Skip to main content

In which I require a holiday read

I love the line in 84, Charing Cross Road where Helene writes to Frank telling him,
I require a book of love poems with spring coming on.
Do you ever feel that way? You can feel a particular season or time approaching and you start to itch for a certain read you always associate with that time or season. It happens to me regularly and last night I realized I require a holiday read with Christmas coming on. I evaluated my shelves and discovered that I don't have a specific book I read every Christmas season or even every winter. This is clearly Not Okay. And so I'm putting the question out there, asking for your recommendations. What are you favorite holiday reads? Because I'm craving a good one.
Labels:

Comments

  1. D Swizzle3:17 PM

    Well, there's this old one "A Dog Named Christmas" I read in fourth grade...lol

    ReplyDelete
  2. alishka babushka3:22 PM

    Mr. Willowby's Christmas tree: http://www.amazon.com/Willowbys-Christmas-Tree-Robert-Barry/dp/0385327218

    It's one of the books I always associate with Christmas - even if it's not a big novel, I LOVE IT!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous3:37 PM

    I need some suggestions too! I totally know what you mean though. Sometimes I get cravings for books depending on the season/weather. I'm the same way with music.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Rhiannon Hart3:54 PM

    It's not a holiday read as such, but if you haven't read The Secret of Dragonhome by John Peel, do. I think you'd really like it. I must reread my copy soon, it's been about a decade.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Charlotte4:50 PM

    The Dark is Rising!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Laura Hartness7:23 PM

    "Kringle" by Tony Abbott. Would make a great movie!

    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0439749425/ref=s9_simp_gw_s0_p14_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1NNDXRY1BZEMBSWWANAS&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846

    Laura Hartness
    http://CalicoCritic.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Alix 9:59 PM

    The Dark is rising, The Hogfather and I think I'll re-read Let it Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myacle this year. It was very christmassy and made me want t teacup pig :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Allison11:27 PM

    Kind of cheesy, but I always read Skipping Christmas by John Grisham this time of year.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jenny8:37 AM

    I always read Rumer Godden's "The Story of Holly and Ivy". It's a dear book, about a little orphan girl and a doll that doesn't get sold for Christmas. That sounds a bit precious, but it's really a wonderful book. And if you can find a copy, Julie Lane's The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus. Wonderful stories and absolutely beautiful woodcuts.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Amy1:41 AM

    The Best Christmas Pageant Ever?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Lenore Appelhans6:55 AM

    I don't really like holiday reads, but I do always feel the need to listen to Christmas music in December.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Angiegirl7:13 PM

    These are such wonderful suggestions, you guys. Thank you! And they definitely do not have to be holiday-themed. Just ones you, for whatever reason, enjoy re-reading this time of year.

    THE DARK IS RISING is such a great suggestion! And it occurred to me the 2nd Julia Grey novel is a great Christmas read. I'm definitely looking up the picture books you've all suggested. They sound magical.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Michelle4:27 PM

    Maybe it's just cause the movie is such a tradition in my family, but a couple of years ago I finally picked up "A Christmas Story" in book form by Jean Shepherd. It's to die for. You can just hear his narration throughout and all the back story on the characters was wonderful. Lots of laughs and "illuminated sex in the window"

    ReplyDelete
  14. Unknown6:21 PM

    For some reason I gravitate toward the classics around the Holidays. I just finished Little Women and will be starting Jane Eyre.

    ReplyDelete
  15. sanjeet3:05 PM

    s I always associate with Christmas - even if it's not a big novel, I LOVE IT!

    Work from home India

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

You Might Also Like

Review | The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Vols. 1 & 2 by Beth Brower

I feel a bit giddy finally talking to you all about this series. If you'll remember, I fell madly in love with The Q  when it came out a few years ago. Now, Beth Brower is writing The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion — a series of novellas set in London in 1883. Each volume is an excerpt from the incorrigible Emma's journals, and the first two volumes are already available with the third on the way soon. I think they'd make rather perfect pandemic reading. Humorous and charming down to their bones, they're just what the doctor ordered to lift your spirits in this uncertain time that just proves to be too much some days. If you're experiencing one of those days, I suggest giving Volume 1   a go (it's only 99 cents on Kindle, $4.99 for a trade paperback copy). It will surprise exactly none of you that I own print and digital editions of both volumes.  Miss Emma M. Lion has waited long enough. Come hell or high water (and really, given her track record,  both a...
4 comments
Read more

For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

I know this is an almost unpardonably early review. But honestly, I waited on it as long as I possibly could before the effort of holding it in caused me some sort of bodily harm. I've been anxiously looking forward to For Darkness Shows the Stars  for going on two years now, and the day an ARC showed up on my doorstep was just a very good day indeed . When a book you've been dying to read finally falls into your lap, do you ever just hold onto it and savor the possibilities? I do. I did with this one for a little while. Don't get me wrong, sometimes I just tear into it immediately. But sometimes I don't. Because sometimes dreaming about it while you're actually holding it in your hands is special, too. So I savored and I dreamt and I started reading and . . . I was gone. My first reaction to finishing it was a sense of complete satisfaction mingled with sadness that it was over. My second was thinking that I cannot wait to see  For Darkness Shows the Stars  work ...
46 comments
Read more

Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay

What a beautiful cover. I remember when I first saw it my initial thought was,  Oh, please don't let it suck . I know that sounds harsh, but sometimes a cover just calls out to you and you know when you finally hold a physical copy of the book itself you'll just want to stroke it and love it and tell it it's found its home on your shelves. Unfortunately, the innards (as my boy is fond of saying) don't always match the outtards. And then I am forced to cry. Because . . . so pretty. So when a review copy of Stacey Jay 's Juliet Immortal came my way, I held my breath. Just a bit. Okay, maybe for the first five pages or so. Thankfully, that's all it took. Because this innovative retelling (of sorts) of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet has teeth. And they sank into me with delicious ferocity. This was my first foray with Stacey Jay , though I know she has a handful of books already out. After this encounter, I look forward to checking out her other work. Juliet...
20 comments
Read more