This Christmas you have a variety of holiday books to choose from and all are certain to bring a little Christmas joy to you or that tyke in your life who likes a good bedtime story.
Julia Livshin collected 16 classic tales to include in her book, Classic Christmas Stories: Sixteen Timeless Yuletide Tales. The stories include well-known and loved tales such as O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi.” And you could be surprised to discover a Christmas story by Jack London. Others include those of celebrated authors who you may never have associated with Christmas, such as stories by Frank Stockton, Mary Agnes Tincker, Robert Grant, Edward Eggleston, Sara Orne Jewett, and Bret Harte. The tales depict people in various social settings, from farm to city.
Another entry into the genre is The Kingfisher Book of Classic Christmas Stories, compiled by Iam Whybrow. Here you will find stories from the German, French, English, and Norse traditions by writers such as Louisa May Alcott, Charles Dickens, The Brothers Grimm, and Kenneth Grahame. This book is great for children with its colorful illustrations and perfect for a story with hot chocolate before bed.
For a longer story to enjoy with your kids throughout the Christmas season, try Mary and Carol Higgins Clark’s He Sees You When You’re Sleeping. This book, new in 2001, is about Sterling Brooks, a heavenly wannabe, who must do something nice for someone before he can get into heaven.
Classic Christmas Stories: Sixteen Timeless Yuletide Tales by Julia Livshin, 400 pages, Lyons Press, $9.95.
The Kingfisher Book of Classic Christmas Stories, Iam Whybrow, 144 pages, Kingfisher, $19.95.
He Sees You When You’re Sleeping, Carol and Mary Higgins Clark, 208 pages, Scribner, 2001, $7.99