Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
The Baby Santa stories by M. Maitland DeLand are both clever and also cheesy so of course, my almost 4-year-old daughter, Strawberry, loved them. A few years ago, I had the chance to review a copy of Baby Santa and the Lost Letters. This is the Christmas story my daughter still enjoys reading every year. Although
On That Christmas Night by Lois Rock and illustrated by Alison Jay tells the true story of the first Christmas, beginning with the Annunciation to Mary about her special role. I love Allison Jay’s artwork, and this book does not disappoint in that regard. It is beautiful and tells the story appropriately. There are a few times
Christmas Truce by Aaron Shepard and Wendy Edelson was a retelling of the story of the Christmas truce in 1914 in which Allied and German troops ceased fighting on Christmas Eve and began singing Christmas carols. During this unique time in the middle of the war, Christians joined in song and games. They shared stories
Wait, is that snow I see outside? Nope, it’s the sprinkler and kiddie pool. But nevertheless, it’s time for a Christmas in July book review! Santa Clauses by Bob Raczka (Carolrhoda Books, September 2014) is a great book for the upcoming holiday season. With 25 different haiku poems, Santa prepares himself and his workshop for the
This is my last week and last post of sharing Cybils Fiction Picture Book Nominees, so I’ve got to go for a miscellany this week. Sub-topics: Roads and Trucks; Fine Arts; Non-Western Traditions; and, of course, Christmas, Christian, and Winter Books. Roads and Trucks Along a Long Road by Frank Viva (Little Brown, 2011) is
For my book club this month, we decided to take it easy and read a holiday short story, since many of us feel overwhelmed and limited on time during the holiday season. We settled on “The Mansion” by Henry Van Dyke, a Christian short story about a wealthy man who has a life-changing dream, much
I was looking for something else light to read before Christmas when I found, via the Book Review Blog Carnival on Maw Books, The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum, reviewed at The Movieholic and Bibliophile’s Blog. Best of all, because it is in the public domain, I could jump over
Most people have heard of A Christmas Carol (see my review), but few are familiar with Charles Dickens’ four other Christmas novellas. I read his other four novellas this season. Some of the novellas were more interesting than others. The superiority of A Christmas Carol makes it clear to me why it has lasted as a
I mentioned previously that I love the Everyman’s Library Pocket Poets series. So I ordered myself the volume Everyman’s volume of Christmas Poems in honor of the holiday. (Thank goodness for Amazon’s Marketplace where I could get it for half price!). I really enjoyed a retreat in to poetry about my favorite holiday and season,
I reread A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens just about every Christmas. I love the story of personal redemption as Ebenezer Scrooge learns from his past, recognizes the facts of the present, and learns to hope for the best in the future. For me, the appeal of this ghostly tale is the recognition that I
The Twelve Days of Christmas, illustrated by John O’Brien (Boyd Mills Press 2003), brings the ridiculousness of this Christmas carol to life. Although I’ve been told that the gifts for the days of Christmas are symbols for some Catholic tradition, I have no idea what they would mean. This book doesn’t worry about symbolism and
When I was about 8, my mother sewed a beautiful satin Christmas dress for me as well as one for my sister. As a family, we went to Chicago to watch a ballet of The Nutcracker. I have always loved the music and the story of this Christmas tradition. The Nutcracker by Michael Hague brings
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