Top 10 Books to Read This X’Mas That Are Not “Christmas Carol”

The Christmas spirit is upon us and with the New Year approaching, many have already started their vacations or vacations. And what better way to spend some relaxing time this holiday season than to unwind with a hot cup of coffee and your favorite Christmas book.

Festive Christmas stories appeal to young and old alike, because of some of the universal themes they convey – love, perseverance, forgiveness, bravery, innocence, compassion and hope. And the great part is that while all of them are Christmas themed, there is a plethora of different types of Christmas books that you can enjoy this holiday season.

We’ve compiled a definitive list of 10 must-read Christmas books across genres and eras to help you soak up the holiday season.

1. Mr. Dickens and his song: While every Christmas list always tends to start with “A Christmas Carol,” this one is an ode to its writer Charles Dickens. Samantha Silva’s moving historical fiction tells the story of Dickens and her life as she wrote her famous Christmas fable. Set in romantic Victorian settings, the book delves into the. The “Dickensian” label with charm and skill, leaving the reading full of emotions and surprise.

2. Nutcracker: In case you were looking for a Christmas classic, here is one. The “Nutcracker” is one of the world’s most popular Christmas classics. Written in 1816 by ETA Hoffman, the book tells the story of a “nutcracker” doll, given to a girl as a Christmas present by her uncle, who comes to life at night and saves her from the onslaught of evil ” mouse king ”. . The story is inspired by a Prussian legend and is one of the best examples of early 19th century German romanticism,

3. The autobiography of Santa Claus: The pot-bellied, mustached old man in a red bodysuit has become a symbol of Christmas around the world. But do you know the real origin story of Santa Claus? This gem of a book, written by Jeff Guin, explores the facts and traditions of the legend of Santa Claus and takes readers through years of history and incredible facts about the character we know today as the name of “Santa Claus”. A must read for those looking for some interesting little “Santa” facts to start Christmas dinner conversations.

4. Celebrations, Rituals of Peace and Prayer: This one is for poetry lovers and fans of Maya Angelou (Yes, we are a category!). Celebrations is a book of poems by award-winning African-American author Angelou who celebrates the festive spirit with powerful poems on themes that are both timeless and yet current in today’s context. It contains celebratory poems, both private and public, and also includes some of his iconic poems such as “On the Pulse of the Morning” and “Amazing Peace”. The latter was actually recited by Angelou during the national Christmas lighting in 2005. The poem is about ending hatred for Christmas and is as relevant in India today as it is in the rest of the world.

5. The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries: No list of books is complete without a dose of the macabre. Compiled in a book by Edgar Award-winning publisher Otto Penzler, this 2013 book packs a big menacing punch with its collections of vintage detective and noir stories, all Christmas-themed. If you’re looking for a variety of “cookie mold” books published by dozens of writers every holiday season, then this book is for you. The book contains short stories from several famous authors with crime stories spanning a variety of settings and genres – dark comedy, police detection, thriller, mystery, pulp fiction and more!

6. A Christmas souvenir: This one is for all romantics. This classic American short story was written by Truman Capote in 1956 and continues to be one of the warmest stories of friendship, love and the Christmas spirit. The story contains glimpses of a bygone era in the 1920s and 1930s in Alabama – a place Capote regularly visited to meet Falk cousins. The book also gives us the iconic line, “It’s fruit cake season!”

7. Holidays on ice: Want to tickle that funny bone? Fancy some holiday laughs? This is the book for you. This 1997 classic from award-winning comedian Dave Sedaris is a collection of old and new essays that examine the fun side of party stories. The book, with its wry and often dark humor, will appeal to cynics like Sedaris himself, who tells hilarious tales of Christmases gone by in this collection of fiction and non-fiction stories and essays.

8. The Snow Child: Rarely do you see a contemporary Christmas-themed book winning critical acclaim and being nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. But that’s exactly what happened after the publication of Eowyn Ivey’s popular book “The Snow Child” in 2011. This historical fictional book tells the story of Jack and Mabel in Alaska in the 1920s and is loaded with themes of pain, courage and violence, all set against the backdrop of Christmas. Adapted from the Russian fairy tale “Snegurochka”, the Snow Child is a winter classic loved by young adults and older readers.

9. The letters of Santa Claus: Also known as “The Letters of Santa Claus”, this book is a collection of letters written by linguist and writer JRR Tolkien to his children from 1920 to 1943 and will delight everyone, especially parents whose children are. spooky. The letters are filled with stories and detailed graphic illustrations of fantastic creatures in distant lands, and a distinct “Santa”, who is not your stereotypical, ruddy Santa, but rather a more phased character. with the universe of Lord of the Rings and Tolkien’s Hobbit. The book is not only a delightful gift for Tolkien’s kids and geeks, but also for adults hoping to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life with a dash of magical folklore. And no one does it better than Tolkien.

10. Rock crystal: This one is for thriller bugs. A seemingly innocuous book about a low-key village in Europe, Rock Crystal soon takes its reader into a world of intrigue and suspense. Written almost two centuries ago (1845) by Adalbert Stifler, the book tells the story of a snowy night in the Alps – the night between New Years Eve and Christmas Day, when two young siblings got lost on the way to their village in the Alps. The book inspired many writers like Thomas Mann who has often hailed Stifler as the “most strangely captivating narrator in world literature”. Try it, you’ll thank us later.