2021 Reading Goals

I am planning on doing the Back to the Classics reading challenge for the 4th year in a row! For those not familiar with the challenge: There are 12 categories (which are meant to be filled with 12 different books). In order to qualify as a classic, the book has to have been published (or written) 50+ years ago, so 1971 or older. There are several other minor rules (like having to read all the books in 2021), which you can read at the link above. If you are interested in joining the challenge, the deadline to sign up is March 31st. I'd love for others to join me in doing this!

As with previous years, I'm going to add extra challenges on top of it all! I usually make sure to read at least 1 play (which happens to be one of the classic categories this year) and 1 Christmas story. I also am working on 3 author challenges and clearing out my TBR shelf. Here is what I plan to read:

     -finish reading all of the completed Bronte books (2 books left) - COMPLETE!

     -finish what's published of the Circle Universe by Tamora Pierce (7 books left)

     -read the Arrows Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey (3 books)

          -hopefully, I'll get to read other Valdemar books by Lackey (31 books left after Arrows)

     -read as many books on my TBR shelf as possible (goal: 8 books)

Update 1/6/21: I have always added my own challenges on top of Back to the Classics, but I've never actually joined another blog challenge. This year that's going to change! I have avoided several of the books on my TBR shelf due to their length, so I'm going to join the Chunkster Reading Challenge 2021. The books (whether individual novels, collections of short stories, or a series) must be 450+ pages long to apply to this challenge.

Update 3/8/21: I've also just started a virtual book club with some of my friends called The Book Hoarders. We have a category for each month, starting in March, and 2 book suggestions for each category. If someone doesn't like the choices, then they can choose a different book that fits the category.

Below are my reading lists for 2021. 

I will link my reviews to the book titles below throughout the year.

Back to the Classics Challenge:

1. 19th-century classic (published 1800-1899)

-The George MacDonald Treasury (1858-1895) - TBR 1

    -Phantastes   

    -The Light Princess

    -The Giant's Heart

    -The Golden Key

    -At the Back of the North Wind

    -The Princess and the Goblin

    -The Princess and Curdie

    -Lilith

by George MacDonald (Scottish, 1824-1905)

2. 20th-century classic (published 1900-1971) 

-The Man Who Was Thursday (1908) - TBR 2

by GK Chesterton (English, 1874-1936)

3. Classic by a woman author

-Shirley (1848) - Bronte 1

by Charlotte Bronte (English, 1816-1855)

4. Classic in translation

-Ten Billion Days and One Hundred Billion Nights (1967)

by Ryu Mitsuse (Japanese, 1928-1999) - originally written in Japanese

5. Classic by BIPOC author

-The Brave African Huntress (1958)

by Amos Tutuola (Nigerian, 1920-1997)

6. Classic by a new-to-you author

-Fahrenheit 451 (1953) - TBR 3

by Ray Bradbury (American, 1920-2012)

7. New-to-you classic by a favorite author

-The Professor (written 1846 - published posthumously 1857) - Bronte 2

by Charlotte Bronte (English, 1816-1855)

8. Classic about an animal (or with an animal in the title)

-The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) - reread for TBR

    -The Magician's Nephew

    -The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

    -The Horse and His Boy

    -Prince Caspian

    -The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

    -The Silver Chair

    -The Last Battle

by CS Lewis (British, 1898-1963)

Note: I would like to reread all 7 books before reading the commentary I have on the series. The commentary has been sitting on my TBR shelf for a while. I plan to read in chronological order instead of publication order.

9. Children's classic

-Home for Christmas: Stories for Young and Old - 20 Christmas short stories

(2002; 17 stories first written/published 1841-1966)

by 20 different authors

Note: I searched each short story to find when they were originally written/published: 12 stories 1895-1966, 1 story 1995, and 1 story 1996. Six of the stories I couldn't find a publishing date, so I went off of the author's birth year (plus 10) and year of death: 5 stories 1841-1953 and 1 story 1922-1983. Even after you take the 3 stories from (possibly) after 1971, the book is still about 300 pages, so I will count this category complete, even though the entire book does not fit within the 'classic' time frame.

