20 DECEMBER 23, 2021 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
BY TAMONDA GRIFFITHS
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
Enjoy a relaxing and peaceful aft ernoon this
holiday season with a great book or two or
three! Starting a reading list in the winter is
an awesome way to get an early start on New Year’s
resolutions as well as foster a continued love of reading
and creativity within your kids! Whether they’re
curled up under the tree waiting for Santa’s arrival
or stationed next to the window as snow fl utters
down from the sky, a good holiday book will take
them to new worlds and get them into the spirit.
EARLY READERS
“The Polar Express” by Chris Van Allsburg
All ABOARD! Slip on your slippers, don your
nightgown and cap, and hold tight to your golden
ticket as you take a magical ride with a young boy
through the Christmas Eve night to the North Pole.
If the reindeer’s bell still jingles for you, perhaps you
will get a Christmas wish, too! Pre-K – Grade 2.
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” by Theodor
“Dr. Seuss” Geisel
Introduce or reintroduce your children to this
Christmas-time classic from legendary author Dr.
Seuss and learn how Christmas was almost ruined
by “this mean fellow, with his skin all green and his
teeth all yellow.” Pre-K – Grade 2.
“The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats
SNOW DAY! Rise and shine and explore with a
little boy named Peter in this award-winning, classic
tale about the adventure and wonderment of a fi rst
HOLIDAYS
snowfall. Pre-K – Grade 2.
“Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins” by Eric A.
Kimmel
Since 1989, this award-winning, entertaining, and
engaging folktale has been educating young children
of the spirit of Hanukkah! Follow along with
Hershel of Ostropol on the eve of Hanukkah, as he
attempts to bring the holiday to a small village, but
fi rst he’ll have to rid them of eight unwanted guests:
goblins! Pre-K – Grade 2.
“Together for Kwanzaa” by Juwanda G. Ford
Celebrate this African American and Pan-African
holiday with young Kayla and her family! Kwanzaa
is Kayla’s favorite time of year – from the food, the
festivities, and the time with family — but this year
it seems her whole family won’t be together for the
celebration. Will a snowstorm keep her brother
away? Read along and fi nd out! Pre-K – Grade 2.
UPPER-LEVEL BOOKS
“Christmas Carol & the Defenders of Claus” by
Robert L. Fouch
What could possibly be the downside of Christmas?
Living in a land of snow-less Decembers and
your only relative being the personifi cation of the
Grinch might do the trick. This year’s upside, however?
Young Carol has been called upon by the man
in the red suit himself to assume her birthright as a
Defenders of Claus. Read along and fi nd out if Carol
is up to the challenge or if Christmas will be no more!
Grades 3-7.
“Dreidels on the Brain” by Joel Ben Izzy
Oy! What a spin! It’s 1971 in “The Land of Shriveled
Dreams,” or Los Angeles as it’s more commonly
known, and all aspiring magician 12-year-old Joel is
wishing for these eight nights is to be a superhero:
Normalman. However, his wish is no small feat.
Tag along and learn the value of family, heritage,
laughter and the art of illusion in this American
Hanukkah story! Grades 3-7.
EIGHTH GRADE & YOUNG ADULT
“The Aft erlife of Holly Chase” by Cynthia Hand
In this twist on the classic Scrooge tale, 17-yearold
Holly Chase was once visited by three specters
of Christmas past, present and future. Unlike the
original Scrooge, though, the message of goodwill
and changing one’s ways doesn’t quite sink in for
Holly. Her punishment? Become the latest Ghost of
Christmas Past. Following along with Holly on numerous
Christmas Eve nights as she saves countless
miserly grouches and perhaps, eventually, herself.
Young Adult.
“The Matzah Ball: A Novel” by Jean Meltzer
Hanukkah-celebrating good girl Rachel Rubenstein
Goldblatt has a decades-long secret she’s been
keeping from her Jewish family: not only does she
love Christmas and all the magic and merriment it
entails, she’s also cultivated a career as a Christmas
romance novelist! But when her diversity-conscious
publisher insists she write a Hanukkah romance,
she no longer feels the holiday spirit. Desperate in
her quest of inspiration, she attends a Matzah Ball
where she runs into her childhood summer camp
archnemesis, Jacob Greenberg. Will Jacob help
Rachel fi nd the magic of holiday glowing in the menorah
candles as well as her heart? Read and fi nd
out! Young Adult.
Photo via Getty Images
The best holiday books for kids of all ages
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