blogis librorum. A blog about books. Rare books.

Charles Dickens understood Christmas. No one knew better than him that this year-end holiday should do but one thing: lift our spirits. It's a celebration to keep us warm and merry in the short days and frigid winds of winter. We are to do this with good food and wine, lights, music, gifts, and company. A crucial element of this palliative recipe was stories, and Dickens both extended and innovated the cultural tradition of Christmas in his own novels and tales. It’s an age-old belief that no one should go through Christmas without a good book, and the gift ideas below will help you make that wish come true for your friends and family.

Traditions abound during the Christmas season. Some people carol, others sled. Some vacation, others stay close to home. Many celebrate with a church community or eat a holiday meal with family and friends. Perhaps most appropriately - especially here in this bookish corner of the internet - is the fact that for many people, Christmas traditions center around books and storytelling.

With the holidays fast approaching, it can be easy to take for granted all of the Christmas cheer that seeps into daily life. From the omnipresence of Christmas lights and miniature Santas to the unabashed spinning of Bing Crosby records, one might be lulled into such a state of wintry bliss that one could forget that the true force of Christmas spirit emanates from one’s bookshelf. Here are ten of the most collectible Christmas books to enliven your holiday spirit.  

With my favorite holiday approaching, there is no better way to get in the Christmas spirit than reading and collecting The Night before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore. This essential children’s book has long been one of my favorites. When I first began collecting, I knew I wanted to focus on something that I had cherished as a child; so naturally I chose The Night before Christmas books, among a few others. Still a classic to this day, The Night before Christmas encompasses the magic of Christmas that is treasured by children and so often overlooked in the hustle and bustle of the season. 

Charles Dickens published his final Christmas novella, The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain, A Fancy for Christmas-Time, in 1848. While it has been upstaged by the most famous of his yuletide stories, A Christmas Carol, both share a distinct similarity: a ghostly plot. While Dickens is often credited with inventing the modern idea of Christmas, that of trees and garlands and presents, he also cast a spooky, haunting mood over the holiday. To Dickens, Christmas was not only a time for festive warmth, but one for dark examination, too.

The first snowfall of the year, the anticipation of Christmas, the wealth of holiday traditions: the end of the year is filled with opportunities for joy and fascination for the young (and young at heart). It’s no surprise, then, that the list of Caldecott award winners is filled with winter tales. It’s the perfect time of year to snuggle up with loved ones and read a book, so here are some classics to enjoy, from The Polar Express to The Big Snow.

Have you met Eloise? If not, allow me to introduce you. Eloise is a precocious little lady. She lives with her nanny and her pets - a dog and a turtle - at The Plaza Hotel in New York. Eloise is spunky and mischievous, and she spends her days adventuring in and around the hotel when she’s not traveling. Eloise is the epitome of a know-it-all, because, at six years old, she of course, knows it all. Her escapades are detailed in her own words over the course of four classic children's books. 

In the heart of summer, many of us are reeling from skyrocketing temperatures and thinking wistfully of the crisp days of winter. Cool down as we celebrate Christmas in July and browse the following collectible Christmas favorites.

The holidays are fast approaching, and the spirit of the season can be seen everywhere! This time of year, we often turn to favorite books like Clement Clarke Moore's beloved The Night Before Christmas or Hilary Knight's whimsical Christmas Nutshell Library. If you collect Christmas books or books by legendary authors, you may also want to add these tomes to your personal library. Though relatively unknown, these three books delightfully capture the Christmas spirit with all the style and panache one would expect from Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, or JRR Tolkien.  

“A Visit from St. Nicholas”—also known as, “Twas the Night before Christmas” and “The Night before Christmas”—has become one of the most beloved poems in the United States. Published anonymously in 1823, this poem was integral in shaping the American conception of St. Nicholas and Santa Claus. Yet despite its lighthearted content, a bitter controversy once arose over its authorship.

The poem was uncredited for 21 years. Finally, in 1844, professor Clement Clarke Moore claimed authorship of the poem, printing it in an anthology of his poetry. Moore stated that he had only acknowledged the poem at his children’s insistence, not wanting such a childish poem to detract from his scholarly reputation.