10. Humorous or satirical classic

-Associated Shades (1895-1901) - quartet omnibus

by John Kendrick Bangs (American, 1862-1922)

or

-The Carpet People (1971)

by Terry Pratchett (English, 1948-2015)

11. Travel or adventure classic 

-Idylls of the King (1859-1885) - TBR 4

by Lord Alfred Tennyson (British, 1809–1892)

12. Classic play

-Press Cuttings (1909) - play

by George Bernard Shaw (Irish, 1856-1950)

Author Challenges:

1. Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

-The Circle Opens Quartet
     -Magic Steps (2000) - Sandry
     -Street Magic (2001) - Briar
     -Cold Fire (2002) - Daja
     -Shatterglass (2003) - Tris
-The Circle Reforged Quartet (unfinished)
     -The Will of the Empress (2005) - Sandry
     -Melting Stones (2008) - Daja
     -Battle Magic (2013) - Briar (Prequel to The Will of the Empress)
     -Untitled Tris Book (TBD) - not yet published

2. Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- )

-The Arrows Trilogy

    -Arrows of the Queen (1987)
    -Arrow's Flight (1987)
    -Arrow's Fall (1988)

*Additional Valdemar books by Lackey?

Chunkster Challenge:

1. The George MacDonald Treasury (1858-1895) - 650 pages

by George MacDonald (Scottish, 1824-1905)

2. Shirley (1848) - 480 pages

by Charlotte Bronte (English, 1816-1855)

3. The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) - 1,540 pages

by CS Lewis (British, 1898-1963)

4. The Circle Opens Quartet - 1,266 pages
by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

5. The Will of the Empress (2005) - 539 pages
by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

6. Battle Magic (2013) - 464 pages

by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

7. The Arrows Trilogy - 936 pages

by Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- )

8. The Complete Father Brown Stories (1911-1936) - TBR 5 - 770 pages

    -The Innocence of Father Brown - 167 pages

    -The Wisdom of Father Brown - 152 pages

    -The Donnington Affair and The Incredulity of Father Brown - 24 and 147 pages

    -The Secret of Father Brown - 135 pages

    -The Scandal of Father Brown and The Mask of Midas - 135 and 10 pages

by GK Chesterton (English, 1874-1936)

The Book Hoarders' Book Club: (the choice I will most likely read is starred)

1. March - Published 1800-1899

-Lilith by George MacDonald*

-Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen

2. April - Female Author

-Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown

-When Women Ruled the World by Kara Cooney

*Instead I read:

-Shirley by Charlotte Bronte

3. May - Published 1900-1999

-The Man Who Was Thursday by GK Chesterton*

-Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

4. June - Travel or Adventure

-The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

-Idylls of the King by Lord Tennyson*

5. July - POC Author

-Becoming by Michelle Obama*

(This was the only book we all agreed on!)

6. August - Children’s Chapter Book

-The Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe by CS Lewis*

-Moxie by Jen Mathieu

7. September - Published 2000-2021

-To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini

-The Chronicles of Narnia and Philosophy: The Lion, the Witch, and the Worldview 

edited by Bassham and Walls - TBR 6*

Note: I want to reread all of The Chronicles of Narnia before I read this.

8. October - New-to-You Author

-The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

-Postcards from the Edge by Carrie Fisher

*I will probably read a different book.

9. November - Humorous or Satirical

-A House-Boat on the Styx by John Kendrick Bangs*

-We are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler

10. December - New-to-You Book by ‘Fave’ Author (CS Lewis)

-Mere Christianity (read portions)

-Out of the Silent Planet (already read)

*I will probably read instead:

-On Stories and Other Essays on Literature - TBR 7

-The Dark Tower and Other Short Stories - TBR 8

If you're actually keeping count, then, with The George MacDonald Treasury being counted as 2 due to length and The Complete Father Brown Stories being counted as 5 as they were published, I have 38 books to read this year!

