Recommended Reads

Ready to laugh, cry, sing, frolic, cavort and enjoy yourself beyond belief. Well, you're in luck, because this Great Gonzo₂s ₁From Chickens to Dickens' 20th Anniversary Edition of The Muppet Christmas Carol is guaranteed to put you in a holiday spirit that will stay with you forever, or at least until your Aunt Edna starts complaining that nobody is eating the fruitcake she brought, again!

Jack Skellington is the King of Halloween. He becomes bored with the same routine every year. He decides to take a walk in the woods. There, he discovered a door leading to Christmastown and decides to spread Christmas joy to the world. When he is back in Halloweentown he shows his friends what Christmas is like, and he suggests doing Christmas this year instead. But things do not go as planned when Oogie Boogie, an evil gambling boogey man, plots to play a game with Santa Claus' life and creates a nightmare for all the good little boys and girls everywhere. Although Sally attempts to stop him, Jack embarks into the sky on a coffin-like sled pulled by skeletal reindeer.

A human baby accidentally ends up at the North Pole and grows up among the elf community. Buddy, as he comes to be known, knows that he's "special". When he's 30, Buddy learns from Santa that he's really a human. He decides to go in search of his father, to find out where he belongs. He walks to Manhattan, and is immediately run over by a cab. His father at first rejects him and Buddy ends up in a department store where other elves are working. But all the while, things are looking bad for Santa Claus. When Santa crashes his sleigh in Central Park, it's Buddy's moment to shine.

Discover the true meaning of the holiday season with the live action adaption of the beloved classic. Why is the Grinch such a grouch? No one seems to know, until little Cindy Lou Who takes matters into her own hands and turns both Whoville and the Grinch's world upside down, inside out-- and funny side up.

Rusty the reindeer heads for the big city in order to find his role in Christmas, but Santa's Naughty 'n Nice O-matic is on the blink and Rusty cannot tell the good kids from the naughty ones. Alone in the big city, Rusty discovers a support group for holiday icons who team up with Rusty to save a kid from the fate of the Christmas Naughty List. Go on an exciting ride through all the hype of the holiday season as a merry band of holiday icons searches for the meaning of it all.

Take a trip to the North Pole and discover exactly how Santa Claus makes Christmas magic happen every year in this imaginative comedy for the entire family. Produced by Aardman Features in association with Sony Pictures Animation, this fun-filled holiday film introduces viewers to Santa's mischievous son Arthur, who races to complete an important mission in time to ensure that this year's Christmas celebrations will go off without a hitch.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis and based on children's author Chris Van Allsburg's modern holiday classic of the same name, The Polar Express revolves around Billy (Hayden McFarland), who longs to believe in Santa Claus but finds it quite difficult to do so, what with his family's dogged insistence that all of it, from the North Pole, to the elves, to the man himself, is all just a myth. This all changes, however, on Christmas Eve, when a mysterious train visits Billy in the middle of the night, promising to take him and a group of other lucky children to the North Pole for a visit with Santa. The train's conductor (Tom Hanks) along with the other passengers help turn Billy's crisis in faith into a journey of self-discovery. A long-time fan of Van Allsburg's book, Hanks also helped produce the film. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

Hear the words, sing the songs, dance to the beat, and shout "Harambee!" as you jump into this joyful celebration of the sounds of Kwanzaa!

Through lively verse and colorful illustrations, this festive book celebrates the history and meaning of Kwanzaa. Families will enjoy the hands-on fun of lighting their own candles as they journey through this festive holiday and learn about its traditions and principles. As an added gift, this instructional book includes a no-bake Kwanzaa recipe.

A brand-new New York Times bestselling Pete the Cat Christmas picture book!

Pete and his friends are rockin’ and groovin’ while counting down the days to Christmas! Who needs five golden rings, when you can have five onion rings?

Join Pete and the gang for one-of-a-kind holiday cheer. He adds a cool-cat spin on a well-known Christmas carol, bringing a hip and energetic spirit to the season.

This is a perfect Christmas gift for Pete the Cat fans who are eagerly awaiting Santa’s arrival.

