Try new tales for holidays
Books
wish lists. Then when Santa arrives, he runs into Peppa and realizes he’s lost his list of what goes to which kid. Peppa saves the day and helps him out.
“Fa La La,” by Leslie Patricelli. In this board book, Baby is excited about Christmas and gets to meet Santa and pick out a tree and sing carols.
“Santa is Coming to Texas,” by Steve Smallman, illustrated by Robert Dunn. Santa is headed to Texas, but a dense fog has him lost until he runs smack into the Capitol. Then he heads down Congress Avenue and turns at Zilker Park and Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum. Then he’s off to other Texas cities.
“Sad Santa,” by Tad Carpenter. It’s the day after Christmas and Santa is very sad. He has nothing to do. Then a letter makes him realize that the spirit of Christmas is about giving and it shouldn’t be just for one day.
“Dinosaur vs. Santa,” by Bob Shea. Dinosaur is ready for Christmas. He writes his letter to Santa, he makes presents for his parents. Now he just has to not be seen by Santa when Santa arrives.
“Christmas Magic,” by Kirsten Hall, illustrated by Simon Mendez. Pull the tab and turn the night sky into Santa and his reindeer flying above it as Christmas Eve unfolds in this changing-picture book.
“The Great Christmas Crisis,” by Kim Norman, illustrated by Jannie Ho. It’s a month before Christmas and Santa goes undercover to figure out that there’s no way the elves will get everything done. Don’t worry, Mrs. Claus has a plan.
Snowmen and winter
“Snowmen at Work,” by Caralyn Buehner, illustrated by Mark Buehner. Follow snowmen through their jobs as librarians, dentists, bakers and factory workers. Each page has a hidden picture of a mouse, T. rex, cat and rabbit.
“Snowmen All Year,” by Caralyn Buehner, illustrated by Mark Buehner. This board book takes snowmen to the beach, to the zoo and other adventures.
“Rabbit’s Snow Dance, A Traditional Iroquois Story,” as told by James and Joseph Bruchac, illustrated by Jeff Newman. Rabbit wants it to snow, but most of the other animals do not. Still Rabbit brings the snow with his song and dance, but he’ll soon learn a lesson in not being selfish.
“Cold Snap,” by Eileen Spinelli, illustrated by Marjorie Priceman. The weather is turning nasty, but the town gathers at the top of a snowy hill for the warmth of companionship.
Classic tales
“Becoming a Ballerina,” by Lise Friedman & Mary Dowdle. This behind-the-scenes look at “The Nutcracker” comes from the Boston Ballet and features details from costumes to practices.
“Scrooge,” by Charles Dickens, adapted by Rodolphe and Estelle Meyrand. “Scrooge” becomes a graphic novel in this beautiful retelling.
“Stable in Bethlehem, A Countdown to Christmas,” by Joy N. Hulme, illustrated by Dan Andreasen. In the stable, 12 drowsy doves are cooing, 11 cows are mooing until we get to one small baby in this board book.
General holiday
“Daddy Christmas & Hanukkah Mama,” by Selina Alko. Step inside a home where both traditions are celebrated.
“Just Right for Christmas,” by Birdie Black and Rosalind Beardshaw. All of the animals make something for someone else for Christmas that is not too showy or too expensive, but comes from the heart and is “just right.”
“Christmas at the Toy Museum,” by David Lucas. The toys are lamenting that there are no gifts for Christmas. Then the toys realized they can give themselves to one another. The day is saved.
“The Christmas Quiet Book,” by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Renata Liwska. The forest animals go through the holiday in quiet ways from drinking hot cocoa to making snow angels to listening for sleighbells.
“A Pirate’s Twelve Days of Christmas,” by Philip Yates, illustrated by Sebastià Serra. Ahoy, Mateys, “The Twelve Days of Christmas” have been pirate-ed with the kicker, “an’ a parrot a-snoozin’ with me.”
Things to do
“Hanukkah Mad Libs.” You can create your own way to play dreidel by filling in these blanks.