For the past few years, I’ve been downloading the free reading calendars from Everyday Reading. I follow Janssen’s directions for printing a large “blueprint” size via Staples, and print one out each summer and each December and hang it on my kitchen wall.
At this point, I think I am doing it mainly for me rather than for Carla… but… at least right now that’s okay.
(All About Me Aside: While I definitely encourage holiday reading each year to increase the magic quotient for Carla, I also do it for me. Last year, for the first time ever, I tried to read some adult Christmas books. I made a list based on recommendations from people I trust and adore… and then my experiment was a huge flop. I am not going to list them here because a) I’m pretty sure I mentioned them before, even though I can’t find it and b) I know all too sharply the feeling of betrayal and failure that accompanies recommending a book and having a friend/family member dislike/dismiss it. In this case, not liking these much-loved books made ME feel like the failure, I can assure you. Anyway. I want to try again this year, but I am recalibrating slightly by trying to find books that Carla and I can enjoy together.)
Anyway: I am contemplating the December reading calendar and realizing that we may have finally outgrown our holiday book collection.
It’s not like I’m throwing them away or anything. I love our classic selection that includes things like Bear Stays Up for Christmas and Latke the Lucky Dog and beautifully illustrated versions of books like Oskar and the Eight Blessings and The Night Before Christmas. (I try, I really do, to inject some sort of religious element into this season, so we do talk about the story of Jesus’s birth and we discuss the miracle of the oil. We have a few books that lean more toward the religious, like Room for a Little One and Maccabee! The Story of Hanukkah, but most of our books are more secular in nature.)
All images below from amazon except where noted.
(Another Mainly About Me Aside: Hanukkah is not a major Jewish holiday, but since it overlaps with the Christmas season, I like to give it some prominence in our winter celebrations mainly to feel like we aren’t implying that one side of Carla’s heritage is more important than the other. This may matter to no one but me, but I am just making it up as I go along here.)
Onto the Book Search!
A few years ago I ordered one of my favorite Christmas chapter books – The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson – and read it to Carla. I don’t think she really enjoyed it as much as I did (although perhaps it will be more resonant this year). But what I want is more books like that. Good stories that evoke the spirit of the season and warm the heart. I don’t care if they are religious or secular, about Hanukkah or Christmas or any of the winter holidays we don’t personally celebrate but would be interested in exploring. My only stipulation is that I am trying to veer away from picture books this year. We have plenty, and I don’t know if they will appeal to my nine-and-a-half-year-old anymore. (Sob.)
During my search, it seems to me that there is quite a dearth of this very specific kind of books for Carla’s age range. But we shall persevere.
I got, as gifts, two books that might work: A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Writings by Charles Dickens and A Little House Christmas Treasury by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I started reading the latter to Carla last year and I think it might be the right kind of thing.
There is a collection by Louisa May Alcott I may need to own: Christmas Stories: 32 Classic Stories & Poems for the Young & Old.
Carla and I are going to see one of her friends in a performance of The Nutcracker. Maybe we should see if our library has a copy of Nutcracked by Susan Adrian to get in the proper frame of mind? (I personally think the entire Nutcrackerstory is… how can I put this tactfully… I can’t think of a way; suffice it to say that it doesn’t resonate with me particularly well but I do enjoy the music.)
Matt Haig’s A Boy Called Christmas seems to pop up on “best Christmas books for tweens” lists. But I don’t know if it would appeal to Carla. On the other hand, if she does like it, there are two others in the series we could read. I’m adding it to the library holds list.
Carla is LOVING James Patterson’s Katt and Dogg books, so obviously Dog Diaries: Happy Howlidays: A Middle School Story is on the list.
I initially passed over this book because it strikes me as ridiculous, but… it gets good ratings and Carla does really love dinosaurs. So I am putting a hold on The Christmasaurus by Tom Fletcher as well.
I completely forgot that The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis was a holiday book! I think I may have it knocking around in a dusty bookcase somewhere along with the rest of the series.
The Naughty List by Michael Fry (NOT to be confused with On the Naughty List, which looks like quite the steamy Christmas anthology) looks cute… although I am already growing weary of the “child travels to North Pole to correct a mistake, hijinks ensue” story line.
Reluctantly, I have ordered The Christmas Pig from the library (reluctant because I continue to feel morally uncomfortable about supporting the author).
Perhaps The Last Holiday Concert would be a good one; I love Andrew Clements.
How about a nice holiday mystery story? Pinky Bloom and the Case of the Magical Menorah by Judy Press looks very cute.
