Home for Christmas: Stories for Young and Old

by Katherine Paterson (Contributor), David Klein (Illustrator), Ger Koopman (Contributor)

For readers who are tired of Christmas commercialism, or who feel that Santa Claus and reindeer don't tell the whole story, these classic gems provide a winning alternative. Selected for their insightfulness, spiritual value, and literary quality (nothing moralistic here) they project the spirit of the season in a fresh, compelling manner that will resonate with readers of all ages - from children too young to read to themselves, to parents and grandparents who enjoy reading stories aloud.

Home for Christmas includes time-tested favorites by some of the world's most beloved children's authors - Pearl Buck, Selma Lagerlof, Henry van Dyke, Madeleine L'Engle, Elizabeth Goudge, Rebecca Caudill, and Ruth Sawyer - as well as little-known European stories appearing in English for the first time.

Genres: Christmas, Short Stories, Fiction, Holiday, Religion

339 pages, Paperback

Published October 1, 2014

About the author

Katherine Womeldorf Paterson is an American writer best known for children's novels, including Bridge to Terabithia. For four different books published 1975–1980, she won two Newbery Medals and two National Book Awards. She is one of four people to win the two major international awards; for "lasting contribution to children's literature" she won the biennial Hans Christian Andersen Award for Writing in 1998 and for her career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense" she won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award from the Swedish Arts Council in 2006, the biggest monetary prize in children's literature. Also for her body of work she was awarded the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature in 2007 and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the American Library Association in 2013. She was the second US National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, serving 2010 and 2011.

Reviews

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this collection of Christmas stories. I listened to the audio version and there was a different narrator for each story. They were all sufficient but some I liked more than others.

The stories were all new to me which is a nice surprise. Many were translated from German. They all stressed being kind and helping those less fortunate than you. Always a good reminder no matter what time of year.

I look forward to listening to this again next year!

Update December,2022:

One of the benefits of getting older and not having such a sharp memory is that I can listen to these stories and enjoy them all over again!

I did notice many of the stories showed how pride or arrogance ruins many lives. Some of the stories brought me to tears (as I listened on my walks).

I’m thankful that my library has this audiobook available to borrow. And next year, I will listen again!

[Kathleen (Kat) Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you simply don't have time for a full length novel but instead are looking for something you can read a little bit at a time, you might want to pick up Home for Christmas: Stories for the Young and Old which is a collaboration by a variety of authors like Pearl Buck, Rebecca Caudill, Ruth Sawyer, Elizabeth Goudge, Henry van Dyke and others. Each centers around the joyous blessing of Christmas and contains the true message of hope and goodwill towards men in each of these heartwarming stories. There is truly something for everyone tucked away inside. I would find this such a blessing to read one during each day as the Christmas Day approaches to truly get into the Spirit of the Season.

There are twenty short stories tucked away like beautiful presents each awaiting to be read, savored and enjoyed by you or your entire family. "Several are by world-famous children's authors; others are little-known European tales not available in English anywhere else. Selected for their literary quality and their spiritual integrity, they will resonate with readers of all ages, year after year." (excerpt from back cover). This would make a wonderful gift to any book lover or for those looking for another addition to add to their Christmas Advent celebrations.

My favorite was Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl S. Buck and what it means to one young boy who wants to really give his father something he'll remember for Christmas. Life on the family farm is hard and work begins well before first light, but in this case what this one boy offers as his unconditional gift of love affects his father not only this Christmas but for many more to follow. It is a simple reminder that money doesn't need to be something we have to have to give someone a wonderful Christmas present. I received this wonderful collection of Christmas stories compliments of Plough Publishing House and Handlebar Central in exchange for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own unless otherwise notated. This one has found a permanent place in my personal library and is worthy of all 5 out of 5 stars.

