Ann-Marie Cahill will read anything and everything. From novels to trading cards to the inside of CD covers (they’re still a thing, right?). A good day is when her kids bring notes home from school. A bad day is when she has to pry a book from her kids’ hands. And then realizes where they get it from. The only thing Ann-Marie loves more than reading is travelling. She has expensive hobbies.
As a child, my family started the Christmas celebrations with Midnight Mass. If the kids were well-behaved and attentive during the loooooong and late sermon, we were allowed to open one present before going back to bed. My bookwormery was so well known, I was pretty much guaranteed a book every year from some family member; it was also the first present I would look for under the tree. My cousins would lightly shake for toys but I knew what to look for…and I would usually devour my new gift before the New Year hit.
These days, I am not as committed to the Christmas traditions, except for one: I will move Heaven, Hades, and Earth to make sure we all have one day of chilling out with a book. Sometimes it is hard to find the right book for this special time, so here are my 12 Days of the Best Christmas Quotes to start you off.
“The rooms were very still while the pages were softly turned, and the winter sunshine crept in to touch the bright heads and serious faces with a Christmas greeting.” —Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
“It was the beginning of the greatest Christmas ever. Little food. No presents. But there was a snowman in their basement.” —The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
“Christmas doesn’t come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps means a little more.” —How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Dr. Seuss
“It struck him that how you spent Christmas was a message to the world about where you were in life.” —About a Boy, Nick Hornby
“One can never have enough socks,” said Dumbledore. “Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn’t get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books.” —Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling
“‘Of course, my Christmas is (so much more) gorgeous and romantic (than Germany’s)!! And unlike the rest of the world, we leave wine behind for Santa Claus!’
‘So Santa-san is delivering gifts to children while driving under the influence…?’” —Hetalia: Axis Powers, Vol.2, Hidekaz Himaruya
“This is quite the season indeed for friendly meetings. At Christmas, everybody invites their friends about them, and people think little of even the worst weather. I was snowed up at a friend’s house once for a week. Nothing could be pleasanter.” —Emma, Jane Austen
“Most kids grow up leaving something out for Santa at Christmas time when he comes down the chimney. I used to make presents for the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.” —Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, Jeanette Winterson
“Why are people always complaining about the dead period between Christmas and the New Year? It’s complete bliss.” —Queenie, Candice Carty-Williams
“In the tropical climates of the Caribbean and the temperate climes of South America, where Christmas falls smack in the middle of summer, there is no Santa arriving on a sleigh, no jingle bells in the snow, no stockings hung on the mantel with care. It’s a holiday for family, for grown-ups as well as children, celebrated with plenty of traditional food, drink, music, and dance. Nochebuena, Christmas Eve, is the night for la misa del gullo, ‘the rooster’s mass’, which begins at midnight.” —Las Christmas: Favorite Latino Authors Share Their Holiday Memories, Esmeralda Santiago