As I said earlier, I hope you consider joining the Back to the Classics 2021 reading challenge with me! (Over double the number of people signed up this year compared to last year!)

2020 Reading Wrap-Up

#1. Exile's Honor (2002)

by Mercedes Lackey

#2. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848)

by Anne Bronte

#3. A Singular Life (1895)

by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward

#4. Take a Thief (2001)

by Mercedes Lackey

#5. Daja's Book: The Fire in the Forging (1998) – Circle of Magic Quartet, #3

by Tamora Pierce

They say hindsight is 2020, but I think everyone would have appreciated some foresight into 2020 before it began. It was a strange year, but books will always be a constant one can rely upon. I exceeded my goal of reading 20 books this year and actually read 30! First I will link to the 12 books in my dual reading challenges and then I will rank all 30 books from the year together!

I created monthly categories for my own reading challenge and I also participated in the Back to the Classics reading challenge! (The link will bring you to the 2021 categories.) I changed a couple of the books from my original post, but I still read 1 book for each of the dual categories. That means I get 3 entries into the BTTC drawing!

January - Winter (Cold / Dark) 

-Classic by a Women Author

Left Hand of Darkness (1969)
by Ursula K. Le Guin (American, 1929-2018)

February - Black History Month
-Classic by a Person of Color
The Garies and Their Friends (1857)
by Frank J Webb (African-American, 1828-1894)

March - Women’s History Month 

-19th Century Classic (Published in the 1800s)
Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848)
by Anne Bronte (English, 1820-1849) 

April - Easter / Religion 
-Classic with a Person’s Name in the Title
Doctor Faustus (1592) 

by Christopher Marlowe (English, 1564-1593)

May - Spring (New Beginnings / Children)
-Classic in Translation
Mio, My Son (1956)
by Astrid Lindgren (Swedish, 1907-2002)

June - LGBT Pride Month
-Genre Classic (Science-Fiction)
Babel-17 (1966)
by Samuel R. Delany (African-American, 1942- )

July - American / Patriotic  

-Classic with Nature in the Title
The Catcher in the Rye (1951)
by J. D. Salinger (American, 1919-2010)

August - Summer (Travel / Sun)  

-Classic Adaptation 

Treasure Island (1883) 

by Robert Louis Stevenson (Scottish, 1850-1894)

September - Fall (School / Teachers) 
-Classic with a Place in the Title
Villette (1853)
by Charlotte Bronte (English, 1816-1855)

October - Halloween / Horror
-Abandoned Classic 

Dracula (1897) 

by Bram Stoker (Irish, 1847-1912)

November - Thanksgiving / Family
-Classic About a Family
The Whole Family (1908)
A collaboration of 12 authors edited by: 

Elizabeth Jordan (American, 1865-1947)

December - Christmas / Santa
-20th Century Classic (Published 1900-1970)
Letters From Father Christmas (1920-1943)

by JRR Tolkien (English, 1892-1973)

(NOTE: The Tower Treasure (1927), will count as my 20th-century classic if the Christmas book is disqualified due to being considered a picture book.)

   

In addition to the 12 books for the reading challenges, I read 18 other books! I also am working on 3 author challenges (Bronte sisters, Tamora Pierce, and Mercedes Lackey) AND I'm trying to get through my TBR shelf. Of the 30 books I read, 6 of them were non-fiction. 

Here are the 24 fiction books ranked:

1. Exile's Honor (2002) - 9.6/10

by Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- )

2. Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848) - 9/10

by Anne Bronte (English, 1820-1849)

3. A Singular Life (1895) - 8.7/10

by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward (American, 1844-1911)

4. Take a Thief (2001) - 8.7/10

by Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- )

5. Daja's Book - The Fire in the Forging (1998) – Circle of Magic #3 - 8.7/10

by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

6. Babel-17 (1966) - 8.3/10

by Samuel R. Delany (African-American, 1942- )

7. Sandry's Book - The Magic in the Weaving (1997) – Circle of Magic #1 - 8.3/10

by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

8. Exile's Valor (2003) - 7.9/10

by Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- )

