Book Review: The Best Worst Christmas Ever

The Best Worst Christmas Ever. Thomas J. Thorson, Self-published, Oct. 7 2025, paperback and e-book, 164 pages.

Reviewed by Bibi Belford.

In The Best Worst Christmas Ever, Thomas J. Thorson weaves a middle-grade story that begins with a blizzard and a power outage but ends with a magical Christmas fairy tale that saves the spirit of Christmas despite the circumstances. When a Christmas Eve snowstorm derails a family’s tropical vacation, Dad must find a way to help his three children cope with their disappointment.  

After an inventive dinner, where each child is responsible for a course, Dad suggests a collaborative storytelling game as they sit by the fire waiting for his special hot cocoa.

Lily (age six) begins with a fairy friend and a mission to find Santa’s missing mystery box. Candace (age fourteen) continues the story chain to include herself, a gnome, an elf, and a unicorn. When Parker (age seventeen) takes over, he adds mystical creatures in a new dimension. Finally, it’s Dad’s turn, and he restarts the tale, embellishing the mystery into a family saga that includes curious clues and rewards for the travelers who seek Santa’s box.  

Readers will appreciate the family dynamics of sibling rivalry, and the perceived rights associated with birth order. The range of character ages provides readers with the opportunity to see the snowstorm, missed vacation, and storytelling from various points of view and perspectives. 

The structure of this middle-grade novel employs a clever device by setting the story in the real world, then transporting it to a fantasy world created by the main characters. The imaginative North Pole land becomes possible with Thomas’s wonderful imagery and scene setting. Imagine being escorted by a fairy in a magical traveling bubble and a treacherous sled ride to an eclectic town’s spice shop, where a map leads you to an ice cave with snowmen guards that direct you to an elves’ village.  

The novel holds the readers’ interest as they wonder if the children will find the mystery box, and if they do, what might be inside that Santa needs so urgently on his busiest night. This delightful tale has the potential to become a family read-aloud Christmas tradition. Classroom teachers could also use it to spark holiday inspiration for students to write their version of the mystery.