Hello friends, and happy Advent! It's that time of the year when so many of us want to curl up with cocoa or tea and piles of beautiful Advent and Christmas books! This is my favorite book time of the year for so many reasons.
I often share about our favorite books on Instagram, and have long promised so many of you that I would make some good book lists for you all. Since I am asked most often about our favorite Advent and Christmas books, I decided this should be the topic of our first list!
If a book is marked with an asterisk *, it means that I personally think it's the best of the best, worth being in a collection for those who can only have a small "core" book collection, or for those who are just starting out and want to go right for the gold! This list contains books that range all the way from board books up to chapter books that make great read alouds or for older kids.
You can view most of these books on Amazon here. Many are out of print, and are worth tracking down used, but I do suggest doing that in the "off season" for the best prices. Also, check out this post to make sure you're getting the best deal on used and out of print books!
Tomie DePaola belongs at the top of the list, because he has has so many beautiful and good Advent and Christmas books:
*The Legend of the Three Wise Kings
The Night of Las Posadas
The Legend of the Poinsettia
Joy to the World: Tomie's Christmas Stories (This treasury contains the 3 books above)
*Merry Christmas Strega Nona
*The Lady of Guadalupe
The Legend of Old Befana
The Birds of Bethlehem
The Clown of God
My First Christmas
Strega Nona's Gift
The Friendly Beasts
The Night Before Christmas
An Early American Christmas
Tomie dePaola's Christmas Tree Book
Four Friends at Christmas
Hark! A Christmas Sampler - by Jane Yolen & Tomie DePaola
And here, in no particular order, are all our other favorite Christmas books!
* Unwrapping the Greatest Gift: A Family Celebration of Christmas - by Ann Voskamp
* The Greatest Gift: Unwrapping the Full Love Story of Christmas - by Ann Voskamp (This beautiful gem is for you, Mamas!)
* The Story of Christmas - by Pamela Dalton
The Story of Christmas - by Jane Ray
* The Twenty-Four Days Before Christmas: An Austin Family Story - by Madeline L'Engle
* Lucia: Saint of Light - Katherine Bolger Hyde
Lucia Morning in Sweden - by Ewa Rydaker
* Our Lady of Guadalupe (pop up book) - by Francisco Serrano
The Beautiful Lady: Our Lady of Guadalupe - by Pat Mora
* Christmas Tapestry - by Patricia Polacco
An Orange for Frankie - by Patricia Polacco
The Twelve Days of Christmas - by Laurel Long
B Is for Bethlehem - by Isabel Wilner
Who is Coming to Our House? - by Joseph Slate
* How the Grinch Stole Christmas! - Dr Seuss
* The Joy Of A Peanuts Christmas - by Schulz (Note, my kids read this on their own because it's written comic book style, but they've read it to pieces!)
* The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree: An Appalachian Story - by Gloria Houston
The Baker's Dozen: A Saint Nicholas Tale - by Aaron Shepard
* Christmas in the Trenches - by John McCutcheon
The True Gift - by Patricia MacLachlan
* A Tree for Peter - by Kate Seredy
The Little Fir Tree - by Margaret Wise Brown
On Christmas Eve - by Margaret Wise Brown
The Story of Holly and Ivy - by Rumer Godden
Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree - by Robert Barry
Christmas Day in the Morning - by Pearl Buck
* The Night Before Christmas - by Clement Moore
Jan Brett's Christmas Treasury - by Jan Brett
Gingerbread Baby - by Jan Brett
Gingerbread Friends - by Jan Brett
Gingerbread Christmas - by Jan Brett
The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey - by Susan Wojciechowski
* The Legend of the Candy Cane - by Lori Walburg
* The Nutcracker Story Orchestra - Adapted by Katy Flint
Nutcracker - by ETA Hoffman
The Nutcracker - by Susan Jeffers
The Huron Carol - Illustrated by Frances Tyrrell
Mary - by Brian Wildsmith
* The Three Gifts of Christmas - by Jennie Bishop
* The Gift from Saint Nicholas Paperback - by Dorothea Lachner
This is the Star - Joyce Dunbar
Mortimer's Christmas Manger - by Karma Wilson
* Apple Tree Christmas - Trinka Hakes Noble
Christmas at the Top of the World - by Tim Coffey
Christmas In The Country - by Cynthia Rylant
* There Was No Snow on Christmas Eve Hardcover - by Pamela Munoz Ryan
* The Donkey's Dream - by Barbara Helen Berger
* The Miracle of Saint Nicholas - by Gloria Whelan
*Letters From Father Christmas - JRR Tolkien (Note, this is my 12 year old's favorite Christmas book. I think it's best suited for kids old enough to not get confused by the fact that Tolkien posed as Father Christmas in letters to his children)
* A Little House Christmas Treasury: Festive Holiday Stories - by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Christmas in the Big Woods - Laura Ingalls Wilder
*A Merry Christmas: And Other Christmas Stories - by Louisa May Alcott
* Christmas with Anne - LM Montgomery
* A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
That's it! Except I know I'm probably forgetting several books (there are so many!), and I'm sure I'll discover more as we go. So I am updating this list as I think of, or discover, more beautiful Advent and Christmas books! I would love to hear what your favorite Christmas/Advent books are, and what Christmas book deals you find!
Love, Kristen