Review: Stories that tell of tales of the season
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 30, 2013
Everyone has had a childhood memory of reading or being read their first Christmas tale and out of the many that have written Clement C. Moore’s The Night Before Christmas is the most memorable timeless classic and definitive story of jolly Old Saint Nicholas.  But are readers familiar with The Night After Christmas?  Indeed, it is an interesting story that tells of the follies of the night after the festivities are done and sugar plums dancing within one’s head ends up with a tummy ache and a visit from Dr. Brough.  It is a play on "The Night Before" with a tongue-in-cheek quality and ends like the former, “And I heard him exclaim, as he drove out of sight:  These feastings and candies make Doctor’s bills right!” (Kindle Location 70)In addition to the legendary tale is a collection of somewhat obscure Christmas stories from around the world from the United States to Norway that may be of interest to any reader that is curious.  They range from the humorous to the poetic but not quite within the similar vein of a Dickens, Irving, Ingalls Wilder, Alcott, or even a Waltons’ Christmas but short and sweet enough to share with the entire family.  Although all of the stories are brief they resonate of what Christmas is all about -- kindness, gratitude, and thankfulness, which is displayed in several of the stories, Miriam T. Barnard’s “Mama’s Happy Christmas,””The Christmas Carol of the Birds” (Mrs. G. Hall), “A Turkey For One” (Lavinia S. Goodwin), “What Happened Christmas Eve” (Oliver Herfold), and “A Ragged Christmas Feast.”  And most of all, each story shows how the season brings about a coming together with family and friends as well as strangers.The Night Before Christmas and Other Popular Stories For Children is a cornucopia of stories that are unique and introduces or reminds young and old readers alike of the greater meaning of what the holiday season is significant of.  And a great way to share these stories may be in front of the fireplace or simply where everyone is gathered together.