It's that time of the year again - the time when musical artists pull old Christmas favorites off the shelf and pair them up with fresh new material to create their holiday collections. This year Christian pop favorite Point of Grace comes bearing their own sophomore holiday offering entitled Winter Wonderland, in follow-up to 1999's hit A Christmas Story.

Best known for their tight vocal harmonies and signature pop/adult contemporary style, the ladies of Point of Grace have made quite a name for themselves in Christian music with over twenty-five number singles and numerous top -selling records. Considering POG's amazing success so far, Winter Wonderland is sure to be yet another achievement to add to an already impressive resume.

Winter Wonderland gets off to a nice start with "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year," singing of the simple pleasures and sheer excitement from the Christmas season. "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and "Jingle Bells" showcase themselves as pleasant, enjoyable arrangements of familiar favorites. Newcomer John David Webster shares vocal duties with Point of Grace on the brand new tune "Let There Be Light." Shortly after that track, Amy Grant's popular "Breath of Heaven" is given the POG treatment, while managing not to stray all that far from the original. "Santa Medley" is a well-crafted work of "Here Comes Santa Clause," "Frosty the Snowman," and "Rudolph the Reindeer." This song in particular is perhaps the best display of POG's singing abilities, through various vocal harmonies and solos.

By sticking to classic arrangements and Point of Grace's well-known style, Winter Wonderland doesn't push any major musical boundaries. Nevertheless, even those who typically don't fancy themselves as fans of POG's music will most likely find Winter Wonderland enjoyable. No doubt this will be an album to listen to for many holiday seasons to come.

- Review date: 9/30/05, written by Lauren Summerford