edeemarie Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I am trying to get a list of books together to read while we are on school break for the month of December. Do you have any favorites to read around Christmas time that you would recommend? It is mostly for the older kids, but great picture books would be fine too! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esse Quam Videri Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I know it's probably cliche, but we have a tradition of reading A Christmas Carol aloud every year. It's quality literature, and there are some great versions with full color pictures. Kiddos have not tired of it yet :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 One of my favorite things! Here is my thread from last year, which might give you some new ideas. http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/showthread.php?t=317518&highlight=christmas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walking-Iris Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 It's our Xmas Eve tradition to read Twas The Night Before Christmas befor ebed. We hang our stockings that night and we drink hot chocolate and put out cookies and read it by Christmas tree light. I feel silly saying that. It's a very special moment every year for us. We have the big Classic Edition illustrated by Christian Birmingham. I read aloud Dickins as well that month. I just started doing this two years ago because my oldest ds seemed willing to follow along. My younger two not so much, but I expect my Kinder to be slightly interested this year. The Gift of The Magi by O. Henry is one we've read as well. I'm still looking for a good illustrated version that is not adapted. Picture books that are a must--How The Grinch Stole Christmas (of course!), The Polar Express, and The Velveteen Rabbit. I also always read The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jfmom Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 We love Jotham's Journey, Tabitha's Travels and Bartholomew's Passage. These books are designed to read one part every day of the Advent season. They are page turners!! My kids (14, 12, 10, 9, and 6) beg to hear "just one more chapter". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 This might sound crazy, but The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It is laugh out loud funny, but the message at the end is wonderful and always makes me a little teary-eyed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edeemarie Posted November 9, 2012 Author Share Posted November 9, 2012 I know it's probably cliche, but we have a tradition of reading A Christmas Carol aloud every year. It's quality literature, and there are some great versions with full color pictures. Kiddos have not tired of it yet :) That sounds like a great book to start with- not cliche at all! One of my favorite things! Here is my thread from last year, which might give you some new ideas. http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/showthread.php?t=317518&highlight=christmas That is great! I will definitely be writing some of these down. We may have to start reading now! I am a huge Christmas lover too (is it bad that I already started to listen to Christmas music?)! It's our Xmas Eve tradition to read Twas The Night Before Christmas befor ebed. We hang our stockings that night and we drink hot chocolate and put out cookies and read it by Christmas tree light. I feel silly saying that. It's a very special moment every year for us. We have the big Classic Edition illustrated by Christian Birmingham. I read aloud Dickins as well that month. I just started doing this two years ago because my oldest ds seemed willing to follow along. My younger two not so much, but I expect my Kinder to be slightly interested this year. The Gift of The Magi by O. Henry is one we've read as well. I'm still looking for a good illustrated version that is not adapted. Picture books that are a must--How The Grinch Stole Christmas (of course!), The Polar Express, and The Velveteen Rabbit. I also always read The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson. Thank you for all of these- your Christmas Eve night sounds absolutely wonderful and I am sure your kids will remember it for years to come! We love Jotham's Journey, Tabitha's Travels and Bartholomew's Passage. These books are designed to read one part every day of the Advent season. They are page turners!! My kids (14, 12, 10, 9, and 6) beg to hear "just one more chapter". These sound great and I will look into them- I am always wanting to add more about Advent into our Christmas celebrations! This might sound crazy, but The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It is laugh out loud funny, but the message at the end is wonderful and always makes me a little teary-eyed. We read this one last year and the kids loved it- we could certainly read it again this year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 (edited) LOADS of lovely titles worth a second look in this thread from last year on the exact same topic -- Let's share our very favorite Christmas read alouds! I think I'll be adding to our collection again, even though the DC are grown! ;) Happy Holiday reading, everyone! Warmest regards, Lori D. ETA: books from my list from the thread I linked above: Our ALL time Christmas favorites, read every year, even now that DSs are grown: 1. Father Christmas Letters (Tolkien) 2. Christmas Every Day (Howells) Others we have enjoyed: - When it Snowed That Night (Farber) -- (but get it used from http://www.abebooks.com) - The Last Straw (Thury) - The Remarkable Chrstmas of the Cobbler's Sons (Sawyer) - Dance in the Desert (L'Lengle) - The Christmas Knight (Curry) - A Small Miracle (Collington) - A Story a Day (Scarry) -- all the December stories - The Other Wiseman (retelling by Kennedy) -- hanky alert! - The Polar Express (Allsburg) - How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Seuss) - B is for Bethlehem (Wilner) - Trouble at Christmas (Johnson) - The TALL Book of Christmas (Smith) - Find The Gifts on The Twelve Days of Christmas (a "Look and Find" book) (Tallarico) - The Snowman (Briggs) - A Christmas Carol (French) -- abridged version - The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree (Houston) I remember when we were little, my sister and I crying every year when our mother read "Santa Mouse", and especially "Santa Mouse Where Are You?" (Both by Brown). ;) Edited November 10, 2012 by Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy M Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 Not sure this is Christmas, but Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. John (get the original version), and we have loved the picture book Plum Pudding Christmas. It would go great with those studying Medieval history this year. It's pretty funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclecticschooler Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 Christmas Day in the Morning http://www.chinaberry.com/p/Christmas-Day-in-the-Morning.cfm my absolute favorite holiday book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsMommy Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 Here's our Christmas book list. They're not all used as read-alouds, but they are all favorites! