Holiday choices for the book lovers out there

The holiday season is just like any other one – it has a lot of timely literary fare tied to it so we can immerse ourselves in all things yuletide. There’s still more than a week before the big day to go out and find books apropos for all the mistletoe. Here are a few to get you in the mood to decorate your tree or concoct sugary goodness for Old Saint Nick.

Who hasn’t walked through a mall during Christmas time and heard the most blood-curdling sounds coming from the place where Santa is supposed to be? They’re actually not filming the next “Hostel” movie – kids just happen to get really scared by the large rotund dude in the bushy beard and red-emblazoned fashion ensemble. “Scared of Santa: Scenes of Terror in Toyland” puts this fear-filled phenomenon in visual form; it’s a compilation of some of the most hilarious shots of children getting the eggnog scared out of them in the midst of the Claus. What’s even better? The looks on the poor Santas, from guilt to utter melancholy to pure humbug. (If you like that, you’ll also enjoy “Santa Responds,” a tome written by “Santa Claus” in which he crankily writes back to all those incessant letters asking for Hulk Hands or a new Xbox.)

Perhaps you’re still looking for that perfect holiday recipe to serve your fam next week. If you’re feeling a little Paula Deen this year, check out the “Southern Living Christmas Cookbook,” which features more than 350 recipes to get your party started, from pizzas to casseroles to pistachio bark. Me? I am ALL about the Bananas Foster French Toast. Mmmmm.

Chances are most of you have seen a version of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” by now, but haven’t really thought of the whole history behind it. “The Man Who Invented Christmas” takes a fascinating look at Dickens’ work and how it redefined the holiday as well as pretty much saved his career. (And I won’t let the fact that I’m the same age – 32 – as when Dickens wrote his Scroogetastic masterpiece depress me. Nope. Not gonna let that happen.)

Tis the season for heartwarming stories as well, and I’ve got two for ya. “The Christmas Box” author Richard Paul Evans continues to mine tear-jerking emotions in “Grace: A Novel,” about a high schooler who helps out a classmate in need, set against the political turmoil of the Cuban Missile Crisis. And pet lovers will be able to relate to Greg Kincaid’s “A Dog Named Christmas,” about a developmentally challenged farm boy who talks his parents into adopting a canine during the holidays and decides to persuade his whole town to follow suit.

Finally, if you’ve never read David Sedaris’ popular and funny short-story collection “Holidays on Ice,” there’s a new printing out with six more essays. There are a few nods to Easter and Halloween, but the Christmas ones are the best, from his gig as an elf at Macy’s to the perils of surviving a snowstorm.

Do you have a favorite holiday store or book? Tell me at novapoppin@gmail.com.

Tags: books, holidays