9. Letters From Father Christmas (1920-1943) - 7.9/10
by JRR Tolkien (English, 1892-1973)

10. Left Hand of Darkness (1969) - 7.6/10
by Ursula K. Le Guin (American, 1929-2018)

11. Treasure Island (1883) - 7.6/10
by Robert Louis Stevenson (Scottish, 1850-1894)

12. The Spirit of Christmas (written before 1936) - 7.5/10

by GK Chesterton (English, 1874-1936)

13. Briar's Book - The Healing in the Vine (1999) – Circle of Magic #4 - 7.3/10

by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

14. Tris's Book - The Power in the Storm (1998) – Circle of Magic #2 - 7.1/10

by Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- )

15. The Handmaid's Tale (1985) - 6.9/10

by Margaret Atwood (Canadian, 1939- )

16. The Garies and Their Friends (1857) - 6.7

by Frank J Webb (African-American, 1828-1894)

17. Mio, My Son (1956) - 6.3/10
by Astrid Lindgren (Swedish, 1907-2002)

18. Dracula (1897) - 6.1/10
by Bram Stoker (Irish, 1847-1912)

19. Redwall (1986) - 6/10

by Brian Jacques (English, 1939-2011)

20. The Whole Family (1908) - 5.7/10

A collaboration of 12 authors edited by:
Elizabeth Jordan (American, 1865-1947)

21. Doctor Faustus (1592) - 5.4/10

by Christopher Marlowe (English, 1564-1593)

22. The Tower Treasure (1927) - 5.1/10
by Franklin W. Dixon (Canadian, 1902-1977)

23. Villette (1853) - 4.6/10

by Charlotte Bronte (English, 1816-1855)

24. The Catcher in the Rye (1951) - 1.7/10
by J. D. Salinger (American, 1919-2010)

Reading six non-fiction books is impressive for me! I tend to avoid non-fiction in general, but these had all been sitting on my TBR shelf for a while and I figured it was time to finally read them. I don't have a ranking system for non-fiction books, but half of them I would consider 'good' and the other half 'meh.'

Good non-fiction:

A Dog Called Hope (2016)

by Jason Morgan (American, ?- ) and Damien Lewis (British, 1966- )

Ink-Stained Amazons and Cinematic Warriors: Superwomen in Modern Mythology (2010)

by Jennifer K. Stuller (American, 1975- )

The Supergirls: A History of Comic Book Heroiness (2009)

by Mike Madrid (American, 1950s(?)- )

Meh non-fiction:

Complete Guide to Money (2011)
by Dave Ramsey (American, 1960- )

Perfectly Yourself (2006) - couldn't find my copy, so it's not in any photos in this post
by Matthew Kelly (Australian, 1973- )

The Four Purposes of Life (2011)
by Dan Millman (American, 1946- )

Sometimes you start a book and just have no interest to finish it. 

That happened once this year.

Abandoned book:

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884)
by Mark Twain (American, 1835-1910)

I already have a rough idea of what I want to read for the Back to the Classics 2021 reading challenge and I'm hoping to publish that blog post soon! If you like to read books that have been published 50+ years ago, I highly suggest checking out the challenge!

A Dog Called Hope by Morgan and Lewis

Title: A Dog Called Hope: A Wounded Warrior and the Service Dog Who Saved Him

Authors: Jason Morgan (American, ?- ) 

and Damien Lewis (British, 1966- )

Originally published: 2016
Page count: 324


Dates read: 12/8/2020-12/23/2020
2020 book goal progress: 30 out of 20
Reading category: TBR Shelf


Read my other book reviews for my 2020 goal HERE.

Description on back of book:

A Dog Called Hope is the incredible story of a service dog who brought a devastated soldier back from the brink and taught him how to be a true father. It is the story of Napal, who built bridges between his wheelchair-bound battle buddy and the rest of able-bodied humankind. It is the story of Jason, who found life's true meaning with the help of his faithful companion. Humorous, intensely moving, and uplifting, Jason and Napal's heartwarming tale will brighten any day and lift every heart.