’Twas Nochebuena and all through our casa, 

every creature was kneading tamale masa...

It’s Christmas Eve, and you’re invited to a Nochebuena celebration! Follow a family as they prepare to host a night filled with laughter, love, and Latino tradition. Make tasty tamales and hang colorful adornos (decorations) on the walls. Gather to sing festive canciones (songs) while sipping champurrado (hot chocolate). After the midnight feast has been served and the last gifts have been unwrapped, it’s time to cheer, “Feliz Navidad and to all a good night!”

Savor the magic of Nochebuena with a holiday tale you’ll want to read again and again. 

Grace loves everything about Christmas, especially acting out all the parts in the Nativity. But when strangers come to stay with Grace and her family, she wants to say "no room at the inn." Will Grace learn to give up the spotlight and make these new friends feel welcome? Just in time for the twentieth anniversary of Amazing Grace, the newest addition to the acclaimed series will capture the hearts of established fans and new readers alike.

Mary Hoffman's books featuring this spirited character have earned considerable critical acclaim. Amazing Gracewas an ALA Notable book and a Booklist Editors' Choice, and Princess Gracewas a Bank Street Best Books of the Year selection.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jim Panzee, our favorite grumpy monkey, is feeling like quite the Scrooge this holiday season!

It's Christmas time in the jungle, and Jim just can't get into the holiday spirit. Then Jim eats a "festive" green banana that makes him feel sick. Now everything seems worse. While all the other animals in the jungle are ready and eagerly awaiting Christmas, Jim can't stop feeling that this time of year stinks. But with his good friend Norman's help, Jim discovers that focusing on the good things around him instead of his own problems, is a reason to celebrate.

In Mexico, the poinsettia is called flor de la Nochebuenao flower of the Holy Night. At Christmastime, the flower blooms and flourishes, the quite exquisite red stars lighting up the countryside.

A Mexican legend tells how the poinsettia came to be, through a little girl's unselfish gift to the Christ Child. Tomie dePaola has embraced the legend using his own special feeling for Christmas. His glorious paintings capture not only the brilliant colors of Mexico and its art, but also the excitement of the children preparing for Christmas and the hope of Lucida, who comes to see what makes a gift truly beautiful.

Celebrate Diwali and learn about all of its traditions with this beautifully illustrated Little Golden Book.

Join in the fun and celebrate Diwali, a festival of lights! This Little Golden Book is a great read-aloud for families getting ready to enjoy the holiday, as well as for those who want to learn more about it. From clay lamps and colorful rangoli designs to fragrant flowers and delicious foods, Diwali is a festival with lots to enjoy!

Winner of the 2015 National Jewish Book Award for Children's Literature

A young immigrant from Nazi Germany recieves small acts of kindness while exploring New York City in this heartwarming, timeless picture book, Oskar and the Eight Blessings.

A refugee seeking sanctuary from the horrors of Kristallnacht, Oskar arrives by ship in New York City with only a photograph and an address for an aunt he has never met. It is both the seventh day of Hanukkah and Christmas Eve, 1938. As Oskar walks the length of Manhattan, from the Battery to his new home in the north of the city, he passes experiences the city's many holiday sights, and encounters it various residents. Each offers Oskar a small act of kindness, welcoming him to the city and helping him on his way to a new life in the new world. 

Richard and Tanya Simon's text matched with Mark Siegel's elegant illustrations makes for a wonderfully heartfelt read.

This modern classic celebrates the tradition of tamales and family bonding at Christmas.

Christmas Eve started out so perfectly for Maria. Snow had fallen and the streets glittered. Maria's favorite cousins were coming over and she got to help make the tamales for Christmas dinner. It was almost too good to be true when her mother left the kitchen for a moment and Maria got to try on her beautiful diamond ring . . .

This is the story of a treasure thought to be lost in a batch of tamales; of a desperate and funny attempt by Maria and her cousins to eat their way out of trouble; and the warm way a family pulls together to make it a perfect Christmas after all.

Also available in Spanish as ¡Qué montón de tamales!