Price: $17.99
(as of Nov 22, 2022 19:00:25 UTC – Details)
From the Publisher
What is “Christmas?”
The Christmas we celebrate season after season is a collection of traditions ancient and modern. It is not the complete collection, and it is not the final collection. It is merely a curated collection that best suits this moment in history and culture. Historian Bruce David Forbes compares Christmas to a snowball. Roll a snowball, and three things happen. First, it grows larger as it accumulates snow. Second, it picks up pieces of anything else that lay in its path. And third, pieces periodically fall off as the mass of snow changes shape and buckles under its own weight. The Christmas we celebrate is an accumulation of many traditions from different cultures and different points in history. And that accumulation process is still underway.
Christmas is many things.
It can be magical, stressful, sentimental, crassly commercial, overbearing, joyous, nostalgic, repetitive, and strange. And all of that makes Christmas endlessly fascinating. Knowing the stories behind some of our favorite holiday’s traditions adds a new level of depth to our Christmas spirit (not to mention a handful of anecdotes to share at Christmas parties). This book includes 25 such stories. Covering traditions ancient and modern, here you’ll find stories of happy accidents, cultural histories, criminal capers, and hidden connections between Christmas and broader social, economic, and technological influences.
A festive, digestible Advent calendar of a book!
Part I – Food & Drink
What would Christmas be without those once-a-year flavors, filled with winter spices and sweet memories? Traditional food and drink help to make the season bright, as well as fascinating. Just what the heck is a sugarplum, anyway? And what do they have to do with hush money? Why does everyone hate fruitcake all of a sudden? Why do we spike our eggnog with rum? Can mince pies give you nightmares?
Part II – Characters & Entertainment
Santa Claus, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, even Charlie Brown. They’re the characters behind the stories and legends that bring magic to our childhood Christmas and nostalgia ever after. They’re the stuff of not only the stories they populate, but also the stories of their creation. How did an historical bishop from what is now Turkey go on to become Santa Claus? Why are all the classic Christmas cartoons from the 1960s? Is the story of Rudolph a semi-autobiography?
Part III – Sights & Sounds
The season is a wonderland of sights and sounds. Whether it’s ancient carols, twinkling lights, or the greenery that decks the hall, these many sights and sounds create a uniquely Christmasy atmosphere of magic and enchantment. Each one became part of Christmas at a separate time in history, and with its own story to tell. Why were snow globes ever seen in operating rooms? How did a fateful mishap at a stationery store forever change the face of Christmas? And how do birds spread Christmas cheer?
Part IV – Society & Culture
Society influences Christmas, which in turn influences society. Everything from consumer habits, to the language we use, to some of our most recently formed traditions are part of this constant feedback loop. Why do we say “Merry Christmas”? How did the rapid rise of print media and industrialization shape the holiday? And what might the current cultural conditions tell us about where Christmas is heading?
Publisher : Lyons Press (November 1, 2022)
Language : English
Hardcover : 192 pages
ISBN-10 : 149306939X
ISBN-13 : 978-1493069392
Item Weight : 1.14 pounds
Dimensions : 7.26 x 0.69 x 9.32 inches
