Monday, December 10, 2012

Christmas Chapter Books for Children


Award Winning Children's Authors

How to get in the Christmas spirit?  Some listen to Christmas music, others bake cookies, and of course, there's shopping!  As with adult fiction, many of the best children's authors have written something specifically for Christmas, usually a short read, sometimes drawing upon their own childhood or memories.  Offer one to your child, or read it yourself if you find yourself feeling "Scrooge-y."  Some will leave you with a tear in your eye, but all provide an emotionally satisfying reading experience.  A few are highlighted below; we have compiled a larger list in our Staff Picks.

A Newbery Christmas     Collection of Christimas themed stories by Newbery Medal winning authors such as Beverly Cleary (Beezus and Ramona), Madeleine L’Engle (A Wrinkle in Time), and Hugh Lofting (Dr. Dolittle).



by Lemony Snicket
The Lump of Coal    A snippet of Snicket for the holidays.  More of a short read aloud, this fable about a lump of coal looking for the chance to be artist’s charcoal instead of fuel of the barbeque, is breezy but still reminds of the miracles at Christmas and in our lives.  Brett Helquist, who also illustrated Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events, renders an appropriately black visaged yet lovable lump of coal who encounters mostly unsympathetic humans.

by Maj Lindmann



 Flicka, Ricka & Dicka and Their New Skates    The Swedish triplets receive ice skates for Christmas.  While enjoying them out on the pond, they befriend and then save a little boy when he falls through the ice.  If you enjoy these easy to read classic children's stories, try their boy counterparts: Snipp, Snapp & Snurr.

by J. Michael Sims
Young Claus: Legend of the Boy Who Became Santa      Sleigh bells, which played such a symbolic part in The Polar Express, are an important part of this adventure story. Claus, alone in the world, gets separated from the other children at his orphanage during a snow storm.  He is saved by a gentle giant who gives him magical bells to aid him in his journeys.  In gratitude for saving them from a ferocious bear, two elves take Claus to their work shop in a mountain.  As you might expect, these elves make toys, but do not know why or what to do with them.  Claus learns his Purpose and the joy of giving in this simple, heartwarming story.  Great for a family read-aloud.
The True Gift: a Christmas Story    MacLachlan crafts another tiny gem, this time drawing upon the stable animals who are part of the Christmas Nativity.  Two children visiting their grandparents for Christmas decide that the lone cow left out in the pasture needs company, and sacrifice their present money to buy a calf.  The children’s empathy with the animal reflect the love and care we strive  for with all God’s creatures.  With poignant pencil drawings by Brian Floca (Avi’s Poppy series). 

Ann Martin
by Ann Martin


On Christmas Eve     The prolific author of The Babysitter Club books and award winning  A Corner of the Universe  writes with tenderness and humor of a girl's belief in the magic of Santa Claus, as she awaits him on Christmas Eve in order to ask him to make her friend's father get well.

by Robert Westall
Christmas Spirit     Two stories, both set in the author’s industrialized Northumberland.  In The Christmas Ghost, a literal Christmas spirit helps a young boy save his father.  In The Christmas Cat, a vicar’s niece brings warmth and hope to a bleak town.  Westall's  novels for children won him Britain's top literary awards.  His stories are simple and blunt, with children wise beyond their years.
by Laurence Yep

Dream Soul     A Chinese immigrant family in the 1920’s approaches Christmas in conflicting ways: the children want to celebrate the holiday like their Western friends do, but their parents resist becoming “too American.”  Yep gives us an insightful look into the difficulties of assimilating  into a foreign culture while retaining one’s native heritage and values.   Ultimately, the universal values of family and love shine through..






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