Holiday countdown with books.
Books are my love language. A holiday countdown with books is the cherry on top. It’s a festive way to pass long December nights when the kids get home after dark and we could all use a little extra snuggle (especially me). The concept is simple: read a book each night with a loosely Christmassy or wintry theme, starting on December 1 and continuing through Christmas Day—or however long you like.
There’s no need to rush out and buy new books, though picking up a few new-to-you titles from the library can be a fun adventure. The books don’t have to be wrapped or even ready to go by November 30. Your countdown could be five days, twelve, or twenty-five—or stretch all the way to New Year’s Eve. Whatever fits your time and energy during this busy month is perfect (and there have certainly been years I’ve skipped it altogether).
At our house, December 1 is when we swap our bookshelves to make room for wintry and Christmastime stories. I pull our seasonal books from the back of the closet, setting aside about half for the countdown while leaving the rest on the shelves to enjoy anytime.
I have mixed feelings about wrapping the books. I’m a bit impatient and fickle—I can’t remember where The Polar Express is in the stack, and there have been nights when I’m in the mood for a particular story, numbers on parcels be damned. If you’re like me, consider placing the most beloved books early in the month, where you can find them.
When I search for a few titles to add to our home library, I take a lot into consideration. I’ve included a range of secular wintry titles alongside others that are decidedly more biblical. I’ve searched for books that feature predominately characters of color, and that have been written and illustrated by folks of color, too. My youngest has taken a particular interest this year in the 12 days of Christmas so I’ve been intent on finding diverse renderings such as The 12 Days of Christmas by Rachel Isadora. For a bit of child-bearing realism, the very pregnant Mary in Julie Viva’s The Nativity is truly not to be missed. And last year our favorite new book was Lara Hawthorne’s beautiful Silent Night.
Different forms of literature make the season even richer. Thanks to Ezra Jack Keats, we’ve memorized The Little Drummer Boy, and Maya Angelou’s poem Amazing Peace is a personal treasure.
If this sounds merry, here are a few new titles we included in our pile this year. Whether you start on December 1, December 15, or December 23, it’s never too late to add a little bookish magic to your holiday season.
As always, I’d love to hear your favorites in the comments below!
The Polar Express words and pictures by Chris Van Allsburg
The Little Drummer Boy words and pictures by Ezra Jack Keats
The All-I’ll-Ever-Want Christmas Doll words by Patricia C. McKissack, illustrations by Jerry Pinkney
Too Many Tamales, words by Gary Soto and pictures by Ed Martinez
Bear and Wolf, words and pictures by Dan Salmieri
The Little Fir Tree by Christopher Coor from the original story by Hans Christian Andersen
The Mitten words and illustrations by Jan Brett
Amazing Peace words by Maya Angelou, illustrations by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher
Gilbert the Park City Moose words by Heidi Shadix-Pieros, illustrations by Corbet Curfman
The Story Orchestra words by Jessica Courtney-Tickle and Katy Flint
10 Ways to Hear Snow words by Cathy Camper, illustrations by Kenard Park
The Story of Holly and Ivy words by Rumer Godden
The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey words by Susan Wojciechowski
Little Blue Trucks Christmas words by Alice Schertle
Silent Night, illustrated by Lara Hawthorne
Five Stories words Ellen Weinstein
The Twelve Days of Christmas words by Rachel Isadora
Christmas in Noisy Village words by Astrid Lindgren
The nativity, words and pictures by Julie Vivas
Brave Irene words and pictures by William Steig
The Little Match Girl words by Hans Christian Andersen, illustrations by Jerry Pinkney
An Orange for Frankie by Patricia Polacco
Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl S. Buck, illustrations by Mark Buehner
The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore, illustrations by Scott Gustafson
For the curious:
The stamped labels I used on the books are from Michaels
The brown wrinkly wrapping paper was salvaged from various years of wrapping gifts. This is my main form of wrapping paper I use around our house. It also has aided in a dozen art projects through the years.
Most of the books on this list are ones we’ve been able to find at our local library, but when we buy books, we love to support our used or local bookstores—Thriftbooks, Park City Library’s Book Fairs and Dolly’s Bookstore to name a few. If we are unsuccessful there, I turn to Amazon looking first in the used section. I’ve provided links above to where you can find these titles online or in your own neighborhood bookstores.
