Reading on Break

Good books for your holiday reading

When St. Louis area schools break for the holidays, kids will have more time for reading something besides textbooks.

At the request of Young Saint Louis.com, the St. Louis County Library has made a special selection of books with holiday themes. There are books about Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and other holiday themes.

Jean Taylor and Linda Small are on the county library's juvenile collection development team. It's their job to select a wide variety of books to be put on display for kids throughout St. Louis County.

YSL.com asked them to select some of their best books-both new ones as well as classics-that make good holiday reading for elementary- and middle school-age kids. These are all books in the library stacks and available at area bookstores or online.

General Holiday Fiction:

"Dream Soul," by Lawrence Yep

"Dream Soul," by Lawrence Yep.
Joan Lee and her family are from China, living in West Virginia in 1927. Their landlady invites the family to celebrate their first Christmas in America with her.

"The Christmas Barn," by C.L. Davis.
A family faces problems when they lose their home to fire just before Christmas during the Depression.

"Mama had to work on Christmas," by Carolyn Marsden.
Gloria is a Mexican-American who is forced to go with her mother who has to work on Christmas at a big city hotel.

"The Best Christmas Pageant Ever," by Barbara Robinson.
The humorous story about the rude Herdeman kids who put their own spin on the Christmas Story as they hog the parts in the Sunday school pageant. This is a classic.

"The Christmas Rat," by Avi.
A kid has an adventure that features a pest exterminator and a rat in the family's apartment building. This all happens right before Christmas.

"The Christmas Doll," by Elvira Woodruff.
Two poor girls in London find a magic doll that helps them turn their lives around during the Christmas season.

About Hanukkah:

"The Magic Menorah, a modern Chanukah tale," by Jane Baskin

"The Magic Menorah, a modern Chanukah tale," by Jane Baskin.
Stanley isn't looking forward to another Chanukah with relatives. But, then an old man gives him a tarnished menorah and grants Stanley three wishes.

"The Christmas Menorah," by Janice Cohn.
This tells the story about how people in Billings, Montana, fight back against skinheads who attacked a Jewish family.

"Alexandra's Scroll, the story of the first Hanukkah," by Miriam Chaikin.
This is the diary of a Jewish girl who records events during the rebellion that led to celebration of the first Hanukkah.

"A Hanukkah Treasury," edited by Eric A. Kimmel.
A collection of stories that explain the legends, events, symbols, songs and even foods of Hanukkah.

"The Stone Lamp," by Karen Hesse and Brian Pinkney.
The collection of eight Hanukkah stories that occurred in history.

About Kwanzaa:

"Crafts for Kwanzaa," by Kathy Ross

"Santa's Kwanzaa," by Garen Eilean Thomas.
Santa Claus returns from a long night of delivering Christmas presents to find a Kwanzaa surprise at his North Pole home.

"Seven Spools of Thread," by Angela Shelf Medearis.
A story about quarreling sons who have to learn to cooperate or they will be turned out as beggars. The principles of Kwanzaa lead them on their way.

"Kwanzaa, Journey of Freedom," Amy Robin Jones.
A reference book that explains the history of Kwanzaa and answers questions people would have about the holiday.

"Crafts for Kwanzaa," by Kathy Ross.
How to make the various symbols of the African-American holiday.

About Christmas:

"The Nutcracker," by E.T.A. Hoffman

"The Princess Present," by Meg Cabot.
Princess Mia celebrates Christmas with her friends in Genovia. This is part of the Princess Diaries series.

"Christmas After All, the Great Depression diary of Minnie Swift," by Kathryn Lasky.
A fictional journey of 11-year-old Minnie Swift tells how an orphan from Texas changed their lives. The story is about life in Indianapolis before Christmas in 1932.

"Merry Christmas Everywhere," by Arlene Erlbach with Herb Erlbach.
How Christmas is celebrated in 20 countries around the world. The book includes directions for holiday foods and crafts.

"The Nutcracker," by E.T.A. Hoffman.
Author Janet Schulman adapts the Christmas story of "The Nutcracker," written in the 18th Century by famed composer and author E.T.A. Hoffman.