The Christmas Anna Angel

{{short description|1944 Picture book}}

{{Infobox book

| italic title =

| image = File:The Christmas Anna Angel.jpg

| alt =

| caption = First edition

| author = Ruth Sawyer

| illustrator = Kate Seredy

| publisher = Viking Press

| publisher2 =

| pub_date = 1944

| media_type =

| pages = unpaged

| awards = Caldecott Honor

| isbn =

| isbn_note =

| oclc =

| website =

}}

The Christmas Anna Angel is a 1944 picture book by Ruth Sawyer and illustrated by Kate Seredy. Although written and published during World War II, the story takes place in Hungary during World War I as a girl Anna hopes for a Christmas miracle. Seredy was the perfect choice to illustrate a story set in rural Hungary during World War I, full of local costumes and traditions. The story begins, realistically, with a farming family. Just as realistically, ruthless soldiers search the farm for flour, and take the year’s harvest. Happily, young Anna’s faith in a personal angel, her own Anna Angel, is rewarded by a dream-like Christmas Eve making and baking of the special Christmas cake – just in time for Christmas Day. Fortunately, Anna’s little dog is able to talk, and helps her, too.

The book was a recipient of a 1945 Caldecott Honor for Kate Seredy's illustrations.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecotthonors/caldecottmedal|title=Caldecott Medal & Honor Books, 1938-Present|first=|website=Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190329183744/http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecotthonors/caldecottmedal|archive-date=2019-03-29|access-date=2019-05-01}}