The Elf on the Shelf
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''The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition'' is a 2005 American picture book for children, written by Carol Aebersold and her daughter Chanda Bell and illustrated by Coë Steinwart. The book tells a Christmas-themed story, written in rhyme, that explains how
Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...
knows who is naughty and nice. It describes elves visiting children from
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to
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, after which they return to the
North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distinguish from the Mag ...
until the next holiday season. ''The Elf on the Shelf'' comes in a
keepsake box A keepsake box or memory box, typically made from wood, is used for storing mementos of a special time, event or person. They are often created or purchased to mark life's major events like a christening, wedding, birthday, or First Holy Communio ...
that features a hardbound picture book and a small scout elf. The story was inspired by a family tradition started by Carol Aebersold for her twin daughters, Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts, in Georgia.


Plot

The book tells the story of a scout
elf An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes "ligh ...
who hides in people's homes to watch over events. Once everyone goes to bed, the scout elf flies back to the North Pole to report to Santa the activities, good and bad, that have taken place throughout the day. Before the family wakes up each morning, the scout elf flies back from the North Pole and hides. By hiding in a new spot around the house each morning, the scout elf plays an ongoing game of
hide and seek Hide-and-seek (sometimes known as hide-and-go-seek) is a popular children's game in which at least two players (usually at least three) conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more seekers. The game is played by one chose ...
with the family. ''The Elf on the Shelf'' explains that scout elves get their magic by being named and loved by a child. In the back of each book, families have an opportunity to write their elf's name and the date that they adopted it. Once the elf is named, the scout elf receives its special Christmas magic, which allows it to fly to and from the North Pole. The book tells how the magic might disappear if the scout elf is touched, so the rule in the book states, "There's only one rule that you have to follow, so I will come back and be here tomorrow: Please do not touch me. My magic might go, and Santa won't hear all I've seen or I know." Although families are told not to touch their scout elf, they can speak to it and tell it all their Christmas wishes, so that it can report back to Santa accurately. The story ends on Christmas Day, with the elf leaving to stay with Santa for the rest of the year, until the following Christmas season.


History

''The Elf on the Shelf'' was written in 2004 by Carol Aebersold and her daughter Chanda Bell. Bell suggested they write a book about an old tradition of an elf sent from Santa who came to watch over children at Christmas time. Aebersold's other daughter, Christa Pitts, was recruited by the family to share her expertise in sales and marketing. Together, the trio devoted the next three years to promoting their self-published book and attending book signings and
trade show A trade fair, also known as trade show, trade exhibition, or trade exposition, is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products and services, meet with industry partners and cu ...
s. ''The Elf on the Shelf'' won the Best Toy Award by Learning Express, a Book of the Year Award from Creative Child Awards, and a National Best Books Award sponsored by
USA Book News A vanity award is an award in which the recipient purchases the award and/or marketing services to give the false appearance of a legitimate honor. Pitches for '' Who's Who''-type publications (see vanity press), biographies or nominations for awar ...
in 2008. On November 26, 2011, a thirty-minute animated special, titled ''An Elf's Story: The Elf on the Shelf'', directed by Chad Eikhoff, aired on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
. ''
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'' criticized the quality of the animation and dismissed it as "just a half-hour advertisement for a book and a toy", which it felt would not join "the canon of prime-time animated Christmas specials that actually move the spirit".
Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.
disagreed, calling the special "a great addition to families' holiday TV traditions". However, they also warned parents about the consumer-driven nature of the story, and made note of its lack of educational value. In 2012, ''The Elf on the Shelf'' made its first appearance in the
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, alongside fellow parade newcomers
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and
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. In 2013, the book hit the No. 1 spot on the ''USA Today'' bestsellers list. In October 2013, ''The Elf on the Shelf: A Birthday Tradition'' was released. Written and illustrated by the same team that created the first book, it offers instructions for inviting a scout elf to visit for a child's birthday party and describes how the elf decorates a chair for the child. In April 2014, two supplemental birthday products were released: The Elf on the Shelf Birthday Countdown Game and The Elf on the Shelf Birthday Chair Decoration Kit.


Criticism

''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' columnist Kate Tuttle calls The Elf on the Shelf "a marketing juggernaut dressed up as a tradition", whose purpose is "to spy on kids". She argues that one shouldn't "bully ne'schild into thinking that good behavior equals gifts." Writing for ''
Psychology Today ''Psychology Today'' is an American media organization with a focus on psychology and human behavior. It began as a bimonthly magazine, which first appeared in 1967. The ''Psychology Today'' website features therapy and health professionals direct ...
'', David Kyle Johnston calls it a "dangerous parental crutch", with much the same reasoning as what he terms the " Santa lie". Many privacy organizations and researchers criticize the product for teaching children that involuntary, non-consensual surveillance is normal. ''Washington Post'' reviewer
Hank Stuever Hank Stuever (born 1968) is an American journalist who writes about popular culture for the ''Style'' section of ''The Washington Post''. Early life and education Stuever was born and raised in Oklahoma City, where he attended Bishop McGuinn ...
characterized the concept as "just another nannycam in a nanny state obsessed with penal codes". Professor Laura Pinto suggests that it conditions kids to accept the
surveillance state Mass surveillance is the intricate surveillance of an entire or a substantial fraction of a population in order to monitor that group of citizens. The surveillance is often carried out by local and federal governments or governmental organizatio ...
and that it communicates to children that "it's okay for other people to spy on you, and you're not entitled to privacy." She argues that, "if you grow up thinking it's cool for the elves to watch me and report back to Santa, well, then it's cool for the
NSA The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collectio ...
to watch me and report back to the government... The rule of play is that kids get to interact with a doll or video game or what have you, but not so with the Elf on the Shelf: The rule is that you don't touch the elf. Think about the message that sends."Kyle Olsen
Prof: ‘Elf on the Shelf' conditions kids to accept surveillance state
. ''Education Action Group Foundation, Inc.'', December 15, 2014.
Using the elf in public school classrooms has been criticized for making children feel excluded if their families do not celebrate Christmas or Santa Claus.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elf on the Shelf 2005 children's books American children's books Christmas children's books Elves in popular culture Christmas characters Mass surveillance in fiction American picture books