25 Days of Christmas Books!

Deck the halls with lots of books… Falalalala…la lalala.
To the bookshelf, let’s all look… Falalalala…la lalala.
Don we now our reading glasses… Falala… lalala… la la la.
Browse before the old year passes… Falalalala… la lalala.

Tis the season to be reading!
Is there anything better than cuddling up with your loved ones before a warm fire and sharing a story?
No, there really isn't. And it is that much better when you can combine that special bonding time with the magic and excitement of the holiday season. It is time to start a new holiday tradition:
a Christmas book Advent calendar!

You are probably familiar with the idea of a Christmas Advent calendar: counting down the days of Advent leading up to Christmas Day. There are many, many different types of Advent calendars out there, from traditional, religious ones that feature a manger scene to more secular variations that feature holiday scenes with Santa or popular television characters. And, of course, most Advent calendars also feature some sort of little treat for each day as you count down. Well, we here at BTBL are big fans of the book Advent calendar as it blends the magic of the season with the joy of reading! It is the best!!

An example of a Christmas book Advent from Raising Readers.

What is a book Advent calendar? The most common way to go about the book Advent we have seen is to gather 25 Christmas stories, wrap them in festive wrapping paper and place them in a basket or under the tree. Then, each night at bedtime (or after dinner or whatever time works for you and your family) your child picks out one of the books to unwrap and you all snuggle up for a festive read aloud! It’s that simple! You could get a little more specific with the activity by numbering the books so that the stories correspond to the date, such as reading The 12 Days of Christmas on the 13th and The Night Before Christmas on the 24th, but the basic idea is to read one Christmas book each night as a way to celebrate the season. The books can be new, used or from your local library! It's all up to you.

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Here is a list of titles to help get you started with your book Advent:

1. Monster Needs a Christmas Tree by Paul Czajak
2. Llama Llama Holiday Drama and Llama Llama Jingle Bells by Anna Dewdney
3. A Bad Kitty Christmas by Nick Bruel
4. Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! by Doreen Cronin
5. Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad! by Mercer Mayer
6. A Wish to be a Christmas Tree by Colleen Monroe
7. Reindeer Christmas by Mark Kimball Moulton
8. Little Blue Truck’s Christmas by Alice Schertle
9. Memoirs of an Elf by Devin Scillian
10. Here Comes Santa Cat by Deborah Underwood
11. The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen
12. How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
13. A Pirate’s Twelve Days of Christmas by Philip Yates
14. Madeline’s Christmas by Ludwig Bemelmans
15. Santa Rex by Molly Idle
16. The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg*
17. Santa Knows by Cynthia & Greg Leitich Smith
18. Jingle Bugs by David A. Carter
19. Bear Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson
20. S is for Santa: A Christmas Alphabet by Greg Paprocki
21. Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree by Robert Barry
22. How to Catch an Elf by Adam Wallace
23. The Night Before the Night Before Christmas by Natasha Wing
24. The Night Before Christmas (any version your family likes)
25. Christmas is Here: Adapted from the King James Bible, illustrated by Lauren Castillo

For more title ideas take a look at our Holiday Book List.

Also, check out this variation on the idea from Reading Confetti.

Share photos of your book Advent calendars and tell us a bit about your family traditions in the comments!

Happy holidays and happy reading!

-Kate from BTBL