An Early American Christmas by Tomie de Paola

In the author's note, Tomie de Paola tells how he lives in a New Hampshire town and how New Englanders were not always Christmas-friendly. He researched and imagined how the transformation of these early folk might have been influenced by one family from the Old World who joyfully celebrated with their family traditions.

I love how you get a picture of how a German family might have celebrated Christmas. What wonderful, family-centered activities to build excitement for the Magical Day! Making candles, growing and storing apples, baking cookies, cutting out paper decorations, painting nuts, finding a tree...So many ways for a family to join together to prepare. 

I discovered this book at the library this year! This book reminds me of two other books that I will now have to review shortly:  The Story of the Von Trapp Family Singers and The Oxcart Man. I love Tomie de Paola's illustrations, too, which reminds me of another Christmas story illustrated by him....

(New York: Holiday House, 1987).

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto, illus. by Ed Martinez

Feliz Navidad! I hope you will agree that November 1 is not too soon for me to begin sharing my Christmas books! Today I thought of Too Many Tamales because my daughter is sampling some tamales at a Day of the Dead party.

This charming story tells about Maria, a little girl who helps her mother make tamales for their family Christmas party. The daughter, who had tried on her mother's wedding ring in the cooking process, discovers (after the tamales are all prepared) that the ring is missing! What will she do? Enlisting her young cousins' help, the children begin eating the tamales, one by one. Do they find the ring in the tamales? Find out when you read this charming tale about loving family tradition, the innocence of childhood mistakes, and the gentleness with which a mother handles the problem. I love this story!

(New York: PaperStar/Putnam & Grosset, 1996)