Book Picks, December 2011

Home for the Holidays (the Mother-Daughter Book Club)

By Heather Vogel Frederick
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $15.99
Join the girls of the Mother-Daughter Book Club this Christmas season for a variety of holiday-themed adventures! Becca, Megan, Emma, Cassidy, and Jess have plenty of reading material to bring on their trips, too, because the book club is tackling the Betsy-Tacy series before their next meeting on New Year’s Eve. But unfortunately, nothing goes quite as planned for any of the girls. On a Christmas cruise with their families, Megan and Becca fight over the dashing son of the ship’s captain. Cassidy and her family fly back to California to visit Cassidy’s sister Courtney… but when the West Coast causes homesickness for their former life in Laguna Beach, the family begins to question what state they should call home. And a disastrous sledding accident causes both Emma and Jess to completely change their holiday plans. Between squabbles, injuries, and blizzards, everything seems to be going wrong. Will the girls be able to find their holiday spirit in time for Christmas? (For ages 9 and up)

Chanukah Lights
By Michael J. Rosen
Paper art by Robert Sabuda Candlewick, $34.99
A beautiful new book from a pop-up master and an acclaimed poet and author is a glorious celebration of the true spirit of Chanukah. Open this beautiful gift book and follow the Festival of Lights through place and time—from Herod’s temple to a shtetl in Russia; from a refugee ship bound for the New World to an Israeli kibbutz. Inspired by Michael J. Rosen’s reverent poem, Robert Sabuda’s striking pop-ups depict each night’s menorah in a different scene, using imagery such as desert tents, pushcart lanterns, olive trees, and a final panorama of skyscrapers. Sure to be a treasured family heirloom, this stunning collaboration showcases the spirit and resilience of a people in search of home. (For all ages)

The Littlest Evergreen
Written and illustrated by Henry Cole
Katherine Tegan Books, $16.99
Henry Cole, author of the delightful chapter book A Nest for Celeste, wistfully recounts the life and times of a Christmas tree in this lovely picture book. When the sound of chain saws in late autumn comes, it stirs fear in the tree that has come to love growing on a wide-open hillside. The “littlest evergreen” is spared thanks to its small size, it is bundled, roots and all, off to the Christmas tree lot, where a family brings it home for a holiday celebration and a new life afterward. Beautiful expanses of evergreen forest and close-ups of woodland creatures may give readers new appreciation for that definitive seasonal decoration. (For ages 2 and up)

The Christmas Wedding
By James Patterson and Richard DiLalo
Little, Brown and Company, $25.99
It’s always fun to read a novel around the holiday, and this one satisfies those who enjoy a love story. The Christmas tree is decorated, the cookies are baked, and the packages are wrapped, but the biggest celebration this Christmas is Gaby Summerhill’s wedding. Since Gaby was widowed three years ago, her four children have drifted apart, each consumed by the ups and downs of their own lives. They haven’t celebrated Christmas together since their father’s death, but when Gaby announces that she’s getting married—and that the groom will remain a secret until the wedding day—she may finally be able to bring them home for the holidays. But the wedding isn’t Gaby’s only surprise—she has one more gift for her children, and it could change all their lives forever. With deeply affecting characters and the emotional twists of a James Patterson thriller, The Christmas Wedding is a fresh look at family and the magic of the season. (For adults)