Line #21 Literature/NickolaiOfTheNorth


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nickolaiofthenorth.jpg]]
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3	->''"Who filled Santa's stocking when ''he'' was a boy?"''
4	-->-- '''Izzy Raby''', the author's daughter, whose question became the inspiration for the book
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6	''Nickolai of the North'' is a 2005 children's book by Lucy Daniel Raby. The plot centers around the childhood of a boy who would grow up to be none other than Santa Claus. A sequel, ''Nickolai's Quest'', was published in 2007.
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8	The elfin kingdom, situated underground near the North Pole, is turned to stone by the WickedWitch Magda (formerly an elf herself, exiled for practicing dark magic), and only a little boy called Nickolai "Nick" survives, thanks to the protection of his Light Fairy Elvina and the help of a flying reindeer Comet, who takes him for a human boy and carries him to a human town Norsk further to the south.
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10	Nickolai is taken in and raised by a childless couple Joe and Hannah and gets teased by most of the local children for his pointed ears. He is only able to make more friends when he thinks up a sleigh competition game and then when he carves toys for the little kids. One day, he stumbles upon the flying reindeer in the nearby forest and learns he is not Joe and Hannah's biological child, which leads to a huge quarrel in the family.
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12	Meanwhile, back in the far north, Magda builds a city of gold to lure people to her realm. The rumors of the city reach Nickolai's town, and he realizes it has something to do with his own origins. Together with the family of his best friend Anneka, he goes to the Golden City. Magda is only too happy: she needs to get Nickolai's Light Fairy for her power to become supreme.
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14	----
15	!! The book provides examples of:
16	* AgeWithoutYouth: Downplayed with [[spoiler:Nickolai]], who becomes immortal but continues to age. However, there are no usual horrors associated with the trope: [[spoiler:Nickolai]] just grows up to old age and then lives on as a happy and healthy ElderlyImmortal.
17	* AndNowYouMustMarryMe: A rare villain-to-villain example. At one point Volpo, TheDragon to Magda, tells her he won't help her further unless she marries him. It's left ambiguous whether he wanted her for her (magically-induced) beauty or her power (or both).
18	* AnAsskickingChristmas: The main events take place around Christmastime, because Magda's magic is at its strongest during the Winter Solstice.
19	* BeautyEqualsGoodness: The belief in the trope is constantly exploited by Magda. Played straight in the sense of "''natural'' beauty equals goodness".
20	* BreakingTheGlassCeiling: Nickolai's mother Ella becomes the first woman to compete in the elf kingdom's sleigh races and the first woman to win them. Other elves are skeptical about her at first, but when she wins, they cheer for her heartily.
21	* CityOfGold: Of false gold, actually, but nonetheless.
22	* ChildhoodFriendRomance: After several hints throughout the book, the epilogue reveals [[spoiler:Zak and Annika]] get married.
23	* CrapsaccharineWorld: The Golden City. A breathtaking fairytale realm, covering a totalitarian regime and built on dark magic.
24	* DisappearedDad: Nickolai's birth father dies in an avalanche when Nickolai is just a baby.
25	* IconicOutfit: Even Santa's classic red outfit gets a backstory – it was originally given to his mother for winning the sleigh races.
26	* InnocentBlueEyes:
27	** The elves have them.
28	** Subverted with Finn, who's got blue eyes but is anything but innocent.
29	* LeavingFoodForSanta: When Nickolai plans his Christmas mission, he specifies people should leave food for him and for the reindeer.
30	* TheMarvelousDeer: The flying reindeer tribe. They get their flying abilities from aurora borealis.
31	* OurElvesAreDifferent: The beautiful humanoid race, able to live in the coldest region. They draw their magic from the Earth's magnetic field. They were created from ordinary stones (see OurFairiesAreDifferent below).
32	* OurFairiesAreDifferent: The Light Fairies (tiny WingedHumanoid females made of golden light) originate from aurora borealis, and each elf has their own Light Fairy (friend, companion and guardian). The Elfin Kingdom came to be when the first Light Fairies effectively created the first elves by bringing stones to life. When Magda devours the Light Fairies, the elves get turned to stone again.
33	* PointyEars: They come with the ability to control the Earth's magnetic field, as Nickolai learns in Norsk already.
34	* RedOniBlueOni: Magda, impatient and fiery-tempered sometimes to the point of hysteria, is Red to calm and calculated SoftSpokenSadist Volpo's Blue.
35	* SecretSanta: Nickolai's first gift-bringing round (sans the reindeer, limited to his little town and performed with the other children's help).
36	* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: Most blurbs of the book make no secret of the fact that Nickolai is going to become Santa in the end.
37	* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: Set several decades into the future. Nickolai is now the Santa we all know and love, [[spoiler:Zak and Anneka are married with children and grandchildren, and Louise lives with them too]].
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Context Literature / NickolaiOfTheNorth