Favorite Christmas Books from Squirt

My first Christmas with the big guys and I get to do the Christmas post! Woohoo!

I love love LOVE Christmas, and I especially love hearing good Christmas stories. This first one is from an author/illustrator who has become practically synonymous with winter:



The trolls in this story (and in Trouble with Trolls) are just too darn cute. They remind me of me when I was about two, grabbing what I wanted and screaming "Want Christmas!" Read this one for your favorite toddler, then maybe follow up with buying something for Toys for Tots or a similar charity.



Another sweet story, for slightly older children, about how thinking of someone else can make you feel - well, eleven-foot-four!



Definitely not your typical Dav Pilkey, and a perfect example of a book the general public loves, despite bad reviews from the major names. Guardian angels come at Christmas to bring hope and comfort to the unloved and forgotten - such as the gargoyles. Have a tissue handy if you are going to read it out loud.



Have a whole box of tissues for this one! Okay, by the end you know what's going to happen, but that doesn't detract from it a bit. In this book suitable for Christmas or Hanukkah, Polacco also addresses (subtly) God's plans not being our plans, and what wonderful things can happen when we just do our best with what we have, even if we don't see the big picture until the end.



What better way to take a break from the sob-fest than with Michael Reiss and David Catrow? This is the perfect read-aloud for your little ones at home, for a classroom, or for field trips. Noelle is SO tired of Christmas every day, and can't wait until that one day of the year when she gets to go to school and take down the tree! Kids and adults alike will get a giggle out of the story, and have fun thinking of other problems there might be with Christmas every day (nightmare time - most libraries are closed for Christmas!!!)



Sappy and predictable, but who cares? A wonderfully written story with real characters and a satisfying ending.



Like many kids and turtles, I always loved hearing my mommy tell about the night I hatched. Can you imagine how that story would sound if it was accompanied by angels appearing and shepherds at the door? Treat your family to this very special birthday story told by a mother to her very special son.



Dave Barry...writing a children's book...about Christmas? You know you have to check it out! I strongly advise reading it out loud to your family, because it will be too hard to explain why you are laughing so hard without starting at the beginning.



In this last one, the author relates stories from his own childhood and his father's, all centered around Christmas. It makes me think a bit of Jon Scieszka's biography - same time period, same type of rapscalions (I love that word). My favorite tale is what happens to the little brother who opens everything before Christmas and thinks nobody knows...another good one to read together, a chapter a night.