SUMAS, Wash. - Marylandian -- A father and independent author from Sumas, Washington woke up from a dream three years ago with a single question: What if Santa Claus was actually a bad guy early in life?

That question became Santa Claus: The Unbecoming Origin, a children's picture book for ages 4-8 that imagines a man with a checkered past whose journey of acknowledgment, atonement, and redemption slowly transforms him into the beloved figure the world has come to know. The story ends exactly where the familiar legend begins.

It sold almost nothing. Not because parents didn't want it — but because no one could find it.

"I wrote it for my kids," said author Caleb Lyle. "I wanted a Santa story that actually meant something — where the magic came from who he became, not just what he does on Christmas Eve."

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This holiday season, Lyle is pushing the book for the first time, and the response is already different. The themes — accountability, atonement, redemption — are resonating with parents who want Christmas stories that go a little deeper.

In a marketplace flooded with whimsical Santa tales, Santa Claus: The Unbecoming Origin stands apart by asking a harder question and giving kids a satisfying, hopeful answer.

"Every child knows who Santa is," said Lyle. "This book is about how he got there — and the answer is a story worth telling."

The book is available now on Amazon and through Ingram for retailers and libraries.

Ages 4-8 | ISBN: 9798218318581 | Price: $11.99 (currently on sale)
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CMZFJNBT

Review copies available upon request. Contact: caleblyle1983@gmail.com