About the Book:

A Foster Christmas is a collection of four full-length comedies by Norm Foster. Light up the tree and break out the eggnog, Christmas has arrived. Norm Foster has been the most produced playwright in Canada every year for the past 20 years. His plays receive an average of 150 productions annually, making him the most produced playwright in the history of this country. A Foster Christmas brings together four festive stories.

Ethan Claymore: With a lot of nudging from a well-meaning friend, and a visit from his recently-deceased brother, a young widower re-enters the world and finds love and laughter. It's a week before Christmas, and struggling egg farmer/artist Ethan Claymore meets a woman who could turn his life around. But things are shaken up when Ethan receives a visit from his estranged, and recently deceased, older brother. (First produced in 1998 at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario; Cast: 1 female, 5 male)

Bob's Your Elf: An Elf named Bob gets banished from the North Pole to learn a lesson about cooperation and working well with others. Because of his bad attitude, Santa sends him to a small town to help an amateur theatre group put on a Christmas pageant. Here, Bob is faced with a group of bumbling actors who are doing their best to put on the greatest darn Christmas show their town has ever seen. (First produced in 2008 at Upper Canada Playhouse in Morrisburg, Ontario; Cast: 2 female, 4 male)

The Christmas Tree: A tree lot. Christmas Eve. One man. One woman. One tree. Who should get it? Each gives reasons through tales of woe as to why they are more deserving of the tree, and each seems unmoved by the other's predicament. A story filled with laughs, heartache, and good old-fashioned Christmas spirit. (First produced in 2008 at Lunchbox Theatre in Calgary, Alberta; Cast: 1 female, 1 male)

Dear Santa, with music by Steve Thomas: Santa Claus tries to fulfill a child's special Christmas wish while his staff attempts to overcome a supply shortage at the North Pole. This is a laugh-filled holiday play is innocent enough for the youngest child, and entertaining enough for adults. (First produced in 2002 at Theatre Orangeville in Orangeville, Ontario; Cast: 4 female, 2 male)

About the Playwright:

Norm Foster enjoyed a 25-year career as the morning man at independent radio stations in Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, and Kingston, before finally ending up in Fredericton, where he began writing plays. He is considered to be Canada's most produced playwright, with more than fifty-five critically acclaimed plays that are known for their humour, accessibility, and insight into the everyday tribulations of life. He is the recipient of the Los Angeles Drama-Logue Award for his play, The Melville Boys which would go on to be produced across Canada and in the United States, including a well-received run Off Broadway in New York. It would become his signature play, and the one which would bring his name to the forefront of Canadian theatre.