Holiday Classics

Perpetual winter comes to the beautiful garden of a selfish giant who erected a wall around it to stop children playing in the garden. Unexpected consequences follow. The birds stop singing in this garden, and both trees and flowers stop blossoming. One day the giant discovers that spring has returned to the garden, and the children have found a way in through a gap in the wall. He sees the error of his ways and resolves to destroy the wall. Read in English by Josh Verbae, unabridged.

Was ist das für ein Stern, der so hell strahlt und Menschen und Tiere in ganz Betlehem verzaubert? Der junge Gareb macht sich auf den Weg, den Stern zu finden, ebenso wie der Töpfer Natan und die Magd Sara. Auch drei weise Männer auf ihren Kamelen und die Hirten mit ihren Schafherden folgen dem Schein. Selbst Ochse, Esel, Ziege und Maus spüren, dass der helle Stern eine ganz besondere Botschaft übermitteln will.

Ganz gleich, ob Familie Bär, die Tiere im Zoo, die kleinen Engel in der Weihnachtswerkstatt, die Prinzessin in ihrem Schloss oder das kleine Rentier draußen im Winterwald - sie alle können es kaum erwarten, bis es endlich wieder Weihnachten wird. Und genauso geht es sicher auch allen Kindern, doch mit diesem kleinen Geschichten vergeht die Zeit bis zum Weihnachtsabend ganz sicher wie im Flug!

What happens when Heaven’s hardest working saint is forced to take a vacation? In Saint Peter Takes a Holiday, or It's About Time, a reluctant Simon Peter heads for Aruba and a week in the sun. There, he encounters danger, romance, intrigue...and of course comedy. Magic, miracles, sunbathing, and golf, they all happen in this tropical adventure.

You know the story of the three wise men of the east, and how they traveled from far away to offer their gifts at the manger-cradle in Bethlehem. But have you ever heard the story of the Other Wise Man, who also saw the star in its rising, set out to follow it, yet did not arrive with his brethren in the presence of the young child Jesus? I would tell the tale as I have heard fragments of it in the hall of dreams, in the palace of the heart of man.

A master of language, moral lessons, and capturing the beauty of the everyday, Charles Dickens also brings elements of magic and wonder to this tale along with, of course, the meaning and joy of the Christmas season. Expecting to be able to bask in the nostalgia of the holiday, the character of Ebenezer Scrooge exists in stark contrast and is instantly despised. Dickens chooses Scrooge as his protagonist to take his audience through the selfish distractions of this world. A cautionary tale with a heartwarming twist, A Christmas Carol was and is a beloved classic for good reason.

The Christmas Princess by Mrs. Molesworth is a heartwarming Victorian-era holiday tale filled with enchantment, family, and the magic of Christmas. The story follows a young princess who embarks on a journey of self-discovery and kindness during the festive season. Amidst the grand halls of a royal palace adorned with twinkling lights and holiday decorations, she learns the true meaning of generosity, love, and the simple joys that make Christmas special.

Richard, seine Frau Keri und ihre kleine Tochter Jenna leben in ziemlich beengten Verhältnissen. Als sie in der Zeitung die Anzeige der alten Dame Mary-Ann Parkin lesen, die während der Adventszeit Hilfe für Haushalt und Garten sucht und dafür eine Wohnung bietet, müssen sie nicht lange überlegen. Bald schon ziehen sie in der vornehmen Villa der Witwe ein. Zufällig findet Richard auf dem Dachboden eine kleine, kunstvoll verzierte Schatulle. Gerade rechtzeitig zu den Weihnachtsfeiertagen lässt ihr Inhalt Richard erkennen, wie sehr er den Blick für das Wertvollste im Leben verloren hat.

Cuento de Navidad es una novela corta que cuenta la historia de un hombre avaro y egoísta llamado Ebenezer Scrooge y su transformación tras recibir la visita de una serie de fantasmas en Nochebuena. Este relato fue muy bien recibido por los lectores y los críticos. Scrooge era un señor muy adinerado cuyo único socio, Marley, había muerto. Este anciano solitario, vivía en su particular mundo, todo le desagradaba y más aún la Navidad. Su rutina diaria esa caminar por las mismas calles sin que nadie lo saludara.

Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve and transformed from an odious miser to a charitable and loving man who vows to always cherish the Christmas season.

The Cricket on the Hearth, published in 1845, is the third in Charles Dickens' series of "Christmas Books." The story centers around the hearth and home of the good-hearted carrier, John Peerybingle, and his young wife Mary—affectionately called Dot by her husband. Their baby boy is cared for by a clumsy nanny, Tilly Slowboy. The household is completed by Boxer the dog and the cricket on the hearth, who acts as a guardian angel to the family. When disaster looms following the arrival of an elderly stranger, the cricket appears in fairy form to save the day.

On Christmas Eve, miser Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley, who warns Scrooge that three more ghosts will visit him before the night is over—the ghost of Christmases Past, the ghost of Christmas present, and the ghost of Christmas yet to come.

Ebenezer Scrooge runs a tight shop with a tight fist and a sharp tongue. On Christmas Eve, he is visited by the ghost of his old partner, Jacob Marley. Marley relates that in order for Scrooge’s soul to be reclaimed, he must be haunted by three spirits. The first of the three appear, and Scrooge’s reclamation begins.

Ebenezer Scrooge, described as "a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner," is certainly no lover of the Christmas season.

Ebenezer Scrooge is a care-worn miser, who has forgotten the joy and happiness of giving. Christmas, as a time of charity, is an enemy which returns to harass him yearly. Scrooge sees the poor as a lower class of life altogether, not fit to live, until one Christmas Eve, a series of ghostly visitors confront Scrooge with his wrongs. Will the selfish old miser hear the lessons of Christmas past, present, and future? Or will he turn a deaf ear.

From #1 New York Times–bestselling author Dan Gemeinhart comes a spooky audiobook tale about a young baker whose Gingerbread Man creation comes to life with a fright—yet even monsters long for a friend. Perfect for fans of Creepy Carrots!, The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School, and Tim...

In The Birds' Christmas Carol, the arrival of Carol into the Bird family brings joy and sadness throughout the years, but her presence reminds everyone of the true meaning of Christmas.

A Christmas Carol is Charles Dickens's classic tale of the redemption of Ebenezer Scrooge. In this all-new full-cast dramatization, we re-live the iconic story where the mean old businessman is visited by the spirits of Christmases past, present and future. With a cast of eleven actors performing the well-known roles of everyone from Jacob Marley to Tiny Tim, this fresh production breathes new life into a much-loved seasonal favourite.

Washington Irving's Old Christmas tells of an American's travels through England during the Christmas season. Through a chance meeting with an old friend, he is able to experience Christmas in a stately manor house. Through his eyes as a houseguest, he glimpses the uniquely British customs and celebrations of Christmas as it would have been experienced during the Middle Ages, rather than in the early 19th century.

Thompson Hall, redolent of plum pudding and mince pie, green of holly, warmed by omnipotent Victorian fireplaces, awaits the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Brown from the south of France. But they may never make it to Thompson Hall. The story opens in Paris at Le Grand Hotel, where Mr. Brown is down with "a throat condition"—he is unable to travel to England. Only Mrs. Brown is quite determined they will go on. So begins a Christmas tale complicated and simple, pathetic and farcical, embarrassing—even risque, though of course it could be read aloud to an assembled Victorian family.