Southern Christmas Literary Classics of the Holidays

by Judy Long (Editor), Thomas Payton (Editor)

An anthology of fiction and nonfiction about Christmas in the South

Genres: Christmas, Short Stories, Fiction, Southern, Holiday, Classics, Anthologies

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Garrett Cash · Rating 1 out of 5]

The idea of this book sounds perfect to me on paper, and every year I do attempt to read some new Christmas related writing to find new meaning in the season. Besides Harper Lee's superb little piece, this collection is mostly a enormous drag that riffs on the exact theme over and over again. Nostalgia for rooty toot toots and rummy tum tums. Incessant frustration with racial discrimination. It's the most trite elements of Southern literature, and when mixed with the Christmas season these features become more grotesquely quaint. It made me want to wash my mouth out with Flannery O'Connor's more terrifying vision of reality.

[Cynthia Egbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt the need to read this one as I will be spending this Christmas in the South. It just felt like I needed these stories. There is a little bit of everything in this volume, some really devastating, and some filled with hope. I especially did appreciate Harper Lee's version of the gift that allowed her the time away from life to create To Kill a Mockingbird. There are a few quotes I want to remember.

"I hope you will also find time to read and improve your mind. Read history, works of truth, not novels and romances. Get correct views of life, and learn to see the world in its true light. It will enable you to live pleasantly, to do good, and, when summoned sway, to leave without regret."

"Be careful of your health, and do not eat more than half the plum-puddings Cousin Eleanor has prepared for Xmas. I am glad to hear that you are fattening, and I hope you will reach 125 lbs. Think always of your father, who loves you dearly."

(The above two quotes came from a Christmas letter written by Robert E. Lee to his daughter on 12/21/1866. They both made me smile for quite different reasons!)

"Ain't it hard," she asked sadly, "for us human beings to be human?" (From Christmas Night...And All the Others by Celestine Sibley)

"But whatever the ache of the present and the uncertainties of his future, he knew now that by not living for himself, he was learning to live with himself, at last." (From A Different Kind of Christmas by Alex Haley)

"I couldn't believe that after he heard God in my song he could be so mean and cold-hearted." (From Spit in the Governor's Tea by Shay Youngblood)

"But all of this is the business of toys, which doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the spirit of toys. The spirit touches the heart, not the wallet." (From Gift Rap by Terry Kay

"And I think it confirms something that's important at Christmas: A doll's house given out of caring is more valuable than diamonds - if your heart is the heart of a child. If it isn't, y0u will never understand what giving, or receiving, really means, anyway." (From Gift Rap by Terry Kay)

"I'm glad our Christmas sun arises
On buttercups and butterflies,
Our Christmas carol sounds as sweet
As if our ears was raw with sleet,
Our hearts is gay with Christmas mirth
Like on the colder parts of earth,
So cross the Mason-Dixon Line
And be my Christmas Valentine.
(From Who Forgot Savannah by Ogden Nash)

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The idea of a Christmas short stories (or the Christmas chapter of a book) is a good one. Everyone is so busy, but we still have moments when something warm-hearted to read would add a lovely pause to the day. If you’re looking for warm fuzzy reading, this isn’t your book, although there are a few stories that fit that desire, especially the tale of how Harper Lee found Time to write. Mark Twain’s was cute but not a story for a modern child. Robert E. Lee’s letter to his daughter (with an unusual nickname) was a sweet fatherly letter, but not especially Christmasy. Celestine Sibley did not disappoint, with a sad but heartfelt story. Eudora Welty’s was a paragraph from ONE WRITERS BEGINNING, her biography which I recommend highly. A lot of the others are depressing but probably a good history lesson. Do be aware that some language is not politically correct.

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting collection … a number of stories were from times long ago and a few seemed from lands far away. The South is large and memories are varied. I've never done the Oyster Dressing and / or soup as a holiday staple.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not a fan of short stories, but these gave me enough introduction to some authors to pursue some of their longer works.

I didn't find the stories particularly uncomfortable ... I tried to take into account the context of when they were written and whom they were written by. What I hope to have received was an accurate portrayal of southern African Americans and poor whites. While I don't think that's always a particularly pleasant picture, I think it's necessary to review sometimes.

All that being said, I am curious to know why this particular order was chosen for these stories. Some of the stories were very uplifting. Some were downright depressing. Like I said, that's not a bad thing, but I'm not sure why the ending of a book about the season of joy with such a chipper cover had to end on such a spirit-killing note, even when there were several more uplifting alternatives available. Maybe the editors didn't want to over-idealize.

[Laura Hogensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

a wide range of southern voices and points of view. the book is organized chronologically, however, so if you're not a fan or have an interest in early southern lit, it can take awhile to get to come off the more contemporary offerings. favorite stories for me were Harper Lee's essay, Robert Penn Warren's poem, " Drawing Names," and "Spit in the Governor's Tea."

[Nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-chosen anthology of short stories, poems, excerpts from memoirs and novels, all from the American South, beginning with Mary Boykin Chesnut's "Christmas, 1863" and ending with an excerpt from Rick Bragg's All Over But the Shoutin'. Both black and white southerners are included. Recommended.