I'm also going to recommend just six books that I found to be different than the usual holiday fare that are new to our collection.
Brock Cole's "The Money We'll Save" is a hysterical story about a family who sends Pa to the grocery store to purchase just two eggs and a half pound of flour no more and no less as they were saving their money for Christmas. Pa gets persuaded by the chicken man to purchase a turkey poult (baby turkey) with the thought that it will make a lovely Christmas dinner. Pa brings it home and you can guess what happens next! Food disappears, turkey mess is everywhere, neighbors are complaining about the smell. Will the turkey make it until Christmas? Check it out and find out!
Tami Lehman-Wilzig has written an unusual Hanukkah story called, "Nathan Blows Out the Hanukkah Candles." Nathan's brother Jacob is autistic and is driving Nathan crazy by repeating "Hanukkah is coming! Hanukkah is coming!" Nathan understands that Jacob's brain is wired differently but it doesn't make it any easier to tolerate his behavior. The first day of Hanukkah arrives, the new neighbors join the festivities, the candles are lit, the blessings are said....and Jacob blows out the candle. Nathan is embarrassed in front of his new friend. How Nathan and his family handles the situation is really quite innovative and heart-warming.
"The Christmas Tree Ship" by Carol Crane is the story of two boys whose Grampa's holiday stories always include the story of Christmas Santa and the Christmas Tree ship that sailed from
Michigan's Upper Peninsula to Chicago every year. It tells of the story of the storm that drove the ship under the waves. Sad, yes, but it also tells how the captain's wife maintained that tradition in honor of her husband. Nice historical fiction based on fact.
Another unusual story, "The Christmas Coat: Memories of My Sioux Childhood" by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, relates the story of an Episcopal priest's daughter's experiences during winter on the reservation. The mud is sticky, it's freezing outside, and Virginia's coat is too short and too tight. The reservation relies on donations of clothing but the priest's family is always the last to choose. This year's donations include a grey rabbit fur coat that Virginia would love to have but unfortunately another girl wants that coat. This is a story about selflessness and sacrifice...and the magic of Christmas!
"The Carpenter's Gift: A Christmas Tale About the Rockerfeller Center Tree" by David Rubel is the story of a family down on their luck. They cut down spruce trees to sell as Christmas trees and set up their stand next to a construction site in New York City . The men there see that Henry and his father need help and proceed to unload the truck. All the trees are sold and the workmen receive a tree as a thank you gift. Tin cans and newspaper stars decorate the tree and Henry, knowing that there will not be much of a Christmas at home, stares longingly at it and tucks away a lone pinecone from the tree. Home they go and the next morning they are awakened by trucks full of lumber. The workmen from the construction site have arrived to fix their house. But that's not the end of the story...you'll have to read the book to find out the end! (Hint--what is that saying? Big trees from little acorns grow?)
"Jingle Bells: How the Holiday Classic Came to Be" by John Harris is the story of the composer of "Jingle Bells", James L. Pierpoint. A pastor of a integrated church in Savannah, Georgia, Pierpoint writes the song during a Thanksgiving heat wave. A fun story with some historical background included.
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