A.H. Edelman Interview - Santa in a Snow Globe ~ JeanBookNerd

Photo Content from A.H. Edelman

A.H. Edelman is the author of The Little Black Dress and Manless in Montclair. And, yes, she still believes in Santa. She lives in Montclair, NJ.

Why is storytelling so important for all of us?
I think that with all the craziness going on in the world today that storytelling gives us a chance to somewhat control the narrative.

For example, when I met the person who would become the publisher of my book, Manless in Montclair: How a Happily Married Woman Became a Widow Looking for Love in the Wilds of Suburbia, she asked me how I would end the book. I told her I didn’t know yet, which is when she suggested I fictionalize it (it’s pretty much a memoir). But I knew in my heart it would have to have a happy ending. After all, when you’re writing your own story you want everything to end well, right?

Was there a defining moment during your youth when you realized you wanted to be a writer?
The thing is, I was always writing or reading but it never occurred to me to write as a career. I did end up doing a fair amount of writing in my career as a publicist, but even after having penned multiple screenplays and written and published four books (two traditionally published, two self-published) I still consider writing more of a hobby.

What is your happiest childhood memory?
Hmmm…going to the see Santa and the Christmas lights every year at a Philadelphia department store with my dad (I am Jewish, so we didn’t celebrate at home). Probably a foreshadowing.

What was the greatest thing you learned at school?
Well I went to an agricultural and horticultural high school and two colleges and it took me a looong time to figure out what I was good at. So maybe the greatest thing I learned at school was that the guidance counselor wasn’t very helpful when it came to offering advice on what I should be when I grew up. So I suppose the greatest thing I learned at school was that I’d have to figure it out for myself.

In your new book; SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE, can you tell my Book Nerd Kids Community a little about it.
Sure! Santa in a Snow Globe is the origin story of how and why St. Nick will be found sitting “in a place that it clear and quite round” when families come to share their wish lists with him this holiday season. As told (by Santa) to author AH Edelman (me!) and illustrated with inclusiveness by Serge Gall--whose work has appeared in publications including The New York Times, Esquire, and The New Yorker--Santa in a Snow Globe offers a starting point to talk and think about life’s new(er) realities--including climate change, the Coronavirus and protests—both Black Lives Matter and climate-related.

Relayed straightforwardly by Santa, who shares his recent observations and offers some timeless advice, the story includes some hard truths but concludes with a big dose of Christmas cheer.

TEN FACTS ABOUT SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE

1. SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE is the first (and at this point—as far as I know—the only) children’s book that deals with the realities of the upcoming holiday season (i.e. having to keep distance from Santa, and others, due to the dangers of Covid-19).
2. SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE was inspired by a quote—by Santa!!—in article I read in the business section of The New York Times.
3. SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE touches on many issues not usually considered “holiday-themed”, i.e. Coronavirus, species disappearing, and protests—both Black Lives Matter and climate-related.
4. The children pictured in SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE run the gamut from Black and white Americans to Israeli, Indian and Muslim.
5. SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE was illustrated by a friend (Serge Gall) whose children grew up with mine.
6. Aside from SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE, Serge’s illustrations have appeared in publications including The New York Times, Esquire, and The New Yorker.
7. We finished SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE (writing, illustration, and publishing) in about a month.
8. While I was writing SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE, I often dreamed in rhyme.
9. I actually do collect snow globes.
10. I actually do believe in Santa, which is why SANTA IN A SNOW GLOBE is a mostly hopeful story.

You have the chance to give one piece of advice to your readers. What would it be?
Be kind.

What decade during the last century would you have chosen to be a kid?
I really did like growing up when I did, which was mostly the 70s.

What is your greatest adventure?
My life. It hasn’t been perfect by a long shot (but then again, whose life is?), but it has been fun and interesting.

Which incident in your life that totally changed the way you think today?
I don’t know if it changed the way I think but it did change the course of my life when my husband died suddenly in 2001 and I had to raise our two young girls (they were 4 and 7 at the time) on my own.

What is your most treasured memory?
There are so many! But probably the birth of my girls.

How can parents and caregivers explain to the children in their life that, even though some things will be different this year, Christmas magic remains the same?

That’s easy! Let Santa do it!

"Santa in a Snow Globe" is the origin story of how and why St. Nick will be found sitting “in a place that it clear and quite round” when families come to share their wish lists with him this holiday season.

Relayed straightforwardly by Santa to author AH Edelman and illustrated with inclusiveness by Serge Gall--whose work has appeared in publications including The New York Times, Esquire, and The New Yorker--Santa in a Snow Globe offers a starting point for grownups to talk about life’s new realities--including climate change, the Coronavirus and Black Lives Matter protests--with their kids.

So curl up with your kids while Santa shares his recent observations about the world and offers some timeless advice that includes some hard truths but concludes with a big dose of Christmas cheer.

You can purchase Santa in a Snow Globe at the following Retailers: