The New Year...

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An excerpt:

The New Year, like an Infant Heir to the whole world, was waited for, with welcomes, presents, and rejoicings.

~ From The Chimes:

 A Goblin Story of Some Bells 

That Rang an Old Year Out

 and a New Year In, 

written by Charles Dickens

Wishing you all a safe and happy New Year's Eve! Goodbye to 2015 and hello to 2016! :)

Dimmest and Brightest Month Am I

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Dimmest and brightest month am I;
  My short days end, my lengthening days
    begin;
What matters more or less sun in the sky,
  When all is sun within?

~ Christina Rossetti

It's the winter solstice, with the shortest day and the longest night in the year. Around here the days have been gray and gloomy and dim lately, but inside our house, everything is twinkly and bright for Christmas -- it fills my heart with joy! 

As Rossetti says in this poem, now the days (the hours of sunlight) will start getting longer again. The important thing, however, is how you feel inside. Hope the sun inside you is shining brightly this week!

The first gift of Christmas...

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An excerpt:

     I knew that I could have any gift I could imagine. But the thing I wanted most for Christmas was not inside Santa's giant bag. What I wanted more than anything was one silver bell from Santa's sleigh. When I asked, Santa smiled. Then he gave me a hug and told an elf to cut a bell from a reindeer's harness. The elf tossed it up to Santa. He stood, holding the bell high above him, and called out, "The first gift of Christmas!"

~ from The Polar Express,

written by Chris Van Allsburg

The Polar Express is one of my favorite Christmas books. (I like the movie, too, but not as much as the book.) I love this scene and the meaning of the silver bell from Santa's sleigh. What would you ask Santa for?

Pine Tree Song

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Pine Tree Song

Little pines upon the hill,
Sleeping in the moonlight still,
Are you dreaming now of me
Who bloomed into a Christmas tree?
Baby moons of gold and red
Cuddle close beside my head;
In my tangled leaves a string
Of fairy stars are glimmering;
While my arms, for girls and boys,
Blossom with a hundred toys.
O little pines, it’s fun to live
To be a Christmas tree — and give.

~ Marjorie Barrows

I like how Barrows writes this rhyming poem from the perspective of a Christmas tree, and the image of fairy stars glimmering.  Which words or lines do you like best?

All Aboard for Christmas Tales!

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I love Christmas stories -- all kinds -- and have a large collection of them. I've shared most of my collection in previous posts. (See the links at the bottom of this post.) This year I went looking for Christmas books at our local library. Here are a few of the tales that I really enjoyed and wanted to share with you:

Picture books:

It's Christmas,

written and illustrated by Tina Burke, 2006

It's that time of year again. Burke describes (and illustrates) some of the joys of the holiday season in this sweet little book.

***

A Star So Bright:

A Christmas Tale,

written by M. Christina Butler

and illustrated by Caroline Pedler, 2007

On each page of this book, different animals see a bright star in the sky. The star (shown through a cut-out in the paper) grows larger with every page turn, and we, the readers, get closer to the manger highlighted by the star. Butler's rhyming text is enhanced by Pedlar's charming illustrations.

***

Christmas Wombat,

written by Jackie French

and illustrated by Bruce Whatley, 2011

A very silly carrot-loving wombat hitches a ride on Santa's sleigh and discovers that there are many, many carrots in the world. This story kept me laughing out loud with each turn of a page. When I finished reading it, I immediately handed it off to my boys (almost 17 and 10), who were equally amused! I just might need to buy this one to add to my collection. :)

***

Christmas is Coming,

written by Anne Bowen

and illustrated by Tomek Bogacki, 2007

Throughout the holiday season, Anna tells her baby brother about the various signs that Christmas is coming -- the first snow, the lights, the tree, and more.  On Christmas Day she is very excited by the gifts that Santa has brought, but looking at her baby brother she suddenly realizes that he is the very best Christmas present of all.

