Children's book lovers! - fave xmas books please

[Laugs]

I love a good Christmas story, but there are so many rubbish ones out there.

Every year we read Lucy and Tom's Christmas by Shirley Hughes and the story about Christmas in Bullerby by Astrid Lindgren. Also like Julia Donaldson's Stick Man, though we do read that all year round.

Does anyone have any favourite Christmas books they want to share? Not too bothered about age range, as it is really for my enjoyment . My kids are 5 and 2 though.

The Jolly Christmas Postman is a total MUST!! The book is filled with Christmas Letters to fairytale characters and they are actually in the book, ie in envelopes to get out and read. The Wolf (rehabed) sends a 'Beware' game to Little Red Riding Hood, Humpty Dumpty has a get well soon jigsaw (of himself) and a few more including Baby Bear etc. Anyway, its lovely and really good fun for the reader too!

This year I have also bought MIKI which is lovely, Father Christmas needs a Wee which is a good counting book and a lovely edition of A Night Before Christmas.

If you can only get one, get the Jolly Christmas Postman, its fab.

P.S. The Jolly Christmas Postman is an Allan/Janet Ahlberg so you know it is going to be as good if not better than the classic PeePo and Each Peach Pear Plum :)

Father Christmas letters by Tolkein are fab. Written by Tolkein to his children each year, great 'excuses' as to why didn't get the presents they wanted etc during the war with tales of goblin fights and errors by the old polar bear. Too old for a 2 year old, but the 5 year old may start to enjoy.

Also have a lovely story about Osbert - a boy wants a live penguin for Chrstmas but it isn't as easy to look after as he thinks so he gives it to the zoo.

The kids all enjoy Lauras Christmas Star, although I'm not overly impressed.

Oh and we have Christmas at Apple Tree Farm with lift the flaps, that's a favourite.

Just ordered Father Christmas Letters by Tolkein - it looks fab :)

Polar Express
The Christmas Miracle Of Jonathan Toomey
Night Before Christmas
The Christmas Eve Ghost (Shirley Hughes again)
Christmas Carol (we have a children's version of this)

We love this book in our house It's an ABC of Father Christmas. It's hilarious.

Grimble at Christmas by the lovely Clement Freud.

Your DCs are a bit young for it but you'll love it.

Grimble

The Thirteen Days of Christmas here I read it every christmas eve but it is slightly too old for your DC.

A bit older certainly but The Children of Green Knowe has some lovely descriptions of a cosy old-timey Christmas in it, with birds roosting in the fireplace holly, roaring fires and midnight mass. So magical!

Thank you so much for this thread Laugs

I have ordered Lucy and Tom's Christmas already, so knowing we had similar tastes I just looked up Christmas at Bullerby but the prices were shocking So having investigated further I have ordered Christmas in noisy village which I think is the American copy of the same story for about £40 cheaper!

I've also ordered some of the suggestions on this thread and put even more on my wish list for when the dc are older.

Fantastic thread, really great suggestions

Thanks so much for these ideas. I had totally forgotten about Father Christmas Needs a Wee, which my DD has and loves, and The Jolly Christmas Postman, which we have, but had to hide away from 1 yr old DS last year.

I'm just about to look up the others, but have already looked at and fallen in love with The Thirteen Days of Christmas and also discovered another Shirley Hughes on the same Amazon page - Stories by Firelight (more winter than xmas). Nobody does cosy like Shirley Hughes!

By the way, do you buy these books as Christmas presents? I really like to read them in the lead up to Christmas to set the scene. I wonder if Christmas day is too late - though I could always give books in preparation for next year.

bytheMoonlight, yep Noisy Village is the same. No idea why Bullerby is out of print in the UK, it's a travesty! They are really lovely stories - the Christmas one is very atmospheric and lots of the other stories are really funny. (Maybe a publisher will read this thread and remedy that)

Thanks again for all the ideas

Laugs I give Christmas books as from the start of December to build the atmosphere for Christmas.

I also put the Fireside stories on my amazon wishlist

Christmas in Exeter Street by Diana Hendry not sure that it is still in print. We read it every year and my dcs are 11 and 15!

I am liking your thread Laugs - right up my alley. I love the Ahlbergs letters book - one of my favourites.

I have been looking for a copy of Lucy and Tom's Christmas and I can't find anything brand new at all. And anything that is in pretty decent condition is at least £14 plus £3 delivery - I am shocked!

There seem to be so many versions of It Was The Night Before Christmas on Amazon. We don't have a copy at all. Are there any that anyone would recommend? My DS is nearly 4. (Sorry to highjack.)

Happy we have got this one the illustrations are beautiful.

jumpyjan, I've added it to my amazon wish list (which is getting to be ever so long)! Thanks very much.

Robert Ingpen's illustrated The Night Before Christmas. His illustrations are just breathtaking. He also did A Christmas Carol a while ago. I have 4 copies of The Night Before Christmas as I adore them. I had this one as a child and it's good for younger readers.

Cheapest I can find Lucy and Tom's Christmas is Amazon.com or Abe's American site. Cheapest UK version, secondhand is <a class="break-all" href="http://www.alibris.co.uk/booksearch?qsort=p&qisbn=0670812552&siteID=Rp3OwQQegjc-LYL7Sk0k7QHZZMHHA64LfAwww.alibris.co.uk/booksearch?qsort=p&qisbn=0670812552&siteID=Rp3OwQQegjc-LYL7Sk0k7QHZZMHHA64LfA" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">on alibris.

I have jumpyjan's too!

I have jumpyjan's as well - the feel of the book is lovely - it feels very special

Thanks for the info and recommendation Showy - I think I am going to get a 'good' condition copy of the Shirley Hughes' Lucy and Tom's Christmas from the alibris site. £9 including shipping. Given the reviews, I think its worth it - this is the first time Ive bought a second hand book that costs more than it did brand new!

Sorry again for highjacking.

The Grinch Who Stole Christmas by Dr Suess!