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20 Living Books for Advent and Christmas

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Living books that are perfect for Advent and Christmas.

Charlotte Mason Advent Traditions

We are so incredibly excited for Advent this year! Not only are we introducing A Gentle Advent: Colonial Christmas, we have partnered with some blogging friends to bless TWO families with a $500 gift (via PayPal). Tis the season for giving 🙂

Preparing A Gentle Advent for you has warmed our hearts so much toward the coming season. We are delighted that so many of our dear friends and readers have decided to join us, and there is room at our virtual Advent celebration for your family, too!

These living literature books are a Charlotte Mason inspired reading list and are all books recommended to help your family experience a delight filled, character building, historically rich Advent and Christmas season. Many of these take more than a day to read or listen to together, so I only included 20 instead of 24. Some of them are harder to find, but well worth the effort and since they are available used, it is easier to justify buying more 😉

For our family, we select our Christmas books for the season and place them around the base of our tree which usually goes up the day after Thanksgiving. We have made this a tradition in our home that involves carols, hymns, baking, and homemade hot cocoa. We add a new book every Saint Nicholas Day. Because we follow the 4 gift rule, we wait till Christmas Eve to put presents under the tree.

Creating an atmosphere of love and learning only sweetens the beauty of the season. Where they were available, I included audiobook versions as well since the holidays can mean lots of busy hands and lots of travel. I can’t wait to hear which ones your family adds to your holiday reading this year!

Living Books for Advent and Christmas

A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens – Ebenezer Scrooge, a mean-spirited miser, is visited by a series of ghosts who help him discover the true meaning of Christmas.

 A Christmas Carol A Christmas Carol Audiobook

 

The Crippled Lamb – Max Lucado – Joshua is a young, crippled lamb who can’t run and play with the others. Though Joshua feels sad, God shows him that HE has a purpose for everyone’s life.

 The Crippled Lamb The Crippled Lamb [Board book]

 

The Legend of Saint Nicholas by Grun – This picture book tells the story of the life and miracles of Saint Nicholas. He was well known for his acts of kindness and generosity, and is celebrated with a feast on December 6.

 The Legend of Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas figurine

 

Jotham’s Journey – This exciting story follows Jotham as he journeys across Israel to find his family. He encounters thieves and robbers as well as wise men and shepherds before ultimately finding his way to the Savior who was born in Bethlehem.

 Jotham’s Journey

 

Christmas in the Big House, Christmas in the Quarters – A Coretta Scott King Award winning holiday book that describes Christmas on a plantation in the pre-Civil War era. This book describes Christmas from the viewpoints of both the big house family and those living in the slave quarters.

 Christmas In The Big House, Christmas In The Quarters (Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner)

 

One Wintry Night – Ruth Bell Graham – This unique version of the Christmas story takes readers on a journey from Creation to Resurrection as they listen to the story unfold with a young mountain boy who is hearing it for the first time.

 One Wintry Night

 

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey – Jonathan Toomey is the best woodcarver in the village, and he is lonely. No one knows of the sadness he has hidden away. One day, a stranger approaches him and what happens next is a Christmas miracle.

 The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey

Tailor of Gloucester – Poor tailor mouse is freezing in his workshop during a hard winter. He has a very important job to complete, but he is running out of thread – and out of time. Luckily, his friends pitch in to help save the day.

 The Tailor of Gloucester The Tailor of Gloucester Audiobook

 

Uncle Vova’s Tree – Patricia Polacco – Take a look at the Russian Orthodox holiday of Epiphany. Explore the traditions, costumes, and decorations that are associated with this special day.

 Uncle Vova’s Tree

 

The Tale of Three Trees – Hunt – Three trees growing on a mountain dream of what they want to become when they’re grown. Their wishes come true in the most unexpected of ways.

 The Tale of Three Trees

 

The Story of the Other Wise Man – Henry van Dyke – During the time of Jesus’s birth, a fourth wise man sells all he owns to buy a gift he wants to present to Jesus. Though he doesn’t get to journey with the rest of the wise men, he sets out on a quest that has an unexpected ending.

 The Story of the Other Wise Man

 

The Gift of the Magi – O. Henry – Della and Jim long to give each other Christmas gifts, but they can’t afford it. Each makes a sacrifice to get the other what they really want. While the gifts are useless, the couple’s love grows stronger through these acts of love.

 The Gift of the Magi The Gift of the Magi Audibook

 

Silent Night: The Story of the World War 1 Christmas Truce by Weintraub (for older children) – Early on in World War I, troops on both sides laid down their weapons in order to celebrate Christmas together.

 Silent Night: The Story of the World War I Christmas Truce Silent Night: The Remarkable 1914 Christmas Truce Audiobook

The Glorious Impossible by L’Engle – The birth of Jesus was a glorious impossible. Celebrate the miracle of God’s love in this beautifully illustrated picture book.

 The Glorious Impossible

 

Letters from Father Christmas by Tolkein – Every December, Tolkein’s children would receive a letter from Father Christmas. They told tales of life at the North Pole. Children are sure to delight in these stories involving reindeer on the loose, clumsy polar bears, goblins and more.