***

One Snowy Night, 

written by M. Christina Butler

and illustrated by Tina Macnaughton, 2004

Father Christmas gives Little Hedgehog a red wooly hat to keep him warm. The hat ends up warming the hearts of all of Little Hedgehog's friends -- and turns out to be the perfect gift. This cute "Touch-and-Feel Book" allows readers to feel the soft red hat.

***

Snowed Under

and Other Christmas Confusions,

written and illustrated by Serge Bloch, 2011

This book is filled with idioms, Christmas-related and otherwise, along with humorous illustrations that interpret those idioms literally. Bloch uses phrases like "deck the halls", "tied up in knots", and "red-handed" to tell his tale of a family getting ready for Christmas.

***

The Little Fir Tree,

written by Margaret Wise Brown

and illustrated by Jim Lamarche, 1954 (text),
2005 (illustrations)

Although this has the same title as Hans Christian Andersen's famous tale, Brown's The Little Fir Tree is a completely different story -- one that is heartwarming, not depressing like Andersen's. A little fir tree grows alone in a field, wishing he could be part of the forest... or at least part of something. One winter day a man finds the tree. He digs the tree up and brings him to share with a special boy and to be part of a great Celebration.

***

Lighthouse Christmas,

written by Toni Buzzeo

and illustrated by Nancy Carpenter, 2011

Frances, Peter, and Papa recently moved to a lighthouse island off the coast of Maine and Frances is feeling lonely. Now a big storm is keeping even the supply boats away. Will it keep Santa away as well?

This engaging story is inspired by a true Christmas tradition, the Flying Santa Service.

***

December,

written by Eve Bunting

and illustrated by David Diaz, 1997

Simon and his mother are celebrating Christmas Eve in their cardboard house. They have a tiny tree and not much else, but when they meet an elderly woman with even less, they invite her in and offer to share what they have.

I love this book's vibrant illustrations and inspiring message.

***

Young adult fiction:

Let It Snow:

Three Holiday Romances,

written by John Green, Maureen Johnson,

and Lauren Myracle, 2008

This book is made up of three interconnected (and often hilarious) tales of teenage love and romance. A Christmas Eve snowstorm stops a train and transforms Gracetown into a winter wonderland. Strangers meet, old friends look at each other in a new way, and, in the midst of it all is a tiny teacup pig named Gabriel.

***

For more Christmas books, please check out my posts from previous years:

The Stories of Christmas

The Night Before

Merry Little Christmas Books

Have you read any of the books shown above? If so, what did you think of them? 

What are your favorite Christmas stories?

Write a lot.

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"You have to write a lot. 

And you have to rewrite 

what you wrote a lot more." 

~ Holly Black 

Good advice for writers! :)

December

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December

First snow! The flakes
  So few, so light, 
Remake the world
  In solid white.

All bundled up,
  We feel as if
We were fat penguins,
  Warm and stiff.

Downtown, the stores
  Half split their sides,
And Mother brings home
  Things she hides.

Old carols peal.
  The dusk is dense.
There is a mood
  Of sweet suspense.

The shepherds wait,
  The kings, the tree--
All wait for something
  Yet to be,

Some miracle.
  And then it's here,
Wrapped up in hope--
  Another year!

~ John Updike

There are so many things I love about the month of December -- and Updike includes many of them in this poem. What are your favorite things about December?

Logophile

This week's word is logophile [law-guh-fahyl], a noun which means "a lover of words". I only recently learned this word, but it is most definitely one I will be using from now on!

I admit this proudly: I am a logophile!

Are you?

Nope.

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"I cannot live without books."

 ~ Thomas Jefferson

Nope, I can't do it. Wouldn't want to try. Would you?

I Heard a Bird Sing

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I Heard a Bird Sing

I heard a bird sing

  In the dark of December

A magical thing

  And sweet to remember.

“We are nearer to Spring

  Than we were in September,”

I heard a bird sing

  In the dark of December.

~ Oliver Herford

This is a hopeful little poem, especially when it's been cold and snowy for weeks -- which is not the case here this year. Here it already feels like spring, LOL. Do you dream of spring in December?