The naughtiest reindeer by Nicki Greenberg

Allen and Unwin, 2013. ISBN 9781743313046.
(Age: 3+) Picture book. Christmas. Humour. Verse. When Rudolph is unable to lead Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve, delivering presents all over the world, it is his sister Ruby, who is offered as his replacement. In rhyming stanzas of four lines each, fun develops as the other reindeers learn who is to lead them.
'Ruby?!
cries Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitze.
Not Ruby!'
And I can imagine the listeners and the readers of this book shouting that out, exclaiming all the frustration that the other reindeers feel. Over the pages we see the mayhem that Ruby causes, as she goes into and out of the houses and leaves them in a mess. When Santa arrives home, he realises that he has missed one house, and so sets off to get the presents there as quickly as possible.
The children on waking, find a sleeping Ruby in their house, and she becomes their present. Santa is quite happy to leave Ruby with the children and call back next year to see how she is.
A fun story about Christmas, readers will eagerly turn the pages seeing what mayhem Ruby causes and how the story is resolved.
Fran Knight