About the Author

Gerry Bowler received his Ph.D. in History from King’s College, London, and presently teaches at the University of Manitoba. He is the author of Santa Claus: A Biography and The World Encyclopedia of Christmas, and the co-author of Europe in the Sixteenth Century. He has published works on topics ranging from Renaissance monarchy and Bloody Mary to the Simpsons, the Spice Girls, and the history of professional hockey. Dr. Bowler was the founding director of the Centre for the Study of Christianity and Contemporary Culture at Calgary’s Nazarene University College. He lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with his wife, Karen, and three daughters.

Reviews

“The definitive chronology of hope and imagination. . . . Filled with humor and warmth, this ‘biography’ should be kept among the other tales of Christmas to be read the moment holiday cynicism begins to gather.”
— Publishers Weekly

“[An] exceptionally entertaining . . . chronicle of the evolution of the modern-day Santa.”
— Halifax Chronicle-Herald

“Santa has found a thoughtful champion in Bowler, and well deserved, too.”
— Globe and Mail

“Graced with a wry wit . . . Santa Claus: A Biography is informative and entertaining. . . . Recommended for all libraries.”
— Library Journal

"Offering the definitive chronology of hope and imagination, Bowler follows the Santa myth from its origins to the jolly man's appearance on the big screen....Filled with humor and warmth, this "biography" should be kept among the other tales of Christmas to be read the moment holiday cynicism begins to gather."
—Publisher's Weekly

"[Gerry Bowler studies] Santa in all of his incarnations, from a slightly tricky character in earlier centuries to the cherubic personality promulgated by advertising….[Santa Claus: A Biography] is graced with a wry wit that makes it both informative and entertaining…recommended for all libraries."
—Tessa L.H. Minchew, Georgia Perimeter Coll., Clarkston in Library Journal

Praise for The World Encyclopedia of Christmas
“Meticulously researched, well-written, and often downright funny, this encyclopedia does justice to its fascinating subject.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)