Synopses & Reviews
For readers who are tired of Christmas commercialism, or who feel that Santa Claus and reindeer don't tell the whole story, these classic gems provide a winning alternative. Selected for their insightfulness, spiritual value, and literary quality (nothing moralistic here) they project the spirit of the season in a fresh, compelling manner that will resonate with readers of all ages - from children too young to read to themselves, to parents and grandparents who enjoy reading stories aloud.
Home for Christmas includes time-tested favorites by some of the world's most beloved children's authors - Pearl Buck, Selma Lagerlöf, Henry van Dyke, Madeleine L'Engle, Elizabeth Goudge, Rebecca Caudill, and Ruth Sawyer - as well as little-known European stories appearing in English for the first time.
Review
This is undoubtedly the most literary collection of Christmas stories to be published this season. The editors at Plough have taken a conservative approach, eschewing sentimental claptrap in favor of classic, elegant writing. There are some standard-bearers here, including Henry van Dyke's enduring yarn The Other Wise Man and Pearl S. Buck's gentle and touching story Christmas Day in the Morning. Some contributions are deeply theological (Madeleine L'Engle's Transfiguration) while others offer the dark, discerning cadences of a timeless fable (Selma Lagerlof's The Christmas Rose). The collection has an international flavor, with stories set in Cuba, Germany, Siberia, Palestine, Denmark and Spain, as well as in Vermont and New York City. Readers who crave literary excellence as well as a heartwarming Christmas message will relish this carefully selected and intelligent anthology. < b=""> Publishers Weekly <>
Review
If you're giving one book for Christmas, make it this one. < b=""> Jim Trelease, <> author, < i=""> The Read-Aloud Handbook <>
Review
If you're giving one book for Christmas, make it this one. < b=""> Jim Trelease, <> author, < i=""> The Read-Aloud Handbook <>
Synopsis
If you're giving one book for Christmas, make it this one. --Jim Trelease, author, The Read-Aloud Handbook
They are some of the warmest childhood memories, those unhurried evenings around the fireplace, Christmas tree, or dinner table, when there was time for a story. Now, with this collection, you can keep the story-telling tradition alive in your family, and pass it on to your children or grandchildren.
Home for Christmas includes twenty time-honored tales. Several are by world-famous authors; others are little-known treasures translated from other languages. Selected for their literary quality and spiritual integrity, they will resonate with readers of all ages, year after year.
With original woodcuts by David Klein
Table of Contents
Brother Robber - Helene Christaller Three Young Kings - George Sumner Albee Transfiguration - Madeleine L'Engle The Cribmaker's Trip to Heaven - Reimmichl The Guest - Nikolai S. Lesskov Christmas Day in the Morning - Pearl S. Buck The Other Wise Man - Henry van Dyke The Miraculous Staircase - Arthur Gordon No Room in the Inn - Katherine Paterson The Chess Player - Ger Koopman The Christmas Lie - Dorothy Thomas The Riders of St. Nicholas - Jack Schaefer Grandfather's Stories - Ernst Wiechert The Vexation of Barney Hatch - B. J. Chute The Empty Cup - Opal Menius The Well of the Star - Elizabeth Goudge A Certain Small Shepherd - Rebecca Caudill The Carpenter's Christmas - Peter K. Rosegger What the Kings Brought - Ruth Sawyer The Christmas Rose - Selma Lagerlöf