I don't know about you but I love reading Christmas-y books around the holiday season. Snuggling down with a blanket and some hot chocolate in front of the Christmas tree...the lights sparkling and the Christmas carols playing softly in the background (or loudly if you're like me and love to randomly burst into song!). Ah! Sounds great, doesn't it? So today I thought I'd share a list of FREE books you can download and read over Christmas. Mostly novellas, and pretty much all old out-of-print books, these are perfect for a comfy-cozy evening in December. *side note: I may not agree with *everything* in these books and there are a couple with some euphemisms here and there, so please bear that in mind. On the whole though these are very enjoyable reads.*
- The Old Peabody Pew by Kate Douglas Wiggin. I read this book first when I was thirteen and thought it was the sweetest thing ever...and I still do! It's a small town-tale, and Nancy Wentworth is preparing to spend Christmas with just her cat and the memories of long-ago love.
- Jimsy the Christmas Kid by Leona Dalrymple. Jimsy is just a regular kid-of-the-streets, but this year he gets a chance at a real Christmas when he is shipped out to a small town to spend the holiday with a childless couple. Jimsy is lovable and hilarious and under the impression that everyone likes him...but unfortunately, his host isn't too pleased with this street kid.
- On Christmas Day in the Morning by Grace Richmond. When Guy realizes how lonely his aging parents are at Christmas, he does all he can to get his siblings in on his plan to surprise their parents.
- On Christmas Day in the Evening by Grace Richmond. This is the sequel to the previously mentioned book, and I actually like it better. A couple years after the first story, the siblings have made it a tradition to go to their parent's home for Christmas. But this year Nan decides it's time to reopen the local church and try to get the bitter townspeople together for a Christmas service.
- The Bird's Christmas Carol by Kate Douglas Wiggin. Invalid Carol is a true Christmas child, and she wants to give the rowdy, fun-loving Ruggles family next door to her the best Christmas ever.
- The Mansion by Henry Van Dyke. Definitely one of the most thoughtful book out of the ones I have listed, this story is short but convicting. When a wealthy man falls asleep on Christmas Eve he has a dream that will change his life.
- When the Yule Log Burns by Leona Dalrymple. An elderly doctor and his wife are saddened when their children are "unable" to come home for Christmas, so they take two poor siblings in for the holiday.
- Beasley's Christmas Party by Booth Tarkington. Super quirky and with a lot of lovable characters, this doesn't start out as a Christmas story but ends as one. A young journalist moves to a new town and meets the Honorable Mr. Beasley-- a quiet man who suddenly starts talking to thin air.
- The Romance of a Christmas Card by Kate Douglas Wiggin. Spunky small-town preacher's wife Reba designs a Christmas card that just might prove to turn several lives around.
- Wind Chimes, a Christmas Story Collection by Victoria Minks. OK, so yes, it's not actually free right now-- but it's a mere 99 cents and you get not just one short story but six! All historical and with definite flavor of goodwill in them, these are all about family, forgiveness, and God's love.
There you have it! 10 Christmas stories to spend an evening with...and for free! #awesome!
Don't forget to check out my link-up pardners and their blogs! You can find them all here at Faith's blog: Stories by Firefly.
<3
Victoria