Seasonal titles for kids 8+

In my search to share with you seasonal titles, my local librarian suggested these middle grade novels: The Paper Bag Christmas by Kevin Alan Milne and Winterfrost by Michelle Houts. I enjoyed them and hope you will too.

The Paper Bag Christmas

The Paper Bag Christmas, published in 2006 by Center Street, a division of Hachette Book Group USA, was a debut novel set in 1980 in a Portland, Ohio, hospital’s pediatric cancer ward.

Mo and his brother Aaron meet a pediatric oncologist and legless veteran, who acts as a Santa Claus at the local mall and at the downtown Portland hospital. He recruits the boys to be his elves in the ward with sick children. Each boy has his own patient to visit after visiting all the other children. Mo’s special patient, Katrina, a girl suffering with brain cancer, challenges Mo to persevere because she doesn’t want anything to do with him or Christmas. Aaron’s special patient is a boy from India, Madhu. While Madhu, who is a Hindu in need of a liver transplant, peppers them with questions about Santa and the Christmas story, Aaron and Mo must really figure out what they believe about Christmas. How does Santa fit into the Nativity story?

I loved Madhu. This optimistic boy in a tough situation shows everyone what Christmas is really about. Nurse Wimble, who is in charge of the Christmas pageant, learns a lot about kindness, love, and the true meaning of Christmas from sweet Madhu.

The transformation of Katrina, who has suffered more than anyone ought in her short nine-years, made this reader cry.

This story covers some tough topics weaved into a heart-felt Christmas message that I recommend everyone of any age read. Despite the hard circumstances, laugh-out-loud moments occur. Perhaps it can be read in a few hours with your family this Christmas?

While it says it’s written for children, some vocabulary may challenge the young readers. 

The Paper Bag Christmas would make a powerful Christmas movie.

Winterfrost

The second book I’d like to recommend for your holiday reading list, Winterfrost, was published in 2014 by Candlewick Press. While the author lives in Ohio, she did live in Denmark for a time where she discovered nisse folk, who star in her novel.

Bettina Larsen doesn’t believe in nisse, but her Farfar (grandfather) did, so she’s heard about these generous little people who help humans. On this particular Christmas, the Larsen parents get called away to help her grandmother and are away for a week, leaving 12-year-old Bettina in charge of the farm and her baby sister, Pia, who isn’t a year old yet. Because the Larsens forgot to put out a Christmas rice pudding for their nisse, Klakke, mischief starts. Klakke feels neglected and unappreciated which leads to all sorts of trouble for Bettina when Pia disappears.

Bettina learns a lot about the nisse living in her woods and barn as she works hard to bring her sister home before her parents return. Although I know this is fantasy, I got caught up in the tension of concerns over Pia and whether she would be safely returned before her parents returned.

The neighbors, the Pedersens, check on Bettina and Pia, but she must lie to them, or the nisse won’t help her. The keeping secrets from adults is another terrible choice she makes as she goes out to save Pia; however, Bettina must do this on her own, persevere, save her sister, and bring unity back to the nisses. The story touches on forgiveness and the danger of letting arguments go unresolved.

Interwoven in the tale are the holiday rituals of those in Denmark with their nisse. “Take care of your nisse, and your nisse will take care of you.” This book reminded me of Mary Norton’s The Borrowers series, except with a Christmas timeframe. (Another fun series for your children to check out!)

Houts writes beautiful descriptions such as this one: “The fog that had created the winterfrost had not lifted, and even the Pedersens’ farm was lost in the haze. Somewhere the snowy fields met the gray-white sky, but the line between the two smeared like a wet painting hung too soon.”

The author did a wonderful job of world building also. I wish I could have some socks knitted from the “softest down of a thousand thistles.” I too marvel “at how the prickliest plant could produce the most delicate fiber.” I love how she creates the nisse world. This reader dropped into their world and enjoyed the journey, although fraught with tension over finding the baby.

These are both great seasonal reads, and I hope you get a chance to check them out! Merry Christmas!

What is your favorite seasonal novel?