It was 1992. An 8-year-old and a 4-year-old were going through their parents’ divorce. Enter Lee Allen, their father, who wrote a story for them as a keepsake, surrounding the theme of forgiveness, to help them through that hard time. The family loved it, sparking something in Lee.
At the time, fiction author Richard Paul Evans had just released The Christmas Box, a tale of fatherhood and family during the holidays, a story that started with just a few copies for his family and quickly became a #1 New York Times best-seller. Lee took Evans’ cue and decided to share his own story, The Special Guest: A Christmas Story, with the world, skyrocketing to a bestseller itself in 1995.
The book follows the Reid family during the holiday season in Richmond. As Christmas magic fills the capital’s bustling streets, 16-year-old Scott Reid meets a mysterious elderly man stranded in the city thanks to a broken-down car. Scott decides to invite the stranger to spend Christmas with his family. The Reids have had a hard year, but when Scott arrives with his special guest, unexpected things begin to unfold, making them wonder if the stranger’s appearance was no coincidence. On Christmas morning, they discover who the special guest really is.
The heartwarming tale is accompanied by gorgeously intricate illustrations by Donna Campbell Allen. Lee and Donna got married in 1994 and paired up to bring the Reids to life. They have since split up but continue to spread the Christmas magic as great friends. “Lee wrote this amazing story, and we were both really inspired by it,” Donna explains. “It just kind of took a life of its own.”
Donna was once the fashion illustrator for Miller & Rhoads in Richmond, an iconic staple in the city that has since closed. She channeled that expertise when designing the book scenes for each chapter. The key to her creative process was using actual models as references at the locations mentioned. The book’s very first illustration shows Lee walking through Carytown with presents and a pipe alongside pedestrians with the Byrd Theatre and other locally loved shops in the background. Lee’s father, who took on the part of the special guest, posed for Donna and appeared on the cover.
The first edition of the book was a smashing success, and now, after 30 years, the anniversary edition has been released, along with a sequel that follows Scott’s son, Hunter, in today’s day and age. “It’s a whole generation of people who haven’t read it,” Lee says, “so it felt like the perfect time to rerelease, in a very special gift coffee table edition of The Special Guest, alongside the new release of Legend of the Wooden Star.”
Just like the first time around, a portion of the book proceeds will go to Angel Tree, the nonprofit program from the Salvation Army that provides Christmas gifts to kids in need.
And after all these years, Lee can now share the same story of Christmas magic and forgiveness with his grandchildren in a long-awaited full-circle moment. SpecialGuestChristmas.com , Instagram.com/TheSpecialGuestBook
Lee and Donna Allen’s books, The Special Guest: A Christmas Story and Legend of the Wooden Star, are available everywhere books are sold.
This article is a Virginia Living digital exclusive.