Oooh! A Nancy Drew Christmas by the pseudonymous Carolyn Keene sounds right up my alley. Not quite sure if Carla would enjoy it – she’s not as obsessed with mysteries as I am. But this story features a ski resort in one of our favorite states, so maybe that would win her over! Putting that one on hold for sure.
Along similar appeals-to-me-but-perhaps-not-to-Carla lines is The Very Merry Murder Club collection of “wintery crime and mystery stories.” Alas, it is not available at my library.
Would The Girl Who Ruined Christmas by Cindy Callaghan be a good option, I wonder? I could see Carla being turned off by the title… or possibly intrigued. And… is it too tween-y?
I like the sound of Father Christmas’s Fake Beard by Terry Pratchett – a collection of humorous stories.
Or maybe one of the Enid Blyton collections? Christmas Tales or Christmas Stories. And don’t they look like they are illustrated by Quentin Blake? (Amazon doesn’t say and I didn’t do any additional digging.)
As long as we are looking at short stories, I am going to add The Power of Light: Eight Stories for Hanukkah by Isaac Bashevis Singer to the list. It’s kind of old (published in 1980, before I was born!), and may be for a slightly more mature audience (amazon confusingly lists it as having a “reading age” of 4 years and up and a “grade level” of 7 through 9), but if I can find it, it could be worth a try. (Alas, our library does not have it. Perhaps I can find a good used copy from amazon or ThriftBooks. I remember with great fondness Singer’s short story collection When Shlemiel Went to Warsawbut that one isn’t available either.
This collection of stories about the winter solstice – Return of the Light: Twelve Tales from Around the World for the Winter Solstice – sounds really interesting. I love learning how people in countries other than mine celebrate winter.
Although it is yet another of the “child travels to the North Pole” genre, North Pole Patrol by J. C. Deelstra sounds like it has potential.
Okay, I know I said no picture books, but this illustrated version of O. Henry’s classic The Gift of the Magi looks stunning… and that’s a story I haven’t shared with Carla yet.
Eve Bunting’s One Candle also looks beautiful and the story sounds heartfelt.
Nostalgia for The Baby-Sitters Club books made me look twice at Ann M. Martin’s On Christmas Eve, but it sounds very heartwarming!
On an entirely different tone, Krampus and the Thief of Christmas by Eldritch Black sounds different and potentially interesting. Although I can’t tell if it is truly scary or not. Carla is not a huge fan of scary.
What am I missing? What are the Christmas/winter/winter holiday books you (and/or your kids) read every year?
I have requested 8 books for Carla (and, honestly, for me) from the library and I have three books in my amazon cart. I also requested two Agatha Christies for myself: Hercule Poirot’s Christmas and Midwinter Murder: Fireside Tales from the Queen of Mystery, in the hopes that choosing books by an author I know and love will result in a higher Christmas-book enjoyment rate than I had last year.
It seems as though I am doing NaBloPoMo this month, which is 30 blog posts in 30 days. (Will I make it??? Only time will tell.) Details at San’s blog here.
Wow, that is a lot of books to consider! I have never read ‘A Christmas Carol’, though I have seen the play and we watch ‘Scrooged’ every year. My mom was a bit Terry Pratchett fan, though I haven’t read any of his stuff. I do love The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and the Little House on the Prairie is great, when Mr. Edwards walks from town to bring the girls gifts.
I think we read one of the Little House stories last year, and it was so soothing, the way the girls were SO excited by, like, a corn husk doll and a fresh loaf of bread. Really “count your blessings” kind of stuff, which is perfect for the consumerist holidays.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever! I loved that book. I think there was even a movie or television special about it back in the 80s. I haven’t read A Christmas Carol in a long while. Lolololol I am pretty sure I recommended Holidays on Ice to you and I’m pretty sure that did NOT go over well! To be fair, a few of the essays in there are in very bad taste and even I skip over them, but Santaland Diaries and Dinah, The Christmas Whore are two stories I read every year. I have a new book called The Holiday Breakdown on my Kindle and I’m just waiting for the perfect festive day to read it.
I will look up The Holiday Breakdown! Sounds right up my alley – lol!
I would like to recommend “How Winston Delivered Christmas” as a chapter book to enjoy with Carla between now and Christmas. It is divided into “chapters” to be read one each day in an advent style countdown, and each day there are instructions for either a craft or baking project, which seems like something that would appeal to Carla. I read it with my children a couple years ago, and we skipped right over crafts and baking projects that I didn’t want to do with no remorse! It was a delightful story, too.
This sounds fun! I vaguely remember you mentioning this, in fact! And I love your strategy of skipping without regret.
