Top Ten Books With A Christmas Theme

Ahhhh, Christmas. It's a time to relax with family and friends, to spread love and cheer, to drink and eat a little too much to forget how cold it is outside. It's also a great time to bury yourself in a good book and capture some of that Christmas spirit. These are the best books about Christmas, from picture books to read with the little ones, through cook books and ideas for decorations, to novels to read by a log fire with a glass of mulled wine. Why not tell us about your favourite books with a Christmas theme?

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Review of How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr Seuss For Sharing Part of the "yellow back" Seuss series, designed for fluent readers, but also eminently suitable for reading aloud to younger children, Grinch has all the Seuss signature features: illustrations for which the word quirky must have been invented and the wonderful, energetic, confident, anarchic rhyme. Highly recommended by The Bookbag. Full Review

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Review of The Night Before Christmas by Rachel Isadora and Clement Clarke Moore For Sharing Clement Clarke Moore's famous Christmas poem is retold in an African setting, both keeping the warm familiarity and adding a fresh layer of interest to proceedings. Recommended. If you want an even more traditional picture book, The First Christmas by Jan Pienkowski is a beautiful look at the nativity story. Full Review

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Review of War Game by Michael Foreman Confident Readers War Game straddles the gap between fiction and non-fiction and the gap between a text book and reading for pleasure. The famous spontaneous Christmas Day truce and subsequent Anglo-German football match forms the largest part of the narrative. It's a difficult subject sensitively told, has a well-chosen vocabulary, beautiful illustrations and accurate historical detail. Full Review

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Review of The Winter Sleepwalker by Joan Aiken Confident Readers The Winter Sleepwalker contains eight fairy tales with a modern twist. Wonderful for reading aloud to children slightly too old for picture books and for new readers to attempt alone, they are the perfect mix of funny, scary and downright odd. Recommended by Bookbag to fill that difficult gap between picture books and independent reading. Full Review

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Review of Little House In The Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder Confident Readers Little House In The Big Woods is the first in the famous series of pioneer books written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. They are deservedly famous. There's history, there's a strong moral code and there's some fabulously sensuous descriptive writing about Christmas. Full Review

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Review of Delia Smith's Christmas by Delia Smith Cookery A valuable guide to catering for the family and wider gatherings over the Christmas period. Expect fool-proof recipes but not first principles. It's a book you won't want to be without though. Full Review

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Review of Making Christmas Tree Decorations by Judy Balchin Crafts There's plenty for a crafter to feast on in this book. The only flaw is I wish there were more pages. Sure to become a firm favourite in your Christmas crafting library. In a similar vein, Making Christmas Table Decorations by Polly Pinder and Christmas Designs by Elaine Hill are also heartily recommended. Full Review

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Review of An Affair Before Christmas by Eloisa James Women's Fiction A cheeky and evocative romp through the lives of the eighteenth century A-listers. Good characters and authentic settings make for a good read. Full Review

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Review of The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore Fantasy Archangel Raziel is back dirtside with a mission to perform a Christmas miracle...combine the stupidest Angel with the none-too-bright residents of Pine Cove and chaos and terror await. Moore at his silliest - a sheer joy to read. Full Review

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Review of Blood From a Stone by Donna Leon Crime The 14th novel in the Commissario Brunetti series looks at illegal immigration and its effect on Venice, beginning in the Christmas Market in Campo Santo Stefano. Full Review

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