Don’t Forget These Favorite Children Winter Reads (and they make good gifts too!)
Whenever the Christmas season rolls around, I think I’m still a big kid. I can’t help myself! This is the time of year when I get to remember special moments with my family growing up, and relive them and expand on them with my own family. In that vein, it wouldn’t be Christmas without classic Christmas stories. Sure, people may make fun of me for picking Elf and Home Alone as my favorite Christmas movies (supposedly, classy people pick It’s a Wonderful Life). However, when it comes to children and teen books, I love stories that make me smile…and make me cry. Here’s a list to get you started.
Classic Christmas for the kids. On my latest Black Friday “Get your signed copy” run at Barnes and Noble, I discovered that Polar Express was available signed by Chris Van Allsburg. My kids love the magical story, but it is in tight competition with Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Don’t miss either, because both of these have stood the test of time!
Taste of the fantastic. This is a season of imagination, and nothing is more imaginative than a fantasy world covered in snow. For a littler shiver of winter, read the children’s classics The Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis or The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman.
For heavier snow…This is a season to remember our blessings. Nothing brings that home better than listening to tales that remind us what we have to be thankful for…and what joy and peace really mean. Two artfully written tales from World War II with Christmas seasons in them (and a wintery feel) are the award-winning The Book Thief by Markus Zusak and Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys.
For the Christmas romantic. Brand new to the market, What Light by Jay Asher (Thirteen Reasons Why) is getting great reviews for being a romantic Christmas teen read. Also, for a teen read with a beautifully written Christmas season, those who can stand a little more solid fare might try Rainbow Rowell’s Eleanor & Park.
Have a happy holidays, and merry reading!
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