Christmas Book

[cjs]

Every Christmas I try to have a Christmas themed book to read the last week before Christmas. Anyone have any good ideas for new ones???

[labradors]

For something funny, there's always Politically Correct Holiday Stories.

For something serious, the following poem by Luci Shaw is a keeper:

Mary's Song
by Luci Shaw

Blue homespun and the bend of my breast
keep warm this small hot naked star
fallen to my arms. (Rest …
you who have had so far
to come.) Now nearness satisfies
the body of God sweetly. Quiet he lies
whose vigor hurled
a universe. He sleeps
whose eyelids have not closed before.
His breath (so slight it seems
no breath at all) once ruffled the dark deeps
to sprout a world.
Charmed by doves’ voices, the whisper of straw,
he dreams,
hearing no music from his other spheres.
Breath, mouth, ears, eyes
he is curtailed
who overflowed all skies,
all years.
Older than eternity, now he
is new. Now native to earth as I am, nailed
to my poor planet, caught that I might be free,
blind in my womb to know my darkness ended,
brought to this birth
for me to be new-born,
and for him to see me mended
I must see him torn.

[cjs]

Thanks Labs, moving poem

[Mare749]

I love Christmas stories. Give me a little time to look through my collection. Have quite a few.

[cjs]

I did download one yesterday - "A Lancaster County Christmas" - even paid for it! $1.99

I hope I have 3 or 4 by the week before so I can choose. Thanks Maryann

[Trixxee]

I haven't read this, but coincidentally heard the author give an interview this morning while I was driving home from Trader Joe's. It sounds sad but I guess there is a lot of humor injected into it and since it did take place in December, could be considered a Christmas book in a sense. The 85 year old mom decided that she just wasn't going to continue with dialysis treatments and decided to spend her remaining time with family, old friends, etc. For two weeks they laughed and cried and reminisced and by the end everyone was ok. No one was scared of dying. It sounds like a tear jerker to be read at some point, maybe not over the holidays though. I don't know - book could go any way! A joy or a total bummer or somewhere in the middle.

http://www.amazon.com/14-Days-Mother-Dau...1618685600

Edited to add this is a true story.

[cjs]

You know Trixxee, this is exactly what I would love to do with my four closest friends. A number of years ago my best friend and I agreed that who ever went first, the other would go and clean out the others underwear drawer and that's where we would keep things that we didn't think our kids needed to know about/see. She died first, but I didn't know until it was to late to keep my promise to her.

I'll always regret that. I'm getting that book and I'll even pay for it... thanks for the suggestion.

got it.

[Trixxee]

You're welcome - please let us know what you think about it. I feel so compelled to order it! You know what, I'm just going to do it. It'll go under the tree as a present to me.

[cjs]

There you go.

[cjs]

Just found another book I would love to have and will go on my Christmas list for Roy. Nigella Lawson has a new book, Simply Nigella: Feel Good Food - Love her books.