[Emmry King · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Even though Christmas is exploited for profit; even though its meaning is often corrupted; it is still the time of year that we feel the impulse to think of others. It is still the season of anticipation and joy. The brightness and fragrance of a Christmas tree under which gifts are laid-here is light and warmth; here is light and love.” —Emmy Arnold

This quote is a lovely opener to a lovely book. What a a lovely book it is. A collection of short stories all relating to Christmas and all by different authors, this book invokes new and beautiful thoughts of the Christmas Story. Each story was better than the last, each one touched my heart in a different way, and each one whispered to me of the coming of One who is both might and meek, both strong and tender. In a cold and dark time, these stories shine light and love and wonder. I highly enjoyed reading this to myself in the cozy corners of time I carved out of the busyness, and it watered my spirit greatly with golden words and silver stories; however, it would be a wonderful read aloud or even a nightly advent reading. This book will become a new annual read for me. I hope it helps you to have a beautiful Christmas.

[Molly Moody · Rating 4 out of 5]

very enjoyable but couldn't make me cry like the Christmas in My Heart series from Joe Wheeler!

[Bronson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice collection of short stories. A few I've heard or read in the past and some were new to me. I enjoyed working through them during the holiday season this year.

[Hannah Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good collection of Christmas stories.

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite Christmas collections for the year.

[Jalynn Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

About the Book:

For readers who are tired of Christmas commercialism, or who feel that Santa Claus and reindeer don t tell the whole story, these classic gems provide a winning alternative. Selected for their insightfulness, spiritual value, and literary quality (nothing moralistic here) they project the spirit of the season in a fresh, compelling manner that will resonate with readers of all ages from children too young to read to themselves, to parents and grandparents who enjoy reading stories aloud. Home for Christmas includes time-tested favorites by some of the world s most beloved children s authors Pearl Buck, Selma Lagerlof, Henry van Dyke, Madeleine L Engle, Elizabeth Goudge, Rebecca Caudill, and Ruth Sawyer as well as little-known European stories appearing in English for the first time."



My Review:

Home For Christmas: Stories for Young and Old, is a perfect book to read to the entire family on the days leading up to Christmas. Those stories once told to others by their grandparents come alive again to be retold to younger generations. Many of these stories will hit home to many of us as we reminisce over family and a huge mug of hot chocolate.



My favorite story was Christmas Day In the Morning, it is a sweet short story written about a man that reminisces a simpler time in his childhood when he has given his father a gift so simple, because they didn't have the money for anything else. It was such a sweet story of family love. This is just one example of all the great short stories contained therein. In today's world we need a way to connect to the past and remember such times. This book is a great way to do just that.

**Disclosure** This book was sent to me free of charge for my honest review from Handlebar.

[Lora · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe this is a 4-star, I can't really tell. A mix of old Christmas tales wherein people choose the right or feel the spirit of the season or are overtaken by the Christmas spirit in its mysterious and ghostly ways, and miracles abound. Not that I am making fun...it's just how many Christ child stories are there, anyway? I had no idea that many cultures had this Christ child when they also know that Christ kinda sorta grew up. Softly sweet in its way, but also ghostly and a bit odd.
Maybe a Catholic would feel the resonance behind these stories more clearly than I do. I suspect so.
I enjoyed the reading anyway. I enjoyed the descriptions, the buildup, the characters and their hopes and fears and flaws, and even the heartbreak in one story especially.
SPOILER ALERT
In one story, a very young child is discovered killed in its cradle as the soldiers of Herod sweep through a town. The story revolves around the trauma of the mother. It ends as well as possible, considering the suffering the characters had to go through.
That aside, and it was a lovely story despite and because of the heartbreak, the other stories are worth the read. Cowboys, that wandering Fourth Wiseman, and very simple sweet stories about simple acts of goodness and love.
These stories are gathered from multiple sources and collected in a 'let's just enjoy Christmas' mood. And so I did. It made me look for other older collections as well.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Special Gift for Christmas

The meaning of Christmas shines through this collection of stories. These are not tales of Santa, elves and reindeer. These stories by well known authors illustrate the deeper meaning of Christmas. They range from sentimental to humorous. In these twenty stories there is something for everyone.

My favorites were Riders of St. Nicholas, a humorous tale of cowboys left behind to take care of the ranch while the rest of the ranch staff rides off to enjoy a Christmas celebration. I also liked Pearl Buck's Christmas Day in the Morning. This is a sentimental story of milking cows on Christmas morning.

The book is illustrated with wood cuts that add an extra dimension to the beauty of the tales. These stories can be enjoyed in private, but they can also be read aloud for the enjoyment of the entire family.