First sentence:
"The air is slick with moisture yet burning hot all at the same time."

Review:

This was a good read. I may have cried several times, but it was inspirational. I have wanted to raise service puppies for a while now and, though it will be hard to give them away after about 18 months, this book has only encouraged me to do so!

Now I'm off to read another book... but since a review should be more about the author of the book than about the writer of the blog, I will let Morgan and Lewis have the last words:

"Even if there was no chance that what I said was true, I still preferred to nurture hope. For without hope, what is there?"

"We define people by the physical, by what we can see. The ability. The physical beauty. The stature of the warrior. But actually what matters is the person inside."

Letters From Father Christmas

Title: Letters From Father Christmas

Author: JRR Tolkien (English, 1892-1973)
Penname: Father Christmas
Originally written: 1920-1943
Page count: 203

Dates read: 12/5/2020-12/17/2020
2020 book goal progress: 29 out of 20
Month category: Dec. - Christmas / Santa
Back to the Classics category: 

20th Century Classic


Read my other book reviews for my 2020 goal HERE.

Description on back of book:
Every December an envelope bearing a stamp from the North Pole would arrive for JRR Tolkien's children. Inside would be a letter in strange spidery handwriting and a beautiful drawing. They were from Father Christmas, telling wonderful tales of life at the North Pole.

From the first note to Tolkien's eldest son in 1920 to the final poignant letter to his youngest daughter in 1943, this new edition celebrates the centenary of that first letter with a stockingful of charming letters, pictures, and decorated envelopes.

First letter:

"Christmas House, North Pole

1920 (Love to daddy, mummy, Michael, & auntie Mary)

Dear John,

I heard you ask daddy what I was like and where I lived. I have drawn Me and My House for you. Take care of the picture. I am just off now for Oxford with my bundle of toys - some for you. Hope I shall arrive in time: the snow is very thick at the North Pole tonight.

Your loving Father Christmas"

CAWPILE Rating: Overall - 7.9/10 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Characters      - 10
Atmosphere   - 10
Writing Style - 10
Plot                - 5
Intrigue          - 5
Logic             - 5
Enjoyment     - 10
What is a CAWPILE Rating?

Review:

This is such an adorable and wonderful short book! I'm glad I splurged and pre-ordered the new 2020 edition! It has all 34 letters in the 22 years that Father Christmas wrote his letters to the Tolkien children (1920 and 1923-1943). Each year there's a Christmas letter from about Dec 20th to the 25th. Sometimes there's also an early letter from about Oct 31 to early Dec... or sometimes there's a late letter from after Christmas. 

Most letters are addressed to all the children of 'stocking' age, with 2 exceptions. In 1924, Father Christmas wrote a letter addressed to John and another addressed to Michael (Christopher was only 1 month old and Priscilla had not been born). In 1934 (the only year with 3 letters), Father Christmas wrote a letter addressed to Christopher and another addressed to Priscilla (John and Michael were both past 'stocking' age by then). I wish some of the letters from the Tolkien children to Father Christmas were included in the book, too.  

The letters range from a couple of sentences to 7 pages long and most of them include a drawing. It's fun to see the simple writing grow to actual storytelling as his children get older. Father Christmas writes in shaky print (because he's old and cold), Polar Bear writes in thick, bold letters (because of his fat, heavy paw), and Ilbereth, an elf secretary, writes in nice cursive. I enjoyed all the typography of the letters - they are really beautiful. (I am glad the letters were transcribed, though. The originals can be difficult to read.)

You meet many characters throughout the letters: Snow Man (who's the gardener), other elves, gnomes, goblins, polar cubs, snowboys, and more. One particularly fun year is 1937, which was the year The Hobbit was first published. There were references to the book and a blurring of the lines between Santa's elves and the Elves of Middle-earth (which I've always toyed with in my imagination). Ilbereth, the elf secretary, even writes 'A very merry Christmas to you all' in Elvish! (Then Polar Bear feels like he's being shown up, so he writes in runes.)

