• Start Here
  • Blog
  • Books
  • Table
    • Together at the Table
    • Food and Such
      • Beverages
      • Bread
      • Breakfast
      • Main Dishes
      • Vegetables & Sides
      • Soups
      • Desserts
  • Writing
    • On Family
  • Happy Designs
  • Connect
    • For You
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

Happy Go Stuckey

Tethering Grace & Togetherness

Cozy Christmas Reads

November 28, 2017 by HappyGoStuckey 7 Comments

The entire month of December calls me to slow down. Even though we have to fight the busy-ness off with a large stick, I love the natural slowing that eventually comes. One of the ways I remind myself of the importance of a hushed schedule, the need to pull in just a bit with my people– is reading.

For several years, we’ve slowly added to our Christmas book stack a few at a time. I’m always searching the holiday sections at used book stores for fall and Christmas books.

Here’s a list of our favorite Christmas books. I hope they help you on your journey as you embrace hope and togetherness this season.

 

Our Favorite Sacred & Semi- Serious Christmas Books: 

Buck Denver asks, “Why Do We Call it Christmas?” This discusses the real person of St. Nicholas and what he has to do with Christmas as we know it. (There is also a DVD in the What’s in the Bible Series, by the same name: Here’s the link, but check your local Lifeway Store:)

’Twas the Night Before Christmas (fun little vintage golden book version)

Ella Bella Ballerina and the Nutcracker

Who is Coming to Our House?  (Simple and sweet for littles.)

God Gave Us Christmas

Christmas Cookies: Bite Sized Holiday Lessons By Amy Krouse Rosenthal (This is really fun picture book that deals with the anticipation and patience of the season.)

The Legend of the Candy Cane

The Legend of the Christmas Tree

The Mitten By Jan Brett

A Little House Christmas Treasury: A Collection of Festive Stories (We LOVE this one. I mean, Laura Ingalls Wilder!)

And… I just requested this at the Library because— ANNE SHIRLEY.
Christmas with Anne and Other Holiday Stories (It’s a collection of Christmas stories from the Anne books and it looks so fun. Thank you, local library for having it in stock.)

Home for Christmas by Jan Brett

Christmas in America (blends a little early American History in.)

 

Our Favorite Silly Christmas Books:

The Christmas Puppy  (Simple, cute story— all books with dogs are favorites here.)

A Charlie Brown Christmas

Charlie and the Christmas Kitty (the perfect combination of the Pioneer Woman and Charlie the ranch dog!)

Olivia Helps with Christmas

Peppa Pig & the Lost Christmas List

Llama Llama, Holiday Drama

If You Take a Mouse to the Movies

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (We’re adding this one this year for the first time!)

The links above are all referral links, (which means that at no extra cost to you, Amazon thanks me for pointing you in the direction of the books listed.) But by all means, search your used book stores for these treasures. If you have a 2nd & Charles store, that is where I found many of mine.

I’d be delighted if this list helps you curate your own Christmas book stash, and I’d love to hear what your own top picks are in the comments or by email.

I’d truly love to know– what are your can’t miss Christmas Books? Do you wrap them one by one or just place them in a basket near your usual reading spot? I’m a basket person but the wrapping always sounds fun. 

 

On Being Settled & Apple Crisp
What I Learned & Loved in the Fall.

Comments

  1. Jessica Strother says

    November 28, 2017 at 1:43 pm

    Love this!! Thank you! I don’t see us reading the ballerina ones but checking out “God gave us Christmas” now!

    Reply
    • HappyGoStuckey says

      November 29, 2017 at 11:14 am

      Thanks Jessi! Yes I suppose we have several “girly” books on our list. Ha! Happy Reading!

      Reply
  2. Leah Finn says

    November 28, 2017 at 2:13 pm

    Song of the Stars by Sally Lloyd-Jones is truly my favorite Christmas book. We listened to the Best Christmas Pageant Ever on audio last year when we traveled for Thanksgiving, and we all LOVED it! It is delightful. I just ordered a copy for us to have on hand. Another one that I have enjoyed is A Christmas Carol. It’s shorter than other Dickens’ works, which makes it easier to digest (I love Victorian British literature but do not enjoy Dickens. I know, I know).

    Reply
    • HappyGoStuckey says

      November 29, 2017 at 11:13 am

      Thanks for the suggestion Leah! I keep forgetting “Song of the Stars” but want to add it to our stack. And I LOVE A Christmas Carol and teach it to my 8th graders every year in November. And I won’t tell. We like “Dickens the dog” a lot more than Dickens the author.

      Reply
  3. Kristen says

    November 29, 2017 at 9:04 am

    Thank you for sharing! We also love “The Crippled Lamb” by Max Lacado

    Reply
    • HappyGoStuckey says

      November 29, 2017 at 11:13 am

      I’ve heard of that one too but don’t think we have it. Thanks Kristen!

      Reply
  4. Amanda says

    November 29, 2017 at 12:53 pm

    Great list..thanks! I just reserved a few at the library 🙂 We love the Best Christmas Pageant any time of the year! There is also a great Christmas book list at Read Aloud Revival. Thanks to such great lists, we have a great stack of Christmas books from the library on our coffee table and have been enjoying them immensely!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe and receive a Free copy of “Simmer: Six soup recipes and the Stories that Inspired Them.”

Your personal information is safe and will never be shared.

Hey There!

I'm Cynthia and I'm so glad you're here. I am an introvert with an extrovert's love of gathering people together. I love good books and capturing moments. Whether you visit me here or on my own front porch, I'll be the one holding the Iced Coffee for us both.

Instagram

happygostuckey

Truth: I am not the best cookie baker in our house Truth: I am not the best cookie baker in our house. It is hands down @friar_stuck — Today he added a pinch of fresh orange zest to Oatmeal Scotchies and they taste just like childhood.

