the more the angels tell her that she is just too little. That is, until God himself gives her the biggest, most important task of all ... going with the Archangel Gabriel to Mary, and bringing God’s greatest gift to the world. But can Crystal do what God asks? Journey with Crystal as she discovers that God sometimes chooses the most unlikely for the greatest tasks. Crystal also discovers that you are never too little to do great things. You just need to believe and never give up.

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About the Author:

Theresa Oliver grew up in southern Indiana, across from Louisville, Kentucky, in Clarksville, Indiana. In her childhood, she fell in love with the power of the written word, a love affair that has continued her whole life. She moved to Florida, where she has lived much of her adult life. She attended the University of Tennessee at Martin, Martin, Tenn., and earned her Bachelor of Arts in Communications degree, News Editorial sequence. She also earned a Master of Arts in Teaching degree, Early Childhood Education sequence, from Armstrong Atlantic State University, Savannah, Ga. She is currently a writer, a full-time teacher, and the owner of Write More Publications and TNT Author Services. However, her greatest adventure is as a mother of three beautiful boys. Oliver currently resides in Kissimmee, Florida, with her husband and children.
For More Information

• Visit Theresa Oliver’s website.
• Visit Theresa’s blog.
• Connect with Theresa on Facebook and Twitter.
• Find out more about Theresa at Goodreads.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review courtesy of the author and Pump Up Your Book group.

My Thoughts:
This book has an interesting and unique take on the Christmas story (although not necessarily Biblically accurate). Crystal, a small heavenly angel, is looking for a job to do. All the angels are preparing for a big even and Crystal wants to help. But regardless of what she finds to do, she just seems to mess things up. Over and over, she is asked to go play with angels her own size, and leave the preparations to the older angels. Eventually, God finds her, sad and crying after her latest rejection. He comes and talks to her. Then He gives her a very important job to do, which she does very well; proving that even small angels can accomplish big things.

I read this book aloud to my kids. The story itself was OK and quite engaging. But it was also a bit humorous, because the kids had to stop me during the story to point out the facts that were not Biblical.Such as, at one point, Crystal lies to God (with the best of intentions, of course). He asks her what is wrong and she doesn't want to bother him, so she says "Nothing". She is also shed quite a few tears when the angels ask her to find something else to do, but there isn't supposed to be crying in heaven. And my son said he didn't think there would be a "cleaning crew" either, which was one of the jobs she was trying to be helpful with.I might disagree with him on that one.
Of course, I understand the author was mostly creating a story with a moral for kids to learn from. That no matter how young they are, they can do something helpful and still be a blessing. I just thought it ironic that my kids picked up on those things. I don't know if other kids would or not.

Overall, the book was cute and the moral of the story was good. I did find a few typos that could have easily been an oversight. I think younger children would enjoy this. It is probably written on a third to fourth grade level, and is fairly long, but it kept their attention well.