Another good chapter book that is set around Christmas time is “The VanderBeekers of 141st Street.” It is the first in a series about the same family, and the kids in the family grow a little older in each book, and the themes in each book grow with the kids in a beautiful way. This was the first audio book that my husband actually enjoyed listening to with me and the kids! Only the first book in the series happens at Christmas time.
When I was younger I LOVED “The House Without a Christmas Tree” by Gail Rock. I guess it was made into a movie which I never saw. It takes place in a small town in Nebraska in the 1940s, and I loved the description of life in a small town back then. It might be too old fashioned for Carla, but that’s one of the things I liked about it.
I’m always trying to find Christmas-y books for myself. I’ve read those two Agatha Christies- I’ll be interested to hear what else you read this year.
I will check it out – thank you!
When I was Carla’s age I was all about Nancy Drew. By middle school Agatha Christie was my jam and still is!
Oh how I loved Nancy Drew!
My kids all loved the audio version of The Christmas Doll by Elvira Woodruff. Perfect for Carla’s age, IMO.
Adding to my list!
Tomie diPaola’s The Legend of the Poinsettia is a favorite of mine. Re the Nutcracker – I was obsessed with it as a child and my mom bought a translation of the original novella that was illustrated by Maurice Sendak. It is much stranger in its unabridged form – think 19th century Austrian literature style. But, I still enjoy reading it every year, although I haven’t quite gotten my kids into it. And the translation really matters – there are lots of boring/poorly done translations out there. Not necessarily recommending it, just sharing my quirky experience.
Along the same lines but different, I buy my two nephews (Matt’s middle brother’s kids, the middlest of my niblings) books every year, which has now created an expectation, and this year I’m kind of stuck, given their ages, my not knowing what they’ve already read, and not being able to remember what I’ve already bought them (shoulda made a list).
I share your distaste for supporting Rowling. I would read literally anything by Terry Pratchett. I should be better at advising in this matter, but surprisingly (and disappointingly for me), I am drawing a blank.
I don’t know many English Christmas books (other than the Christmas Carol) but luckily our library put up a display each year that goes with the season. So we always picked books from that. I love the idea of the reading calendar. I think I am going to download one right now.
I think you’re right that once you get past picture book age, there are fewer choices. I remember Noah liked The Last Christmas Concert. I have a memory of reading it to him in hotel lobby all decorated for Christmas one year when we were traveling.
We read a book together last year called Winterfrost which was very cute. It’s a novel, not a short picture book. I read it out loud to my boys over a couple weeks last winter and it was nice! Not specifically Christmas themed, but more of a general winter vibe which was cozy.
I need to come back to this post and request more books from the library. Our boys get Christmas books during Advent. I bought 14 this year but am forgetting what all I bought. I know we got Christmasaurus, too. They love reading Christmas books – we pulled them out last week after we decorated the Christmas tree. One book I really love that has not been a hit with my boys is “The Polar Express.” I think it goes over Paul’s head, which I get. Maybe in 5 years or so he’ll appreciate it. The biggest hits in our house are The Grinch and Little Blue Truck Christmas. Carla is obviously much too old for Little Blue Truck but it is delightful – there is a tree on the last page that lights up. Both boys love that book so much!
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever – such a good book! The audio book read by Elaine Stritch is hiiiilarious.
One of my favorites is The Lion, The Unicorn, and Me by Jeanette Winterson – it’s the nativity story told from the point of view of the Donkey. It sort of straddles the line between picture book and chapter book. It’s either a novella or a very long picture book.
Also -Little Women? Does that count? It’s a very Christmasy book for me.
Great post. Love everything about it.
I am a huge fan of holiday and christmas reading.
I own the exact same copy of the Christmas carol. isn’t it such a pretty book and so nice to touch.
Reading through your list I realized I have never considered a Hanukah book. It makes so much sense (and I love that you try to include it in raising your daughter). I have googled for The Power of Light: Eight Stories for Hanukkah since I have one other book of the author on my shelf. It seems it’s hard to come by a book of him today. And I fell down the rabbit hole researching him and read he wrote all his books at first in Yiddish. Now I want to get that copy in yiddish. I think it would be a nice challenge to read. It is so similar to German that I would probably understand it all. But I guess that is a copy even harder to come by.
Anyway thank you for the inspiration. I have a whole new area to research now.
In case you still need some book recommendations I think you might like “The Christmas Mystery” by Jostein Gaarder. It works as an advent calendar and you read a chapter every day from Dec1 to Christmas Eve.
Oooh I will add that to my list for next year!