Reading seasonal stories has become my December tradition. Never quite as many as during the Great Christmas Book Binge of 2014, when I read 15 Christmas-themed books, but enough that I’ve amassed quite a reading list. Most are Christmas-themed, because it's the holiday I celebrate. But I also read and loved a Hanukkah classic by Isaac Bashevis Singer and the short story collection "My True Love Gave to Me," which features stories around a range of winter holidays.
As a third child, I’m a good sharer, thus I give you my ever-growing list of 39 (for now) stories to celebrate the season (except the one by Maugham, which is profoundly depressing and supremely unsettling). The list includes classics, a romantic comedy, short stories, murder mysteries, children’s books, a poem, and nonfiction.
Which have you read? Any favorites not on the list? Let me know in the comments!
Classics
“At Christmas Time” by Anton Chekhov
“Miracle on 34th Street” by Valentine Davies
“A Child’s Christmas in Wales” by Dylan Thomas
“Christmas at Thompson Hall and Other Christmas Stories” by Anthony Trollope
“The Night Before Christmas” by Nikolai Gogo
“A Merry Christmas and Other Christmas Stories” by Louisa May Alcott
“A Christmas Memory” by Truman Capote
“The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry
“The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” by E. T. A. Hoffman
“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens
“Christmas Holiday” by W. Somerset Maugham
Adult fiction
"Festive Spirits: Three Christmas Stories" by Kate Atkinson
“Christmas at the Cupcake Cafe” by Jenny Colgan
"One Day in December" by Josie Silver
"A Wedding in December" by Sarah Morgan
"The Christmas Sisters" by Sarah Morgan
"Seven Days of Us" by Francesca Hornak
"Mr Dickens and His Carol" by Samantha Silva
Murder mysteries
“A Highland Christmas” by M. C. Beaton
“Mistletoe Murder” by Leslie Meier
“Hercule Poirot’s Christmas” by Agatha Christie
“The Nightingale Before Christmas” by Donna Andrews
"Death of a Neighborhood Scrooge" by Laura Levine
Children's literature (and one poem)
“Letters from Father Christmas" by J. R. R. Tolkien
“The Power of Light: Eight Stories for Hanukkah” by Isaac Bashevis Singer
“The Dolls' Christmas" by Tasha Tudor
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” by Charles M. Shultz
“A Visit from St. Nicholas” by Clement C. Moore
"Bah! Humbug!" by Michael Rosen
"A Boy Called Christmas" by Matt Haig
"The Girl Who Saved Christmas" by Matt Haig
Young adult literature
"My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories," edited by Stephanie Perkins
"10 Blind Dates" by Ashley Elston
"The Afterlife of Holly Chase" by Cynthia Hand
Nonfiction
“Inventing Scrooge: The Incredible True Story Behind Charles Dickens’ Legendary ‘A Christmas Carol’” by Carlo DeVito
“Holidays on Ice” by David Sedaris (includes a mix of fiction and nonfiction)
“The 13th Gift: A True Story of a Christmas Miracle” by Joanne Huist Smith
"Christmas on Jane Street" by Billy Romp and Wanda Urbanksa