Starting in 1939, the letters don't have the same spark of joy to them. This might be because her Father (Christmas/Tolkien) is only writing to Priscilla and knows he doesn't have many years left... but more likely it has to do with the war. The last 4 letters all mention the war, either directly or indirectly by talking about having low toy supplies and not being able to find all the children because so many have moved. As I started to read the last letter, I wondered if Tolkien knew this would be his last letter - and he did. He basically is saying goodbye to Priscilla and it's pretty sad. Overall, though, it really is a great and fun book - it just also happened to be written during a significant time in history.

Now I'm off to read another book... but since a review should be more about the author of the book than about the writer of the blog, I will let Father Christmas (JRR Tolkein) have the last words (and picture):

"We were beginning to get the first lot of parcels down out of the storerooms into the hall. Polar Bear insisted on taking an enormous pile on his head as well as lots in his arms. Bang Rumble Clatter Crash! Awful moanings and growlings.

I ran out onto the landing and saw he had fallen from top to bottom onto his nose leaving a trail of balls, bundles, parcels, and things all the way down - and had fallen on top of some and smashed them. I hope you got none of these by accident? I have drawn you a picture of it all."

-1928

Sample Typography:

bold  

Polar Bear

squiggle print

Father Christmas

CURSIVE

Ilbereth, elf secretary

bold

Polar Bear

(CURSIVE

Ilbereth)

The Spirit of Christmas by GK Chesterton

Title: The Spirit of Christmas: Stories - Poems - Essays

Author: GK Chesterton (English, 1874-1936)
Originally written: before 1936
Page count: 80


Dates read: 11/24/2020-12/1/2020
2020 book goal progress: 28 out of 20
Reading category: TBR Shelf


Read my other book reviews for my 2020 goal HERE.


Description on back of book:
This new edition of Chesterton's writing includes his beautiful Christmas poems and a selection of stories as lively and imaginative as one might expect from the creator of Father Brown, together with penetrating and often hilarious comments on Christmas past and present.

A critic has said that Chesterton was "especially the poet of Christmas, as Charles Dickens was the prose master of Christmas." (My review of Dickens at Christmas.)

Mini-reviews and favorite quotes:

I love fiction, but I struggle through both poetry and non-fiction. Since a large portion of this book consisted of poetry and non-fiction essays, it wasn't an ideal read for me. I knew about the poems and essays before I started to read the book (thanks to the title), but even the heads up didn't make it better - I wish there were more stories in this collection. Overall, I enjoyed the "Christmas Spirit" in the whole book. Much of the reading was humorous in a satirical way, which I appreciated.

When looking at collections like this, I like to know what exactly is included, so I'm going to have the list of contents with mini-reviews and favorite quotes.

I. A Child is Born (Early Poems, 1894- 1900)

-Xmas Day

-The Nativity

-A Christmas Carol

-Joseph

-The Wise Men (My favorite from this section.)

The child that ere worlds begun

(We need but walk a little way,

We need but see a latch undone.)

The child that played with moon and sun

Is playing with a little hay.

(stanza 7 out of 10)

II. Sausages and Stars (Essays, Comment, and a story)

Note: The only difference I can tell between the 'essays' and 'comments' is the length. Together, they range from 2 sentences to 5 pages, with most being a half to a full page.

-Christmas that is Coming

+I found this particularly humorous.

-The Christmas Ballads

-Christmas Pudding

-Dickens' Christmas Tales

+I enjoyed this especially because I read all of Dickens' Christmas books last year. The link is in the description above.

-Turkey

-Mock Turkey

-Sausages and Stars

-The Shop of Ghosts (story)

+This was my favorite, not only of this section but of the whole book! I found it a clever Christmas ghost story. Below are the first several sentences. If you're interested, and I highly suggest the quick read, the title links to the whole story.

