What present does the boy choose in "The Polar Express"?

In "The Polar Express," the boy chooses a silver bell from Santa’s sleigh as his present.

At the North Pole, Santa selects the boy to receive the first gift of Christmas. Rather than choosing a conventional toy, the boy asks for one of the bells attached to Santa’s reindeer harness. Santa presents him with a small silver bell and declares it the first gift.

The bell becomes the story’s central symbol. On the journey home, it falls through a hole in the boy’s pocket, and he believes it is lost. On Christmas morning, however, his sister finds a small package behind the tree containing the bell and a note from Santa.

A common mix-up is remembering the bell only as a Christmas sound rather than as the boy’s chosen present. In both Chris Van Allsburg’s 1985 picture book and the 2004 film adaptation, the bell represents belief: only people who still believe in Santa can hear it ring.