Good Sunday morning, only three days left ’til Christmas. Still plenty of time to hustle and bustle. But once the holiday arrives and everyone’s all settled in, steal a little time for a story. You already know the classics: “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry, “A Visit From St. Nicholas” by Clement Clarke Moore, “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. Here are a few more to add to your list. Our first pick comes from Cambridge World Classics’ “50 Best Loved Christmas Stories and Poems for All Ages,” an e-book begging to become a big, fat paper volume with lots of illustrations and a jolly red cover.
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For a fairy tale: “Little Gretchen and the Wooden Shoe” by Elizabeth Harrison
Granny tells Little Gretchen that they are too poor for Christmas angels to visit their house, but Gretchen insists on putting Granny’s wooden shoe out on the window sill anyway. Harrison’s version of this folk tale is particularly well told: Granny’s “face was wrinkled all over with deep lines, which, if the children could only have read aright, would have told them of … a thousand deeds of unselfish love for other people; but, of course, they could not read this strange handwriting.”
For a lump in your throat: “Christmas Day in the Morning” by Pearl S. Buck
An old man reflects on the moment he realized, at age 15, the true bond of his father’s love. Inspired, he tries to reciprocate by presenting his father with a meaningful Christmas kindness the family will remember for decades. This story, originally published in 1955, is a quiet classic.
For a dose of reality: “Christmas” by George Saunders
Originally published 10 years ago as a short memoir in The New Yorker, the story is inspired by Saunders’ stint at age 26 on a roofing crew on Chicago’s South Side. This poignant reflection on class and race builds to a holiday party where a tar-hauler stakes his Christmas pay on a craps game. An edited version appears in Saunders’ collection “In Persuasion Nation.”
For parental inspiration: “Letters from Father Christmas” by J.R.R. Tolkien
Each year, beginning in 1920, Tolkien’s children received a handsomely illustrated letter from Father Christmas — who had very shaky writing, as he was roughly 1,927 years old. The letters tell stories of a cast of characters, notably the mischievous North Polar Bear who falls through roofs, spoils paintings with his big, fat paws, and serves the Man in the Moon so much brandy he rolls off the sofa and under the couch.
For perspective: “To Do” by Jennifer Egan
Google this one today because you need a laugh to puncture your frenzied holiday bubble. You have time: It’s a 250-word story — literally, a to-do list. Published in 2011 by The Guardian, it isn’t specific to Christmas, but how many lists have you made this season? This one, though, is as cleverly twisted as a candy cane.
Jennifer Day is editor of Printers Row Journal.
