The Other Father Christmas was born from a super obvious question: what happens when Santa retires?
Co-writer Jasmine Richards first floated the idea with her own children, who couldn't believe a story answering this question didn't already exist. But the motivation for Jasmine went deeper than a hooky premise. Jasmine remembered how she couldn't find a Black or brown elf for her son's "Elf on the Shelf" back in 2016 and how she had to order one from abroad. She drew further inspiration from the fact that Roald Dahl originally envisioned Charlie Bucket as a Black child but was dissuaded by his publisher. All these elements crystallised into her desire to create a joyful, inclusive Christmas story where every child could see themselves in the magic, not at the edge of it. She knew she wanted a rollicking, page-turning adventure that children devour by torchlight on Christmas Eve or read together with their family. She brought in award-winning co-writer Priscilla Mante, and together, writing under the pen name Serena Holly, they built a story with heart, humour and real festive magic.
The book follows ten-year-old Mikey who secretly enters his reluctant Gramps into Santa Search, a magical competition to find the next Father Christmas. Gramps, a Windrush-generation, retired bus driver, is known as the Other Father Christmas in his neighbourhood because he's played Santa at the local community centre grotto for years alongside his wife, Claudette. Now Claudette is gone and Gramps is grieving, finding his first Christmas without her very hard indeed. But Mikey knows his grandfather would make a great Santa and still has Christmas magic in him.
Swept away to Christmasland, a world of gingerbread escape-rooms, bottomless hot chocolate and enchanted trials, Mikey and Gramps must outwit a mysterious saboteur and rediscover the joy of the season.