I highly recommend this collection. It can be a special Christmas gift for your family, or for friends. It is a very lovely book.

I reviewed this book for Handlebar Publishing.

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fine family read-aloud friendly book of Christmas stories, many of which first appeared in magazines in the mid-Twentieth Century or are translated for the first time into English here. My personal favorites from this collection are two of the magazine pieces, both of which predate my arrival on the planet so I missed them the first time around. These are "The Riders of St. Nicholas" (which needs some language updating that's easily accomplished when read aloud - just read with your usual character reverence instead of the as-written dialogue) and "The Vexation of Barney Hatch". The prose snaps crisply along throughout the volume, so you can be sure someone chose them for their read-aloud-ability. A number of the stories are churchy, but that's part and parcel of the Christmas genre. No surprises here, except for the goodly number of stories you're likely not to know by heart even if you can assume where they're heading. Enjoy the ride.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a unique collection of Christmas stories! I wasn't sure what to expect but I hadn't read or heard any of these stories until this book. Some of them are better than others as there are quite a few authors. I really enjoyed Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl S. Buck, No Room in the Inn by Katherine Paterson, The Christmas Lie, and A Certain Small Shepherd by Rebecca Caudill.

Each story is different and takes you to a new place and time. Some of them are a bit slow and took me awhile to read. With books like this I can't just sit and read because there are too many stories. So I spread it out and read about one or two a day which is fun during the holiday season anyway.




For a new take on Christmas stories this is a great read.




Four Stars.




"I received this book from the publisher and Handlebar for free in exchange for an honest review."

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

At literary collection of Christmas stories, with a conservative approach - eschewing sentimental claptrap in favor of classic, elegant writing. Readers who crave literary excellence as well as heartwarming Christmas messages will relish this carefully selected and intelligent anthology.

The collection has an international flavor, with stories set in Cuba, Germany, Siberia, Palestine, Denmark, Spain, and in the US Vermont and New York City. Some standard stories are here, including Henry van Dyke's enduring tale "The Other Wise Man", and Pearl S. Buck's gentle and touching story "Christmas Day in the Morning." Some contributions are deeply theological (Madeleine L'Engle's "Transfiguration") while others offer the dark, discerning cadences of a timeless fable (Selma Lagerlof's "The Christmas Rose").

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wide collection of Christmas short stories from around the world. Some are very familiar but most were unknown to me. They do not necessarily communicate the Christmas story as we evangelical Christians in America understand it. The stories are more like reflections of Christmas thought, some from places like Siberia or Cuba. Some are decidedly Roman Catholic, with bleeding statues. In others, the Christ child appears. Some are darker than the sweet stories we are used to. This is a good collection to broaden one's understanding of the literary heritage of Christmas worldwide.
See my complete review at http://bit.ly/1rePhlX.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Handlebar for the purpose of an independent and honest review.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was the title that drew me to buy this book at my library's used book store in the year of the first Christmas spent without my son who is now living in another state. It is a collection of twenty Christmas-related, mostly religious, or at least with a message, stories. Many of the authors were unknown to me, except for Pearl Buck, Madeleine L'Engle and Katherine Paterson. My favorite stories were The Other Wise Man by Henry van Dyke about the fourth wise man, who never made it to Bethlehen, The Well of the Star by Elizabeth Goudge, the story of David, the shepherd and the Magi, and A Certain Small Shepherd by Rebecca Caudill about Jamie, the motherless, mute boy. All in all, this is a nice addition to my Christmas book collection.

[C.E. Hart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh the nostalgia I felt reading this compilation of short stories! They brought to mind my younger years, when my grandmother would read short stories aloud to me. These stories contains morals, so-to-speak, but they aren’t bold and in-your-face. The gentle messages are enlightening and inspiring.

I haven’t read all twenty stories yet, but have thoroughly enjoyed the ones I have.

Home For Christmas is a warm and enjoyable collection of stories that are fun and meaningful. For young or old, it’s the perfect bedtime storybook.

Author: Multiple authors
Publisher: Plough
Pages: 339
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

[Toni]

This book got decent ratings. What in the world did I miss? First and foremost, I am not a fan of short stories and that may be where the questions lay. I will admit to not reading all of the stories. What I did was start each story; if by the fourth or fifth page it didn't catch my interest I went on to the next story. I read approximately 6 stories through and the rest.............................