My grandma used to make these and serve them to me on a pink plate with a small glass of sprite with ice. At 39, I now realize two things— 1. She would have adored my husband and 2. these cookies go best with coffee or tea.

What cookie makes you feel eight years old again?
There’s something unusually long about the winte There’s something unusually long about the winter months when we’re in a season of slow growth and imperceptible change.

The landscape outside your window TODAY can feel like it’s your landscape forever but it’s actually not.

If the view from where you stand looks rather bleak and not at all how you hoped, can I remind you to look up? 

These trees in my own backyard, captured this morning, last March, and last August, will continue changing in their own rhythmic way whether I’m watching them or not. There’s a comfort in that for me today— and perhaps for you.

Whatever looks slow and unmoving, with change almost too gradual to detect— is still very much in a pattern of forward transformation.

And these quiet days in the midst of our January-ness— we can be reminded that growth never really stops, especially in the hidden places.

#wonderfortheweary #feastingandforaging #bluehousebackyard
Not moving from this spot, except to boil the kett Not moving from this spot, except to boil the kettle for more tea.

This is the first complete weekend that we’ve been home since Thanksgiving. 😳 It sounds awful, especially for this homebody, but really what it means is, we’ve celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas with family, attended one beautiful family wedding (Hey, Shelby! 👋🏻❤️) one 90th Birthday party for our beloved Granny, and had a family trip. They were all such sparkly gifts. Ones I don’t take for granted and so very different from last year.

But I do love home— and am happy to spend the second half of the day right here with this book which I’m truly enjoying. 📚❤️
The inhabitants of the Dickens Village wanted me t The inhabitants of the Dickens Village wanted me to tell you three V. important things. 1. After years of having one pub and no church, they are *finally* getting a church tomorrow, thanks to FB marketplace. And all the people said, “Amen & Huzzah.” 2. We’re still keeping Christmas over here — Though we’re slowly bending towards back to normal. The tree still lives and we’re celebrating the tenth day of Christmas with a fire & coziness before we pull out the pencils tomorrow. And finally, 3. Everyday Affogato. You might need this tiny pick me-up in your life. One shot of hot espresso poured over a tiny serving of vanilla ice cream. Please and Thank you.✨ #merrymerrystuckeys
2021 was a year of change for nearly all of us. Mu 2021 was a year of change for nearly all of us. Much of which we are happily taking with us into 2022.🥂

Nine squares is not sufficient to reflect the ways we’ve grown and changed, but it is a glimpse of the graces of the year behind us.

Not pictured: waking up to find our children taller and suddenly at our eye level, new laugh lines on our faces, sweltering pool days, fireplace dinners, Marco Polo chats with friends, family weddings & visits, mountain air breathed, books read, new jobs begun, school days, approximately 52 pizza nights, new rhythms & schedules, house repairs, car issues, and God always before us, behind us and within us. Soli deo Gloria. #thebestisyettocome
On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave t On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… 🍦Four Honeymoon milkshakes from the Dreamette. We’re going out with a bang, at the spot where their Grandparents grew up eating their ice cream. It’s absolutely the GOAT.
🎄✨Merry Christmas from Team Stuckey!✨🎄 🎄✨Merry Christmas from Team Stuckey!✨🎄

2021 has been full of new things— but I’m grateful we have walked through them together and in God’s sovereign hand. 

Pro (🤣) -Tip: if your Christmas cards say Happy New Year, you have longer to mail them… 📮🥂
Okayyyy @smittenkitchen ‘s Gingerbread Bûche de Okayyyy @smittenkitchen ‘s Gingerbread Bûche de Noël was fun and delicious. 4 out of 4 Stuckeys agree we have a new Christmas dessert! 🎄❤️

Happy Christmas Eve, friends— especially all you midnight merry makers! Hope you find all the stocking stuffers you hid.🙈
Do these Mince Pies make me look One-Quarter Briti Do these Mince Pies make me look One-Quarter British?

Truth be told, my grandma always used the jarred mincemeat and I wasn’t a fan as a child. Only last year did Lance and my Mom collaborate in the kitchen to try out homemade mincemeat filling and let me just say, we are never quitting these! 😍

The filling we use is from @bonappetitmag and it’s really good. It’s a gorgeous blend of apples, dried fruits (cherries, apricots, sultanas, figs, currants) with apple cider, spices, and a few other things. No meat, though.

Happy Christmas from the Jolly Old Stuckeys! 🇬🇧🎄❤️
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Categories

Featured Posts

Autumn Apple Dutch Baby

Saturday Breakfast is an important rhythm in the #BlueHouse-- my husband is an excellent breakfast … [ Read More ]

On Waiting & Moving

(And a Recipe for Italian Tortellini Soup) Later this month, our family will celebrate the 10th … [ Read More ]

Five Good Things

Hi. How are you, really? If you're anything like me-- you have moments of complete gratefulness for … [ Read More ]

Winter Favorites

(and why it matters to pay attention to the little things.) "For you are the sunshine-maker in … [ Read More ]

Loving Lately in November

"...all creation's revealing his majesty. We're invited to join with all nature in manifold witness … [ Read More ]

Miss Something?

Please be kind and give proper credit if you share! © Cynthia M. Stuckey. For personal use only, not to be copied, distributed, altered or sold.

Privacy Policy

Full privacy policy may be found HERE.

Want each post to magically appear in your email box?

Your personal information is safe and will never be shared.

Cynthia@happygostuckey.com
xo Cynthia
  • Start Here
  • Blog
  • Books
  • Table
  • Writing
  • Happy Designs
  • Connect

© 2023 · Pretty Creative WordPress Theme by, Pretty Darn Cute Design