Nearly all the best and most precious things in the universe you can get for a halfpenny. I make an exception, of course, of the sun, the moon, the earth, people, stars, thunderstorms, and such trifles. You can get them for nothing. But the general principal will be at once apparent. In the street behind me, for instance, you can now get a ride on an electric tram for a halfpenny. To be on an electric tram is to be on a flying castle in a fairy tale. You can get quite a large number of brightly colored sweets for a halfpenny.

III. The Inn at the End of the World (Poems of Middle Life, 1900-1914)

-A Child of the Snows (favorite)

And at night we win to the ancient inn

Where the child in the frost is furled,

We follow the feet where all souls meet

At the inn at the end of the world.

(stanza 3 out of 4)

-The House of Christmas (favorite)

A child in a foul stable,

Where the beasts feed and foam;

Only where He was homeless

Are you and I at home;

We have hands that fashion and heads that know,

But our hearts we lost - how long ago!

In a place no chart nor ship can show

Under the sky's dome.

(stanza 3 out of 5)

-A Word

-The Truce of Christmas

-A Song of Gifts to God

IV. A Feast of Fools (Essays, Comment, and a Story)

-More Thoughts on Christmas

-Dickens Again

-A Christmas Present

-The Theology of Christmas Presents (favorite)

Christmas is something better than a thing for all; it is a thing for everybody. And if anyone finds such phrases aimless or fantastic, or thinks that the distinction has no existence except in a refinements of words, the only test needed is the permanent test of the populace. Take any hundred girls from a board school and see whather they do not make a distinction between a flower for each and a garden for all. 

 

-Christmas and the Professors (favorite)

-Some Fallacies and Santa Claus

-A Further Thought

-The Modern Scrooge (story)

+This was another heart-warming, Dicksonian Christmas ghost story. I enjoyed the short story, but, even with 'favorites,' a special quote doesn't always jump out to me.

V. The Turkey and the Turk (The Mummer's Play)

-The Turkey and the Turk: The Mummer's Play

+I was looking forward to reading a Christmas play, but it was a great disappointment. It was just a strange tale that could almost be considered sci-fi - which normally would be a good thing, it just didn't seem to fit with the rest of the book. I was not a fan. 

The first lines:

FATHER CHRISTMAS:

Here am I Father Christmas; well you know it,

Though critics say it fades, my Christmas Tree,

Yet was it Dickens who became my poet

And who the Dickens may the critics be?

VI. The Spirit of Christmas (Essays, a story, and a Comment)

-The Contented Man (favorite)

-Dickens at Christmas

-Christmas Must Go

-Christmas and Geoffrey Chaucer

-The New Christmas (story)

+This was a strange story about a futuristic Nativity from the Wise Men's' perspective. This was not a favorite, despite it being a story.

-Snow in Bethlehem (favorite)

-The Heart of Bethlehem

-The Spirit of Christmas (favorite)

-The Three Gifts (favorite)

There were three things prefigured and promised by the gifts in the cave of Bethlehem concerning the Child who received them; that He should be crowned like a King (gold); that He should be worshipped like a God (frankincense); and that He should die like a man (myrrh). And these things would sound like Eastern flattery, were it not for the third.

VII. Gloria in Profundis (A Last Poem)

-Gloria in Profundis

Glory to God in the Lowest

The spout of the stars in spate - 

Where the thunderbolt thinks to be slowest

And the lightning fears to be late:

As men dive for a sunken gem

Pursuing, we hunt and hound it,

The fallen star that has found it

In the cavern of Bethlehem.

(stanza 4 out of 4)

Now I'm off to read another book... but since a review should be more about the author of the book than about the writer of the blog, I will let GK Chesterton have the last words:

Our ignorance about fairy tales refers back to that ultimate ignorance about life which makes life itself a fairy tale. Some complain that parents will not tell their children whether Santa Claus exists or not. The parents do not tell them for the excellent reason that the parents do not know.

-'Some Fallacies and Santa Claus' from Section IV. 

 

The child who doubts about Stanta Claus has insomnia. 

The child who beleieves has a good night's rest.

-'A Further Thought' from Section IV, in it's entirety.