Gather your family and celebrate the season with stories. Here are suggestions for new books to make your holidays bright.
The Dinosaur Night Before Christmas, Anne Mueck (Chronicle Books, $18.99, ages 3-6) A young boy peers into the windows of the museum next door and joins dinosaurs singing, dancing, eating gingerbread and kissing under mistletoe at their yearly ball. Accompanying CD is read by Al Roker and features re-written classics like “Hark! The Pterodactyls Sing”.
‘Twas the Day Before Christmas: The Story of Clement Clarke Moore’s Beloved Poem, Brenda Seabrooke (Dutton, $16.99, ages 5-8) This non-fiction traces the creation of the famous Christmas poem, the times and world of Clement Moore, and his process of composing a poem to delight his six children.
The Gift of the Magi, O. Henry, illustrated by PJ Lynch (Candlewick, $15.99, ages 10 to adult) The classic is masterfully illustrated with a strong sense of turn of the century New York, the cold gray-blues of winter, and the romance of the story.
Christmas Tapestry by Patricia Polacco (Puffin, $6.99, ages 6-10) Polacco merges cultures and generations in the story of young Jonathan Weeks who encounters a string of holiday miracles. It begins as he and his minister father cover a leak-stained wall in their new church with a second-hand tapestry. The tapestry is recognized by a woman who made it for her wedding chuppah before her life was overturned by the Nazis. The plumber called to fix the leak turns out to be her groom, and the couple is happily reunited.
The First Night by B.G. Hennessy, paintings by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher (Viking, $16.99, ages 3-5) The First Christmas story is simply told with emphasis on a small babe’s miracle of seeing the world for the first time, surrounded by the tenderness of his new parents .
The Mysterious Guests: A Sukkot Story, Eric Kimmel (Holiday House, $16.95, ages 5-8) Two brothers, Eben and Ezra celebrate Sukkot. Eben, elder and wealthier is stingy and pretentions while poorer Ezra graciously welcomes all into his humble sukkah. When ancient forefathers visit these two brothers, the proper results are harvested.
Night of the Moon: A Muslim Holiday Story, Hena Kahn ( Chronicle, $16.99) Yasmeen’s mother explains how moons dictate months and a tiny sliver in the sky heralds the month of Ramaden. With Yasmeen, we follow the moon through its crescent phase as she explains traditions of fasting and parties through to Eid.
The White Nights of Ramadan, Maha Addasi, (Boyds Mills, $16.95, ages 5-9) The author does a marvelous job of weaving together the customs of Ramadan, its principles and history, and a family of three excited children.
Celebrate Kwanzaa, Carolyn Otto (National Geographic, $15.95, ages 6-9) Brilliant photographs from Africa and US show the cultural connections between the two countries as it explains the symbols, traditions and the seven principles of Kwanzaa.
Amazing Peace by Maya Angelou (Random, $17.99, 10-adults) The poem Angelou wrote for a White House celebration becomes a picture books with textural illustrations that accent her message of all peoples joining together to celebrate hope. The book comes with a CD read by the author.
Santa Duck, David Milgrim (Putnam, $16.99, ages 4-6) Nicholas Duck seeks Santa to complain about how he’s sick of yearly gifts of socks and underwear. Along the way he finds a Santa suit and gathers a long list of desires from every animal he’s encountered. Suddenly he realizes that helping Santa is the best gift imaginable.
Millie in the Snow, Alexander Steffensmeier (Walker, $16.99; ages 4-7) Mail-loving cow Millie is back and delivering mail with a postal carrier. Sent home with packages, she gets lost, facing dark and snow, before she lands happily home spilling out gifts for everyone.
I See Santa Everywhere by Glenn McCoy (Hyperion, $12.99, ages 7-10) “I’m being stalked by Santa- it’s a feeling I can’t shake. He sees me when I’m sleeping. He knows when I’m awake.” So begins a dark humorous look at the holiday by a paranoid child who sees Santas on every street corner. Illustrations as hilarious as the ideas and surely to give you a laugh and a quick break from the season’s stress.
Traveling this holiday? Hear Amy Grant read two classics Treasury of Christmas Stories: The Gingham Dog and the Calico Cat/ The Lion and the Lamb (Rabbit Ears, $11.95, 1 CD, 44 minutes) with music by Chet Atkins and Lyle Mays.
Just because kids shouldn’t have all the fun... here are two holiday audio recommendations for adults: David Sedaris, Holidays on Ice, read by the author (Hatchette Audio, $26.98, 4 CDs, 4 hours) has all his classics and six new tales including the story of a barnyard Secret Santa in “The Cow and the Turkey”. Bailey White’s Nothing With Strings: NPR’s Beloved Holiday Stories (Tantor, $19.99) finds the Georgia author reading stories that have stirred radio listeners for years with her quirky visions.