So, I think it fair that I not rate this book. The pictures were a bit detrimental to the stories also. The fact that some of them had a christian tone to them did have me fair well with my choice to read or not but I did not get warm fuzzy feelings from any of them.

[Linda Orvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this during the Christmas season. It kept me focused on why I celebrate Christmas. Because it is a collection of Christmas short stories by authors like: Pearl S. Buck, Ruth Sawyer, Elizabeth Goudge, Henry van Dyke, and many more, each story is unique. I especially loved "What the Kings Brought" by Ruth Sawyer, because it is based on a true incident she experienced while living in Spain for a year. This book is for adults as well as children, and would be an amazing book to read as a family during the holidays.

[Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been working my way through this collection of Christmas and Advent short stories for several years. This is a book I would pull out every year and reread favorite stories from the collection produced by Plough Publishing. Home for Christmas includes 20 stories, some by famous authors, others lesser known tales European tales. All these stories capture the true meaning of Christmas - stories that burrow into your heart. I highly recommend this treasured collection. Great for older kids and adults alike.

[Nana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Home for Christmas, brings us different authors telling us their story of Christmas. I enjoyed the book because there was more depth to the stories, the stories came from all over, and it not only felt like stepping back in time, but seemed to transport me there.
Each story is unique, some I learned a lot from, and others, felt like, going through it while reading it. It is a different style of Christmas book, that reminded me of the classic Christmas stories of long ago.
I received an ARC from Plough Publishing House through NetGalley.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every December I like to read the story "Christmas Day in the Morning" by Pearl Buck- it's a short story about giving from the heart and always inspires me to think of creative, meaningful ways to give and serve during the holiday season. There are other stories in this collection (some by well-known authors) and they vary in subject and quality but I appreciate the subject matter at this time of year. It helps foster the Christmas spirit.

[Beachbum7805 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Refreshing! Home for Christmas is a collection of short stories. Several were about the three kings. Most of the stories I thoroughly enjoyed reading. If you want to read a completely different Christmas book, this is the book to choose. It is a quick read. I read a couple of the short stories at a time. Don't wait until next Christmas to read this book, read it now!

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. Brother Robber by Helene Christaller: 3.5 stars
2. Three Young Kings by George Sumner Albee: 4 stars
3. Transfiguration by Madeleine L'Engle: 3.5 stars
4. The Cribmaker's Trip To Heaven by Reimmichl: 3 stars
5. The Guest by Nikolai S Lesskov: 5 stars
6. Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl S Buck: 4 stars

[Vicki Gooding · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book. Unlike so many books that are filled with death, trauma, and race induced anger through Christmas , these many short stories are ones that are about simple people (many with little money) who create a longing in the hearts of the readers to become more like Jesus as we honor His birth. Simply beautiful.

[Emiley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the international flavor of this short story collection about the true meaning of Christmas, however, only a handful of the lot resonated with me. Still this was a good sale purchase to enjoy during the Advent season and perhaps revisit someday. It may be that this is a better collection to read than listen to as the narrators where good, but not great. Maybe 3.5 stars.

[Kristina Silverbears · Rating 2 out of 5]

A depressing collection of stories. Generally not the uplifting, Santa-filled, mistletoed storybook collection I had hoped for.

To be fair, the stories are well-written. Many are also religious. But none of them would inspire me to do a read-aloud on Christmas.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of 20 heart-warming Christmas stories. Perfect for counting down to Christmas, they are excellent to read aloud (or just as good silent bedtime reads). I wouldn't mind rereading this collection every few years -- some of the stories yearly.

[Julia]

What a strange mix of stories. Most of them are wonderful, classic Christmas stories by excellent authors. Those are five star. Then there are a few that are just weird, and I would label them two or three star. So it is hard to rate the book.

[Sherry Greene · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book of 20 tales of Christmas for all ages by various authors. This would make a nice Christmas gift and be a nice tradition for family reading during the holidays.

I received a copy of this book from Plough Publishing and NetGalley. The opinion expressed is my own.

[Karen Huber · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is hard to read at times other than the holidays. I've only read half of it so far.