Books That Will Get You in the Christmas Spirit

Everything I Need to Know About Christmas I Learned from a Little Golden Book, by Diane Muldrow
Who doesn’t have a soft spot for Little Golden Books, those slim, shimmery-spined founts of life lessons and sweet storytelling? Written by Little Golden Books editorial director Diane Muldrow (a one-time child fan of the iconic works), this holiday-themed follow-up to bestseller Everything I Need to Know I Learned from a Little Golden Book is bursting with nostalgia-inducing art and kernels of wisdom inspired by kids’ classics ranging from The Poky Little Puppy to the indispensable works of Richard Scarry.

Christmas Ideals 2014, by Melinda Rumbaugh
With themed issues on topics including Family, Nostalgia, and Old-Fashioned, Christian magazine Ideals has been in circulation since 1944. This year’s Christmas issue—the 70th anniversary edition—is full of the publication’s trademark homespun wisdom in the form of stories, songs, and more.

Cocktails for the Holidays: Festive Drinks to Celebrate the Season, by the Editors of Imbibe Magazine, Lara Ferroni (Photographer)
Nip in the air and lights on the trees? Celebrate with a sparkling Winter Waltz. Carolers stopping by? Invite them in for a warming Highland Toddy. In-laws coming over and all you have in the fridge is a jar of mini-pickles and half a bottle of Gatorade? Thank your lucky Christmas star you’ve got a stocked cocktail bar. Santa’s Little Helper party punch for everyone! This beautifully photographed book is stuffed with recipes with names and delicious combinations you can’t resist, from the pomegranate-infused Yuletide Daisy to the Fairytale of New York, a riff on an old-fashioned that’ll keep you warmer than an ugly Christmas sweater.

The Christmas Caroling Songbook, by Hal Leonard Corporation
We know you’ve got the first line of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” down cold, but what about all the lines (and verses) that come after? This collection of sheet music and lyrics for 72 carols (and a flask of Highland Toddy) is all a caroler needs to fill his neighborhood with the festive sounds of both well-known classics like “Away in a Manger,” and lesser-known favorites-to-be like “Fum, Fum, Fum” (presumably not a song about hungry Christmas giants).

Inventing Scrooge: The Incredible True Story behind Charles Dickens’ Legendary “A Christmas Carol,” by Carlo DeVito
Charles Dickens started writing timeless classic A Christmas Carol in September 1843, and it was published in December (puts that Christmas letter you managed to finish in three sittings into perspective, doesn’t it?). A Christmas Carol was extraordinary not just for the speed of its creation but for its relationship to Dickens’ real life. Inventing Scrooge examines how Dickens’ early life inspired the book, and looks at the inspiration behind Ebenezer Scrooge.

Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas (Jane Austen Series #12), by Stephanie Barron
In Barron’s Jane Austen series, the Regency-era novelist turns her sharp wit and gimlet eye to solving mysteries—and like all good sleuths, murder and mayhem seem to find her wherever she goes. In this twelfth, holiday-themed installment, Jane is celebrating the holiday at a friend’s family home, flush with the success of her recently published Mansfield Park. But the festive mood is marred when a recently arrived lieutenant dies in an unfortunate accident…that clever Jane divines is no accident at all.

Mr. Miracle: A Christmas Novel, by Debbie Macomber
It’s lovely to imagine Christmas angels lying in wait when the snow starts to fall, ready to teach us lessons, show us the value of Christmas, and guide us into love. Twentysomething Addy is back in the hometown she fled as a rebellious teen, going to community college and avoiding her sexy next-door neighbor, Erich. But if angel-in-training Harry Mills, sent to earth to help Addy find her way, has anything to say about it, the two might soon be giving their mistletoe a workout.

Christmas Jars, by Jason Wright
After the death of her adoptive mother, bereaved journalist Hope Jensen is kicked when she’s down: her apartment is broken into, and her emergency cash stolen. Enter the “Christmas Jar,” a jar of money left for her by anonymous donors. When Hope begins investigating this generous act, she ends up learning just as much about herself as about the givers who saved her Christmas.

The Mistletoe Promise, by Richard Paul Evans
Elise is a holiday hater of three years’ standing, since her husband left her for her best friend and kicked off a bitter divorce. Nicholas is a single attorney who dreads attending company holiday parties solo. The two have nothing in common but a shared apartment building until Nicholas proposes a deal: for the eight weeks leading up to Christmas Eve, they’ll enter into a no-strings-attached “relationship,” for the purposes of making the holidays a little easier for each. Nicholas draws up the contract, Elise signs it, and the best-laid plans go deliciously awry as the two find it harder and harder to stick to their plan.

The Christmas Light, by Donna VanLiere
A group of struggling people in a small town connect over the mounting of a highly unusual Christmas nativity play. This quick read packs in loads of heart and wit in just over 200 pages, as a bereaved widow and child, unmoored single father, unexpectedly pregnant teenager, and others try to keep their footing and find their happiness during what’s meant to be the most wonderful time of the year.

An Island Christmas, by Nancy Thayer
Few occasions are riper for high drama than a wedding—except, perhaps, a wedding that takes place on Christmas Day. Bride-to-be Felicia has returned to her Nantucket home to marry her adrenaline junkie fiancé—but her mother, Jilly, has another match in mind. Add a second daughter and some adorably misbehaving grandchildren to the mix, and you’ve got a recipe for holiday disaster. Readers will cross their fingers that Jilly will learn “perfect” isn’t the most important thing on Christmas.

A Quilt for Christmas, by Sandra Dallas
A Civil War widow learns to make a life for herself after losing her husband, a Kansas volunteer soldier, in combat against the Confederate army. She builds a bond with her fellow quilters, all of whom have been affected by the war. When she’s called upon to help conceal an escaped slave, she has to ask herself how much she’s willing to risk.

A Merry Christmas: And Other Christmas Stories, by Louisa May Alcott
If Louisa May Alcott had written nothing but all-ages classic Little Women, she would still be remembered by readers with love. But she was the author of over a dozen novels (including two sequels to Little Women!), plus a number of of short stories and novellas even Alcott devotees might not know about. A Merry Christmas pulls together the beloved Christmas scene from Little Women, alongside six other heartwarming holiday tales.
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