More great reads: the best books for 4 year olds

One Christmas Eve

Name: One Christmas Eve
Price: 11.69 GBP
Availability: OutOfStock
Author: Nick Butterworth
ISBN: 9780008765941

By Nick Butterworth (author)
Part of the A Percy the Park Keeper Story series

Hardback
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One Christmas Eve Synopsis

Father Christmas visits Percy's park in this magical new picture book from the bestselling creator of One Snowy Night, The Greatest Snowman and Jingle Bells!

When the mole is late for Percy the park keeper's Christmas Eve party, Percy and his animal friends set out into the snow to look for him. And on their way, they are surprised by the most wonderful sight … Father Christmas!

Can the search party help Father Christmas find his missing hat? And where is their friend the mole?

A joyful new Percy the Park Keeper story, full of Christmas magic!

Percy and his animal friends have delighted readers around the world for over thirty years!

* With beautiful snowy pictures, this magical, festive story of kindness and friendship is ideal for reading in the run up to Christmas

* Perfect for a Christmas stocking or as a gift to pair with other Percy stories, like One Snowy Night

* More than 10 million Percy the Park Keeper books sold, worldwide!

* Parent & Educator Approved Quality - The story is aligned with EYFS guidelines to encourage imaginative play and social-emotional learning

About This Edition

ISBN:	9780008765941
Publication date:	8th October 2026
Author:	Nick Butterworth
Publisher:	HarperCollins Children's Books an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers
Format:	Hardback
Pagination:	32 pages
Series:	A Percy the Park Keeper Story
Suitable For:	3+ readers 5+ readers
Other Genres:	Funny Animal Stories Bedtime Stories for Children Picture storybooks: imagination and play Children’s / Teenage fiction: Friendship stories

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About Nick Butterworth

Nick Butterworth was born in Kingsbury, North London in 1946, but moved to Romford in Essex with his parents at the age of three. They moved to run a sweet shop, so Nick found himself fulfilling every child's sugar-coated dream of growing up right inside the proverbial chocolate factory.

Having intended to go to art college after leaving school, Nick decided to take a job as a typographic designer in the printing department of the National Children's Home at the last minute instead. He went on to work for several major London design consultancies before moving into freelance graphics. He has also worked as a television presenter on the TV-AM children's programme Rub-a-Dub-Tub and produced a regular illustrated story called Upney Junction for the Sunday Express magazine. At present, Nick concentrates on writing and illustrating his phenomenally successful children's books.

Percy The Park Keeper first came to life in One Snowy Night in 1989, which The Sunday Times described as, 'a tremendous and well-deserved success' and The Independent called, 'a heart warming bedtime tale.' It wasn't just the reviewers who loved Percy and the world of his park - children, parents and teachers alike fell in love with the kind hearted park keeper. More Percy adventures followed and the range now includes 6 hardback books, paperbacks, audio tapes (read by Richard Briers) and a range of activity books. The latest Percy book, Percy's Bumpy Ride was published in October 1999.

Percy has sold a staggering 4 million copies worldwide and been translated into 16 languages. A Percy book is bought every 15 minutes - not bad for an animal-loving park keeper!

Nick has also written and illustrated other popular books for children including Thud!, All Together Now!, Amanda's Butterfly, Jingle Bells, Q Pootle 5 and Q Pootle 5 in Space. Autumn 2004 saw the publication of a new departure for Nick in The Whisperer - a dark tale of rival alley cats which weaves a strong moral message through an elegant , involving and classic story.

Nick has two grown-up children and lives in Essex with his wife. He is a founding partner, with his son Ben, of Snapper Productions. His success is outstanding and marks him out as one of the most popular and talented author/illustrators in the world of children's books today.

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