2015 Holiday Book List
Below we have compiled a list of fiction and nonfiction books and resources representing a wide variety of traditions, activities, and customs celebrated during the holiday season. This is just a small sampling of the hundreds of holiday books that can be borrowed from the Roslindale Branch Library.
Happy Holidays from the Friends!
Adult
Handmade Gifts
By Hannah Moore
Features step-by-step instructions for candle making, crocheting, paper crafting, and baking over seventy projects that can be given as meaningful, hand-crafted gifts.
A New York Christmas
By Anne Perry
Anne Perry’s Christmas novel is an irresistible tale of love, betrayal, greed, murder, and selfless devotion. For the first time, Perry’s annual yuletide offering is set in New York City — a sparkling young metropolis bursting with life, promise, and subtle menace.
The Holy Bible: New Living Translation
The New Living Translation is perfect for everyone – adults and children, seekers and believers, pastors and parishioners–anyone who wants to enjoy the truths of God’s Word. Special Features: Clear, easy-to-read type Words of Christ in red letter, Verse Finder Presentation pages, Full-color maps, Durable, long-lasting binding Gold page edges, Ribbon marker and Thumb-index for finding books of the Bible quickly
Holiday Boutique Knitting: Inspired Holiday Decor and Gifts to Knit
By Mary Jean Daigneault
More than 20 delightful holiday patterns of extraordinary décor and gifts including wreaths, oversized snow people, evergreen trees, shrugs, hats, advent calendar, ornaments, centerpiece, oversized stockings and various interior décor for knitters of all levels. Pick up solid interior design advice for decorating your home for the holidays.
Navidad latinoamericana (En Español)
By Charito Calvachi Wakefield
La navidad es una festividad maravillosa que despierta grandes emociones y los mejores sentimientos en quienes la celebran. En torno a esta fecha, a partir de una tradición de carácter universal, cada pueblo y comunidad ha ido enriqueciendo esta fiesta con sus particulares aportes y con su sensibilidad característica. Esta obra recoge la rica tradición navideña de 25 países latinoamericanos a través del vasto patrimonio que conforman las canciones, música, literatura, religiosidad y manifestaciones artísticas que tienen como motivo central la celebración del nacimiento de Jesús. De esta forma, las familias con raíces hispanoamericanas encontrarán aquí un espejo que reflejará aquellas tradiciones que están en el núcleo de su identidad, acercándolas a este valioso patrimonio mediante un conjunto de entretenidas actividades que pueden compartir y disfrutar en esta fecha con las personas que más quieren.
500 Questions and Answers on Chanukah
By Jeffrey Cohen
This book is probably the most comprehensive and detailed treatment of the festival of Chanukah in the English language. It commences by placing the festival in its historical context by surveying the history of the Jewish people from Abraham until Alexa.
Merry Christmas Songbook
A perennial bestseller–now with a new companion 23-track CD–this songbook contains a collection of more than 100 Yuletide favorites plus a 32-page lyric book.
Kwanzaa: Black Power and the Making of the African-American Holiday Tradition
By Keith Mayes
The book explores the political beginning and later expansion of Kwanzaa, from its start as a Black Power holiday, to its current place as one of the most mainstream of the black holiday traditions. For those wanting to learn more about this alternative observance practiced by countless African Americans and how Kwanzaa fits into the larger black holiday tradition, Mayes gives an accessible and definitive account of the movements and individuals that pushed to make this annual celebration a reality, and shows how African-Americans brought the black freedom struggle to the American calendar.
