Traditional Christmas Stories for Children

The Night Before Christmas, A Christmas Carol, The Gift of the Magi

Oct 12, 2008

Reading Christmas stories together can be a special part of a family Christmas tradition, especially when the stories are traditional Christmas classics.

There are a wide variety of Christmas stories available, but sometimes it is nice to return to old favourites as part of a special family time in the lead up to Christmas Day.

“’Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;” is perhaps one of the most well-known beginnings to a Christmas tale. Written in 1822 by a New York clergyman, this poem was originally anonymously published under the title A Visit by Saint Nicholas, but this title was soon replaced by the first line of the story.

The 1995 version of The Night Before Christmas published by Running Press includes larger text and beautiful soft-focus full page illustrations by Christian Birmingham, ideal for keeping even the most excited young child captivated on Christmas Eve. The captivating poetry of the story will quickly become a treasured part of a family Christmas Eve bedtime routine.

Arguably one of Dickens best known stories, A Christmas Carol was originally published in 1843 and was instantly popular. Such is the imagery of the story that even those who haven’t read the book are aware of Ebenezer Scrooge and his “Bah! Humbug!” attitude to the celebration of Christmas.

Miserly and miserable, Scrooge is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who challenge his selfish ways. After his confrontations with the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Yet To Come, Scrooge has a change of heart and rises on Christmas Day with a renewed sense of goodwill towards his fellow man.

Walker Books has released a complete and unabridged edition of A Christmas Carol for Christmas 2008. The beautifully presented hardcover volume includes Dickens’ short story A Christmas Tree, first published in 1850 and is exquisitely illustrated by award-winning Australian illustrator Robert Ingpen.

A long and involved story, this book is ideal for reading together as a family over a series of nights.

First published in 1909, The Gift of the Magi tells the story of Della and Jim, a young couple in love but too poor to buy gifts for each other for Christmas. Both Della and Jim choose to sacrifice their most precious possession in order to purchase something for each other.

Della sells her beautiful long hair in order to purchase a watch chain for Jim’s watch, which belonged to his father. Jim sells his watch so that he can buy Della combs for her hair.

Delicately illustrated by P J Lynch, Walker Books has released an edition of this traditional story of love and sacrifice for Christmas 2008. O Henry concludes his story by declaring Bella and Jim to be not only foolish because of their unnecessary sacrifice, but also the wisest of all who give gifts as they represent the true spirit of selfless giving.

A beautifully told short story emphasising the selfless nature of giving from the heart, the language of The Gift of the Magi is likely to be a little confusing to young readers without some adult assistance. Read together it opens up opportunities to talk about special and treasured gifts received in the past.

Create Special Family Christmas Story Traditions

Including one or two special storybooks as part of a family Christmas tradition can help to create special Christmas memories for family members to treasure. They can also help parents to ensure that children have an opportunity to consider some of the more important aspects of Christmas in addition to the receiving of gifts and obvious commercial promotions of the season.

The copyright of the article Traditional Christmas Stories for Children in Children’s Books is owned by Susan Whelan. Permission to republish Traditional Christmas Stories for Children in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.