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirstenhill Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 We enjoyed The Thirteen Days of Christmas last year: http://www.amazon.com/Thirteen-Days-Christmas-Jenny-Overton/dp/0192752138/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1352481528&sr=8-4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto2Cs Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I have an old blog post with Christmas book reviews here. Other books we enjoy in December: A Christmas Carol, Dickens The 24 Days Before Christmas, L'Engle The Family Under the Bridge, Carlson The Quiltmaker's Gift AND The Quiltmaker's Journey, Brumbeau (not technically "Christmas" books, but very good for a sense of giving!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walking-Iris Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 The Family Under the Bridge, Carlson T Is that about Christmas? We have that book on the shelf. I think I bought it at a library book sale and we haven't even looked at it. Thanks for giving me the incentive to get it down and give it a look over. It may join our Xmas reading rotation. Also to a pp (how do we multi-quote??) that Pearl S Buck book looks lovely. I love her stuff, but I haven't seen that picture book. Definitely looking for that this year as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ariasmommy Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I love A Child's Christmas in Wales read by Dylan Thomas himself in his deep, sonorous voice. It is wonderfully descriptive - definitely the work of a poet. It's available on CD or as an Audible audiobook. I am planning to listen to it with the kids this year and hoping to make it a Christmas tradition. :) We read and enjoyed Keeping Holiday by Starr Meade last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 This might sound crazy, but The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It is laugh out loud funny, but the message at the end is wonderful and always makes me a little teary-eyed. This is our read-aloud for Dec. too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 Our Christmas books this year are The Night Before Christmas, Big Susan, A Christmas Memory, and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea_lpz Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 Little Women by Louisa May Alcott The story is always catagorized in my mind as a Christmas tale because it begins on Christmas Eve and has a few Christmas scenes in the book, so although not exactly a Christmas book, I still catagorize it there. Also, An Old Fashioned Christmas from the Little House series. I also vote for A Christmas Carole. It's my favorite Christmas movie and I've watched several versions as well as read the book and find it to be quite humourous (Merry Christmas! Marry Christmas, bah humbug, another mouth to feed, why marry...). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 Is that about Christmas? We have that book on the shelf. I think I bought it at a library book sale and we haven't even looked at it. Thanks for giving me the incentive to get it down and give it a look over. It may join our Xmas reading rotation. It takes place during Christmas, yes. It's a great little book! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rachelpants Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 There are quite a few here: http://pinterest.com/kindyhomeschool/christmas-books/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UrbanSue Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 A few of our favorites: The Story of Holly and Ivy, by Rumer Godden The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey, by Susan Wojciechowski The Clown of God, by Tomie dePaola (we like all of his Christmas season books: Old Befana, The Three Wise Kings, etc.) We keep ours boxed up until Advent and we have lots more that we love but those are definitely the favorites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedgehogs4 Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 I haven't read the other replies, but my kids have enjoyed the series starting with Jotham's Journey. It's an advent story, so it is meant to be read through the month of December. They loved all three of the books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto2Cs Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 Is that about Christmas? We have that book on the shelf. I think I bought it at a library book sale and we haven't even looked at it. Thanks for giving me the incentive to get it down and give it a look over. It may join our Xmas reading rotation. It is, although that isn't all it is about... from Amazon: "This is the delightfully warm and enjoyable story of an old Parisian named Armand, who relished his solitary life. Children, he said, were like starlings, and one was better off without them. But the children who lived under the bridge recognized a true friend when they met one, even if the friend seemed a trifle unwilling at the start. And it did not take Armand very long to realize that he had gotten himself ready-made family; one that he loved with all his heart, and one for whom he would have to find a better home than the bridge. Armand and the children's adventures around Paris -- complete with gypsies and a Santa Claus -- make a story which children will treasure." and "Armand is a hobo who lives in Paris, under a bridge. He begs and does odd jobs for money to take care of himself and buy food. One day he finds a mother and her three children in his "home", under the bridge. At first he is gruff and unhappy about sharing the bridge, but in time he begins to like and help care for this poor homeless family. As Christmas nears, the children ask for nothing except a home of their own and Armand comes up with a plan to make their wish come true. Natalie Savage Carlson has written a beautiful, sensitive story full of humor, insight and wisdom. With fast paced, interesting scenes, young readers will be able to identify with the characters of the children in the story and begin to understand the meaning of family and the rewards of giving and accepting help from others. Perfect for children aged 9-12, this is also a great read-aloud book the entire family can enjoy and discuss. The Family Under the Bridge is a thoughtful, heartwarming story and Ms Carlson deserved all the awards this book won" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alicia64 Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 We love this book each Christmas. Alley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBG Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 The 101 Dalmations-- the original is different and much more beautiful than the movie adaption or Disney adaptions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2OandE Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Well it's my favorite time of the year and I love reading aloud so we will do as many as we can. I've been saving all the books you've all mentioned to add to my list. So far though my plan is to at least read the ones on our shelf. Some we've read before like The Grinch and The Polar Express. Ones we haven't read before, but I plan to this Christmas because we have them, are: Flat STanley's Christmas Adventure Christmas After All The Great Depression Diary of Minnie Swift A Christmas Carol (the adapted version to the Disney movie) The Best Christmas Pageant ever Here Comes Christmas stories and poems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Gift of the Magi Jonathan Toomey Clown of God lots of them. I have 20 some odd Christmas books and I read one a day from Advent through Epiphany. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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