Festivus: The Holiday for the Rest of Us
By Allen Salkin
Looking to add a little bitterness to your holiday season? Then FESTIVUS is the book you cannot do without Take Frosty out behind the woodshed and hide your menorahs, kinaras, diyas and whatevahs…the time has come for Festivus The event celebrated by Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller) on Seinfeld, in which a bare aluminum pole replaces all holiday and religious symbols, where participants compete in “feats of strength” and undertake the “airing of grievances,” has transcended television to become a worldwide phenomenon. In this side-splitting romp through the Festivus landscape, Allen Salkin meets Miss Festivus, tastes Festivus beer, and ponders the Festivus snail (along with Festy the cat), showing how anyone with a little creativity-and a dash of Costanza-can celebrate a Happy Festivus
A Cedar Cove Christmas
By Debbie Macomber
After a comedy of errors on Christmas Eve, a five-month pregnant woman, traveling to Cedar Cove to search for her child’s father–who doesn’t know she’s pregnant–finds herself lodging in an apartment above a barn. The residents of Cedar Grove come to her rescue as an early labor begins.
Teens/Young Adult
Christmas in Italy
By Kristin Thoennes Keller
An overview of the symbols, celebrations, decorations, food, and songs that are part of Christmas in Italy.
Miracle on 34th Street
By Valentine Davies
The lives of three people are changed by an old man who insists that he is Santa Claus.
Three Kings Day: A Celebration at Christmastime
By Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith
Explores the legend, history, and traditions associated with Three Kings Day, and follows ten-year-old Veronica and her family as they celebrate the Latin American holiday along with neighbors in their Puerto Rican community in New York City.
A Christmas Carol
By Charles Dickens
Beloved in Christmases past, and sure to remain a favorite into Christmases of the future, Dickens’ popular holiday tale is the perfect Christmas present. The uplifting tale follows the mysterious and magical events that transform the miserly, miserable Ebenezer Scrooge into “as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man” as ever lived.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares
By Rachel Cohn
Told in the alternating voices of Dash and Lily, two sixteen-year-olds carry on a wintry scavenger hunt at Christmas-time in New York, neither knowing quite what–or who–they will find.
What If I’m An Atheist: A Teen’s Guide to Exploring A Life Without Religion
By David Seidman
A guide to atheism and nonbelief shares counsel on the challenges of questioning the views of one’s upbringing, establishing beliefs about religion and spirituality and addressing the practical aspects of managing religious occasions.
Handcrafted Christmas: Ornaments, Decorations, and Cookie Recipes to Make at Home
By Susan Waggoner
Collects step-by-step instructions for vintage-style crafts and cookie swap recipes inspired by Christmas traditions from the 1920s to the 1960s, including a pinecone wreath, Christmas stocking, and holiday charm bracelet.
Children
The Christmas Book
By Jane Bull
Deck the halls with festive mobiles and flurries of snowflakes. Create snowstorms in jelly jars. Fill boxes with candies. Count down to Christmas with a magical calendar. Easy-to-make, fun-to-do, for a sparkling Christmas.
The Stable Where Jesus Was Born
By Rhonda Gowler Greene
Rhyming verse introduces the people who appear in the story of the birth of Christ and describes the setting of this event.
Santa is Coming to Boston
By Steve Smallman
Have you been good? Are you ready to go to sleep? Then Santa is coming to town! Read about what happens to Santa when he visits Boston.
The Night of Las Posadas
By Tomie DePaola
At the annual celebration of Las Posadas in old Santa Fe, the husband and wife slated to play Mary and Joseph are delayed by car trouble, but a mysterious couple appear who seem perfect for the part.
Kwanzaa
By Deborah Newton Chocolate
Discusses the holiday in which African-Americans celebrate their roots and cultural heritage from Africa.
The 12 Days of Christmas
By Jane Cabrera
Merry animals celebrate the twelve days of Christmas in this version of the traditional folk song.
Honeyky Hanukah
By Woody Guthrie
A family celebrates Hanukkah wit h latkes, hugs, kisses, and dancing.
The Glorious Christmas Songbook
The Glorious Christmas Songbook features over 50 favorite songs, both contemporary and time-honored, from “All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth” to “Joy to the World.” It is the perfect musical companion for the most glorious season of the year.
Madeline’s Christmas
By Ludwig Bemelmans
With everyone else sick in bed with a cold on Christmas eve, it is up to Madeline to run the school and she finds a remarkable helper in a rug-selling magician.
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