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Hello Readers!

When my boys were very little, we began the Christmas Eve tradition of giving them new jammies and a Christmas book.



The first one was The Night Before Christmas. Then there was The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. I think the version of The Nutcracker illustrated by Maurice Sendak came next, but honestly, I've lost track of the order. We pull out a stack of Christmas books from the bookshelves every year as we put up our holiday decorations, and we read them aloud throughout December. My husband grumbles every year about how he dislikes The Polar Express. My youngest, born on Christmas and delighted by all yuletide cheer, insists on reading every word of the weird tale that is The Nutcracker. (He's the only 7-year-old know who adores — or even knows — Godfather Drosselmeier.) My oldest pretends to be appalled when we sing through our beautifully illustrated version of The Twelve Days of Christmas. When we moved back to Ohio a few years ago, our rental house seemed cozier when we read A Christmas Carol in front of a twinkling tree. Every Christmas Eve ends with The Grinch, which is everyone's favorite. 

That tradition of reading the Grinch began on Christmas Eve, the day before my youngest was born. My parents were in town, waiting for the new baby; my dad teased me for saying "chimbly" instead of "chimney, and I protested that that was the word Seuss used. Something about that moment has stuck with me, which I know sounds silly and unimportant to anyone not there, but reading was such a simple way to gather everyone together, to have everyone I loved most in the world in a single place, focused on a single thing. This is the exact moment I decided I need all the Christmas books.

Last year was the first time I bought a Christmas book specifically for myself: Jeannette Winterson's Christmas Days. I like it because it includes recipes alongside Winterson's beautiful prose. 



This year, for myself and the boys, I've ordered The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, having seen a darling vintage copy at a neighbor's house. I seriously considered The Sweet Smell of Christmas, which was the book many of you said on Facebook was your childhood favorite, but I think my boys might be a bit too old to appreciate it. I am adding The Christmas Story from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to our family collection. It's a beautiful book of the actual Bible verses, illustrated with art through the ages. 

And, waiting for the day when Santa's sleigh bells no longer ring for anyone in my house, I've tucked away The Father Christmas Letters, a collection of letters written by Tolkien to his children in the guise of Santa. 

We read aloud more in December, leading into the holiday, than we do any other time of the year, and in my mind, winter books like The Snowy Day and our illustrated version of Frost's poem, Stopping By Wood on A Snowy Evening, have become Christmas books, too. We just finished reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe together, and all agreed that the White Witch's ability to make an endless winter with no Christmas in it was a terrible thing.  



We're all about to be bombarded with articles, tips, and Facebook memes admonishing us to SLOW DOWN! and BE PEACEFUL! during the holiday season. If the bustle isn't enough to make you sympathize with the Grinch, the constant haranguing to be mindful might. Reading stories of wonder and hope, cheer and kindness, is the best way I know to remember that Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.

Happy holidays! 


— Hillary 
BOOKS FOR YOUR READING LIST
Year after year, I find I read most in January, and I'm fairly certain that's because in December I fill up my library holds with books from the annual best-of lists. My own list of the best books of 2017 is coming in the next edition of Make America Read — check your inboxes on Dec. 15!

But if you're looking to buy books as gifts or to add to your own Christmas wish list, I'd take a few from the New York Times' list of the 100 Notable books of 2017. And then take a few more from this list of books the Times should have had on the list.  The pictures and links above are some of my favorites from these lists. 


What I'm reading

The favorite:  Stay With Me, Ayobami Adebayo
Several friends said I should read this book and warned I'd not be able to put it down. True. Adebayo tells a story, humorously and poignantly, of love and marriage, loss, sex and lies. I particularly liked how she parcels out truth and made me sympathize, at least a little, with both narrators. 

Up next: Stephen Florida, Gabe Habash

Read Harder: DefeatedI missed four categories — a banned book (though maybe The Hate U Give now counts),  LGBTQ romance (The Darker Shade of Magic series included a LGBTQ romance, but it was secondary), indie press (I lazily didn't seek any out), and a classic by a black author (I queued up several books, but they were rereads I never got to.). I'm already thinking about 2018 challenges.

Reading links
An early holiday gift for mystery lovers: a new story from Dashiell Hammett, master of detective fiction

Jason Reynolds: Poetry is for everyone
His book sales say he's right.
And listen, if you're looking for great books for kids in your life, his are a solid choice. My boys and every child I've ever come in contact with love them. 


Jesmyn Ward on Fresh Air, talking about ghosts and truth-telling. (Lordy, I adore her.)

Some of the best book recommendations I find come from the authors I love. Here are Celeste Ng and others sharing the books they think you should read.

Book Riot explains why books comfort anxious people. "I think we were all readers today."

Loved this essay about helping kids pick the right books for them. Matching books and readers is one of my favorite things, and it can be the difference between someone enjoying reading or not.

Libraries and 
laundromats. I say let's just put books in every public space.

Let kids read whatever they want, whenever they want. Amen.

And finally, famous writers' tiny houses. This is just fun. Ronald Dahl had a gypsy caravan!  
Housekeeping note: I use Amazon affiliate links for books throughout this newsletter.
If you purchase books through these links, I will earn a small commission,
which I probably will spend on books. 
Copyright © *2017* *Make America Read Again*, All rights reserved.

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