1. |  | Charles Dickens – A Christmas Carol (1843)An
oldie, but still the best holiday story (without Christmas elves) out
there. It has all of the familiar Christmas trappings. Ghosts and lots
of them. A mysterious corpse. A graveyard. What would Christmas be
without a good haunting? |
2. |  | Christopher Moore – The Stupidest Angel (2004)“A
heartwarming tale of Christmas terror”. That’s what it says on the
cover, anyway. And it is full of heartwarming Christmas stuff. There
are Christmas trees, presents, a dead Santa Claus, zombies. You know,
the usual heartwarming Christmas stuff. |
3. |  | Arthur Conan Doyle – The Blue Carbuncle (1892) A
blue carbuncle sounds like something dirty or some sort of a painful
infection, doesn’t it? Well it is not. It is a fabulously expensive
jewel that has gone missing and appeared in the giblets of a Christmas
goose. It is a very special Sherlock Holmes mystery set in the
Christmas season. And because this story is soooo old, the copyright on
it has expired and I can link you right to it here |
4. |  | JK Rowling – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (1998)Some
people would argue that this is not a Christmas story, but to those
people I say, “read chapter 12,” which is all about Christmas. That’s
the part where Harry gets an invisibility cloak for a present. Was that
cool or what? This is definitely a Christmas story, and a really cool
one, too. |
5. |  | Agatha Christie – A Holiday for Murder (1938)Like
a rat infected with the plague, death and mayhem follow Hercule Poirot
wherever he goes. This time, he is spending Christmas with the Lees
and, naturally, there is murder afoot. And not just Dame Agatha’s usual
poison tea and cakes this time. No way, as an extra Christmas present
there is blood everywhere. I mean everywhere. |
6. |  | Arthur C. Clarke – The Star (1955)Suppose
a star burned so brightly it could be seen from Earth for several days
by three wise men bearing gifts. Just think about that. Think about
what you might find if you travelled to a planet circling that star.
Think about that. Tired of thinking? Read the story then. |
7. |  | O. Henry – The Gift of the Magi (1906)There's
Della and Jim and she has $1.87 and some great hair and he's got a
great pocket watch and by the end they have really made a mess of
Christmas. If you like, you can save yourself a trip to the library and
read the whole thing by clicking right here |
8. |  | Terry Pratchett – Hogfather (1999)On
the discworld, there is Hogswatch Night, when the Hogfather brings
presents to good little girls and boys. But he is missing, and so is
the tooth fairy. So Death and his granddaughter Susan are filling in.
He has the costume and the sleigh drawn by the four jolly pigs: Gouger,
Tusker, Rooter, and Snouter, but even so, he sort of messes things up.
It’s pretty funny, if you like that sort of thing. |
9. |  | Uncanny X-Men #143 (1980)The
last Claremont-Byrne X-Men collaboration. It’s Christmas Eve at
Xavier’s School For Gifted Youngster, but the only youngster in the
house is young Kitty Pryde, who spends the evening in a life and death
battle with a N’garai demon. She defeats it of course, but not until
after they pretty much trash the place. |
10. |  | The Bible (0000)The
original Christmas story. Often copied, never equalled. Really, it's
sort of what it's all about isn't it? All the famous Christmas stuff is
in here: three wise guys, big star in the east, shepherds watching
their flocks by night. It's even got asses and babes (in swaddling
clothes). |
