“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more!” – How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Dr Seuss

‘Tis the season for you and your tiny humans to curl up with a good book and a cup of cocoa (or egg-nog if you’re a grown up!) As the holiday season draws closer, we thought we’d share some of our favorite festive children’s books with you! You may recognize many of these, but we do hope you’ll discover some new gems here too!

All I Want for Christmas – Rachel Bright

Age suitability – 3+

A charming story about two penguins, who, while preparing for Christmas, discover that love is the perfect gift!

Last Stop on the Reindeer Express – Maudie Powell-Tuck

Age Suitability – 3+

This book is so beautifully illustrated, and so wonderfully interactive with doors that open into the next page, and peek through holes, with a charming story about a young girl who stumbles upon a magical mailbox and finds herself on board the Reindeer Express travelling through the skies and sparkling seas.  Visually stunning! Absolutely delightful.

Stick Man – Julia Donaldson

Age suitability – 3+

We are huge Donaldson/Scheffler fans at THR and this one is a great favorite. Stick Man lives in a family tree with his Stick Lady Love and 3 stick children. One day when out for a jog he gets snatched up by a dog and adventure ensues!

How the Grinch Stole Christmas – Dr Seuss

Age suitability – 3+

No list would be complete without this one, would it?

Father Christmas – Raymond Briggs

Age suitability – 4+

A funny and magical Christmas story from Raymond Briggs, who we adore! In comic book style we meet a very down-to-earth, sometimes a bit grumpy, Father Christmas, with a very tough job to do. It is such a fun book for children and grown ups!

The Polar Express – Chris Van Allsburg

Age suitability – 4+

A beautiful tale about a boy who takes a magical train ride to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. While the movie is brilliant, the book is just so wonderful to read and has a very special place in our hearts!

Letters from Father Christmas – JRR Tolkien

Age suitability – 6+

Delightful for both grownups AND children, this is a collection of letters J.R.R Tolkien wrote for his children from Father Christmas, telling wonderful stories of adventure and mischief he and his helpers get into. It is so wholesome; the illustrations are so precious. We love it!

Bah! Humbug! – Michael Rosen

Age suitability – 8+

This is a wonderful retelling of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. A modern-day Scrooge story where a young boy named Harry is playing the part of Scrooge in the school play, and is super nervous as his workaholic, rather grumpy dad, is in the audience.

A boy called Christmas – Matt Haig

Age suitability – 8+

This is a wonderfully cute story of how Santa Claus became who he is. Great for young readers to read on their own or to be read to. Magic, adventure and snow! And if you enjoy this there are two more to follow! (The Girl Who Saved Christmas and Father Christmas and me)

A Christmas Carol – Dickens, illustrated by Quentin Blake

Age suitability – 8+

Or if you wish to stick to the ultimate Christmas classic, we highly recommend this lovely edition illustrated by Quentin Blake.