Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge

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Clearly I need to have a little fun and read something nice.  So I'm joining Michelle at her Spirit of Christmas blog for the annual Christmas reading challenge.  The rules:



  • challenge will run from Monday, November 19, 2012 through Sunday, January 6, 2013 (Twelfth Night or Epiphany).
  • cross over with other challenges is totally permitted AND encouraged!
  • These must be Christmas novels, books about Christmas lore, a book of Christmas short stories or poems, books about Christmas crafts, and for the first time...a children's Christmas books level!
  • visit this POST for a list of new Christmas books for 2012.  There are a lot of good ones coming out this year, including the new Richard Paul Evans novel, A Winter Dream (I just got it yesterday!).
  • Levels:
            --Candy Cane:  read 1 book
            --Mistletoe:  read 2-4 books
            --Christmas Tree:  read 5 or 6 books (this is the fanatic level...LOL!)
          Additional levels:
            --Fa La La La Films:  watch a bunch or a few Christmas movies...it's up to you!
            --Visions of Sugar Plums:  read books with your children this season and share what you read
          *the additional levels are optional, you still must complete one of the main reading levels above

  • the most important rule?  Have fun!!!
  • I will have a review linky posted as a page the day the challenge starts.  You will find it at the top of the left sidebar.
  • Sign up in the linky below (link to your post with your reading list...you can change up your list during the challenge...I just want to be able to stop by to welcome you and see what you plan to read).
One final note:  I am going to do a giveaway of a mystery box of Christmas books to participants in the U.S. (At the moment, I'm not sure on an International prize because of finances, but if I find that I can afford it, I will pick an International winner and they can choose a Christmas book (under $10 or three bargain books for $10, if they're running the promo at the time) from Better World Books.  Giveaway will end at the end of the challenge.

I plan to join for the Mistletoe level of 2-4 books.  As it happens, I checked out a Christmas book by Elizabeth Goudge the day before I found this challenge, so that will be one (it's really partly a 'gobbets' book, but is supposed to be mostly not).  I don't know what the other title will be.  I'm also going to try to watch The Nightmare Before Christmas (that's why I picked the Jack button!)--my poor kids have never seen it.  I've been trying to borrow it from a friend for ages.

Are you planning any Christmas reading this year?

Comments

  1. FaithNovember 18, 2012 at 6:27 PM

    Oh! Oh! I want to do this too. Just today I was thinking about how I wanted to read A Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens. I've never read it.

    I love Elizabeth Goudge. What Christmas book did she write?

    ReplyDelete
  2. AONovember 18, 2012 at 6:55 PM

    hi Jean! this is great! i was also planning to do some Christmas reading and i already have some titles on my list. now i have to decide whether it's all literary or contemporary or a mix of both.

    ReplyDelete
  3. JeanNovember 18, 2012 at 8:15 PM

    It's called A Christmas Book, and it has some short stories and some Christmas chapters from novels (luckily, I've already read 3 of those). I'm not thrilled about the chapters, but I have this problem that I love Elizabeth Goudge and my library only has about 6 of her books and two of them are collections of gobbets like this. So, argh.

    I will definitely also read the Tolstoy short story that I loved last year. I'm not sure what else. Connie Willis has a Christmas short story collection that I love most of, and I will probably read at least my favorite story from that (I think it's the one titled "Inn").

    A Cricket on the Hearth sounds good. I might even have it. Any suggestions from your shelf, Ao?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Michelle Stockard MillerNovember 18, 2012 at 10:38 PM

    Welcome to the challenge, Jean. Hope you get some fun Christmas reading in this season. =O)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Adriana@ClassicalQuestDecember 7, 2012 at 10:16 AM

    I should join this since we are reading Christmas books every night anyway!

    ReplyDelete
  6. JeanDecember 8, 2012 at 12:34 PM

    Yep, you should! :)

    ReplyDelete

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