Once upon a Christmas Time

by Thyra Ferré Björn

extremely rare,very good condition

Genres: Christmas, Nonfiction, Memoir

92 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1983

About the author

Thyra Ferre Bjorn was one of eight children born to a clergyman in Swedish Lapland. In 1924, her father received a call to a Swedish church in Springfield, Massachusetts, and the family came to America.

Thyra married another native from Sweden, Robert Bjorn. They have two daughters and four grandchildren. Together they made their home in Longmeadow, Masachusetts.

Reviews

[Gabrielle]

For Violet Elaine Pierce 🤍 love you forever

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very cozy book of old-fashioned Swedish Christmas reminiscing!

Grab your mug, your comfy blanket and sit in your favorite chair for a good little hour or two while you hear Bjorn tell of all of the wonderful baked goodies and Christmas traditions she followed as a child in Sweden. You'll learn about the food (a couple of recipes included!), hunting for the tree in the woods, the preparations, St. Lucia, St. Stephen's and so much more.

Cleanliness: nothing to note.

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[Mayda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed these reminiscences of Thera Ferre Bjorn. She speaks of her childhood in her native Swedish Lapland more than 50 years ago. Some of their traditions are based on ancient folklore, and others are definitely Christian. Several revolve around intense cleaning of the entire house, as well as many, many hours of baking and cooking. No one worked harder than a Swedish wife and mother! Throughout this volume, what shines from every page is the love and caring that family members gave of freely, and not only to their own family, but also to friends and neighbors. And though the lights of Christmas eventually are dimmed and go out each year, as the author states, it will be Christmas all over again. This delightful memoir is filled with the joy - and humor - of the season, and may inspire others to start and continue their own traditions.

[Elaine Jorndt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of my annual reads. I love the feeling it evokes as I reminisce about the Swedish traditions we followed throughout my childhood and young adulthood. Treasured memories of family Christmas times - and renewed respect for everything Swedish.
I try to pass all of this on to my grandchildren.

[Aimée Henley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A heartwarming book about Christmas traditions in Sweden. The author was Protestant, but she does reference medieval traditions that continued through the centuries. I particularly enjoyed the parts about deep cleaning houses prior to Christmas and all of the food traditions. Fun read aloud. 3.5 stars

[Colette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this peek into the author's childhood Christmases in Sweden.

[Lee Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I needed a Christmas book for church book club -- each December, we each read a different book, magazine article, cookbook and share a little bit about it. This was a fast read (less than 100 pages) about Christmas traditions in Sweden as of the early 1960s.

The writing is a little quaint. It's almost like finding a journal kept by your grandmother. Bjorn does a nice job sharing traditions form Santa Lucia through Epiphany (or, technically, through the plundering of the tree, which can happen as late as Jan. 13. She talks about baking, trimming the tree (done by dad), Tomte, presents, food, and church services.

One of my favorite descriptions: The second course was the lutfisk... The fish went down slowly, for it had to be boned before the sauce was put on it. It shook on our plates and needed lots of salt and coarse pepper to flavor it. The fork turned black just from touching it, and I wondered, in later years, what happened to the lining of our stomachs. (I am Norwegian and understand this description.)

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only recently discovered Thyra Ferré Björn. I really enjoyed her books "Papa's Wife" and "Papa's Daughter" and her homespun way of telling a story. I was overjoyed when I saw that she had written a Christmas book as well. I had anticipated this book being similar to her other books-- a fictionalized version of her experiences celebrating Christmas as a young girl in Sweden. Instead, she explained the Christmas traditions celebrated in Sweden starting with Lucia on December 13 through the plundering of the Christmas tree after Christmas. This look into Swedish Christmas traditions from the late 1800's/early 1900's gave me a glimpse of how my Swedish ancestors may have celebrated the holidays. I have a feeling that I'll be revisiting this book each Christmas.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I have checked Once Upon a Christmas Time out of the library almost every Christmas since 1983 - it's a favorite little retelling of Christmases in Sweden at the turn of the 20th century. And back then, no doubt, Christmases had been celebrated much the same over the years.

A perfect children's book retelling Swedish Christmases of long ago is Astrid Lindgren's classic Christmas in Noisy Village. The two go hand-in-hand.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read of the author's fond memories of Swedish Christmas traditions, starting with St Lucia Day on December 13 through plundering the tree before January 13th. This would be a fun reread in Christmas seasons to learn about other ways Christmas has been celebrated and a reminder to slow down and create a special memorable experience.

[Meredith Henning · Rating 3 out of 5]

new to us this year, very good, scandinavian christmas stories

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish she had said more about her friends and family.

[Sandra Kaleuati]

Good book to read about Christmas in Sweden and the traditions over the years.

[Allison Dye]

I was glad that there was yet one more book about the Franzons.