 Letters From Father Christmas Letters From Father Christmas Audiobook

 

Christmas in the Country – Cynthia Rylant – This delightful story describes a snowy Christmas in the country. This book is a reminder that sometimes simpler is better when it comes to enjoying the holidays.

 Christmas in the Country

 

The Legend of the Poinsettia – Tomie dePaola – This Mexican legend tells how the poinsettia came to be a symbol of Christmas. It’s also a gentle reminder that it truly is the thought that counts when it comes to giving gifts.

 The Legend of the Poinsettia

 

A Song for Young King Wenceslas – Cecil Maiden – In 10th-century Bohemia, 14 year old Wenceslas has to fight for his throne against the pagan forces led by his mother and brother. This book is a bit harder to find, but well worth the effort!

 A Song for Young King Wenceslas

 

The Candle in the Window – Grace Johnson – It’s Christmas Eve, and Gunther misses his wife and son. When a stranger appears and encourages him to place a candle in his window. She says this candle will light the way for a visit from the Christ Child.

 The Candle in the Window

 

I Saw Three Ships – Elizabeth Gouge – Polly is sure that something special is going to happen this Christmas so she leaves her bedroom window open on Christmas Eve. When she wakes up the next morning, she discovers that more than one miracle has taken place.

 I Saw Three Ships

Enter to win!

 

We have teamed up with some of our favorite blogging friends for the 6th annual Christmas Blessings Giveaway with the hopes of making this a Christmas to remember for TWO families as we close out this decade. 

While we wish we could bless many more families, we were able to come up with a big prize for TWO families – $500 each (delivered via Paypal) – that we pray will make a big difference in their lives this Christmas season – whether it’s to fulfill their kids’ Christmas wishes, pay off some bills, or to help build some savings, our prayer is that it helps to lessen any financial burden and/or fills a specific need.

There are lots of entry options in the Rafflecopter form below – the more you enter, the better your chance of winning!  It can seem tedious and time consuming to go through all the entries, but isn’t a chance at $500 worth it? We think so! 

Plus, we all donated toward the cash prizes, so this giveaway wouldn’t be possible without each of our friends who contributed.  We hope you’ll take the time to check out each one and maybe even find new homeschool inspiration in the process!

The giveaway will run from Monday, November 18th through Wednesday, November 27th (ends at 11:59pm EST). Winner will be notified by email shortly after the giveaway ends and will have 48 hours to respond to claim the prize or another winner will be drawn.

You must have a Paypal account to win.  By entering this giveaway, you agree to be added to the email lists of the participating bloggers. Please be sure to read the Rafflecopter terms and conditions upon entering.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Definitely could use the money…it has been a tough year..for our family..thanks for all you do

    Reply

  2. I love this list of Christmas books – I’m hoping my library will have them in stock. 🙂

    Reply

  6. $500 would more than cover Christmas for our 4 kids. We’re hoping to sell a vehicle for now. Otherwise, praying for a Christmas miracle.

    Reply

  13. What a great list of Christmas books! We have a handful of these, and I will be ordering more from our library soon. I have been looking for some simple ways to celebrate and talk about the real reason for Christmas with our son, and I am sure he will love having these in his morning basket.

    Reply

  14. What an awesome giveaway— thanks for the chance to win! I’d love to sneak away for a restful retreat with my fam if we were to win. <3

    Reply

  17. I would love to win these great Advent books for our homeschool. Thank you for this give away.

    Reply

  18. This would be such a blessing in so many ways! It would help with bills, Christmas, and homeschooling books!

    Reply

  19. This is a great list! Thank you for sharing! I am new to celebrating advent, so I was excited to find your site!

    Reply

    • Hi Kim! We’ve been learning more and celebrating more for about 9 years now and every Advent is so full of joy. Welcome to the celebration! Have a great week and thanks for stopping by 🙂

      Reply

  20. thank you for this book list! Many are well loved from my childhood but also so many new ones I can’t wait to find and share with my own kids! Quality book recommendations are truly a treasure.

    Reply

  21. This is a great list–We have done many of these, but a few new ideas to add to the list are always welcome. I have a list for moms on my site. I love Van Dyke–have you read “Keeping Christmas” by him?

    Reply

  22. These are some great books! We love The Christmas Miracle… Thanks so much for sharing with us at the Happy Holidays Link Party. Pinned.

    Reply

  25. The Tailor of Gloucestor immediately became one of my favorites when I came across it in a collection of Beatrix Potter stories given to us. I bring it out every Christmas season now. St. Nicholas brings us new books each December 6 too!

    Reply

  28. This list is fantastic! Some I have read but many I haven’t. I am definitely looking forward to “Letters From Father Christmas” by Tolkien. Thank you also for the audiobook links too. We will be listening around our Woodstove this winter!

    Reply

  29. This is a fantastic list of Christmas books. I know it probably was obvious story book, but I had forgotten about the Christmas Carol. I am going to have to add that to our read aloud time for Christmas!

    Reply

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