Christmas Books Available from Wolfner Library for Grades 4-7
At the end of each annotation you will find the call number or numbers for each title. BR means braille. Braille is contracted (grade 2) unless otherwise noted. A Print/Braille book has braille, standard text, and illustrations. LP means large print. RC and WOC mean recorded cassette. MOD is a recording in cassette format made by Wolfner Library volunteers. Not all titles are available in all formats.
To order any of these titles, contact the library by email, mail or phone. You may also request these titles online through our OPAC. Happy Reading!
All about American Holidays by Maymie R. Krythe.
Describes over fifty of the main Christian and Jewish holy days as well as secular holidays that are observed between New Year’s Day and Christmas. Provides information on how the festivities are celebrated and their historical background. For grades 4-7 and older readers. RC 54392.
Amahl and the Night Visitors by Gian Carlo Menotti.
A crippled shepherd boy and his mother give shelter to the Wise Men on their way to Bethlehem. For grades 4-7. BR 7032.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson.
The Herdmans are the worst kids in town, so when they take over the lead roles in the church's annual Christmas pageant, they cause quite a commotion. For grades 4-7. BR 5636 and BR 16320 and RC 38118 and LP 979.
The Birds’ Christmas Carol by Kate Douglas Wiggin.
First published in 1888 and a Christmas favorite ever since, this story tells how Carol Bird encourages the rest of the Bird family to make a merry Christmas for the Ruggleses, who live behind them. For grades 4-7. BR 4355 and RC 26070.
Christmas: A Book of Stories Old and New selected by Alice Dalgliesh.
A rich collection of stories, poems, legends, and carols. Includes less familiar selections and such favorites as "A Visit from St. Nicholas," "The Crachits’ Christmas Dinner" by Charles Dickens, and a Christmas story by Laura Ingalls Wilder. For grades 4-7 and older readers. BR 4769 and RC 17052.
The Christmas Book by James Reeves.
A festive collection of modern and traditional stories, legends, poems, and carols, introduced by a brief history of Christmas customs. For grades 4-7 and older readers. RC 14433.
The Christmas Rat by Avi.
Eric Andrick stops feeling bored during Christmas vacation when he becomes deputy to exterminator Anjela Gabrail. Eric swears to attack all rats in his vicinity or to pay the penalty. When Eric has second thoughts about killing the rat in his basement, Anjela reveals the penalty. For grades 4-7. RC 51867.
The Christmas Sky by Franklyn Branley.
An astronomer explains many theories about the star that led the Wise Men to Bethlehem. This account is based on the annual Christmas lecture given at the Hayden Planetarium in New York City. For grades 4-7. BR 1951.
A Christmas Sonata by Gary Paulsen.
World War II. The narrator and his mother travel to rural Minnesota to spend Christmas with relatives, including his terminally ill cousin, Matthew. The narrator has many worries: his father’s safety on the European front, Matthew’s impending death, and, most of all, his recently shattered belief in Santa Claus. He confides in Matthew, who becomes as distressed as he, until their faith in the magic of Christmas is restored. For grades 4-7. RC 36494.
Christmas with Ida Early by Robert Burch.
When a new preacher comes to town, Ida Early goes along with his plans for a living Christmas tableau. But her fun-loving nature makes it a most unusual celebration. For grades 4-7 and older readers. RC 21756.
Dream Soul by Laurence Yep.
In 1927, as her first Christmas in West Virginia approaches, Joan Lee hopes her tradition-minded Chinese parents will permit the family to celebrate the holiday with their American landlady. For grades 4-7. RC 53422.
The Exiles at Home by Hilary McKay.
The Conroy sisters—Ruth, thirteen; Naomi, twelve; Rachel, eight; and Phoebe, six—are back in Lincolnshire following their summer with Big Grandma. For Christmas, each girl is given ten pounds, and Ruth decides to use her money to sponsor an African child for a year. But Ruth has a big problem because sponsorship costs ten pounds per month. For grades 4-7. RC 40530.
The First Christmas.
Retells the story of the very first Christmas—the birth of Jesus—through selections from the King James Version of the Bible. For grades 4-7 and older readers. Print/Braille BR 9916.
Holly, Reindeer, and Colored Lights: The Story of the Christmas Symbols by Edna Barth.
Traces Christmas traditions and symbols back to Christian, mythological, and pagan sources. Covers the star, tree and its ornaments, the Yule log, Santa Claus, gift exchanging, food, and bells—all associated with this December holiday. For grades 4-7.
BR 13898 and RC 53940.
Maria, a Christmas Story by Theodore Taylor.
Eleven-year-old Maria Gonzaga lives in a small town in California where Christmas is celebrated with a parade of expensive floats. No Mexican-Americans have ever entered a float in the parade. Maria, envious and tired of the prattlings of the Anglo girls about their families' floats, announces that her family, too, will be entering, although they can barely afford the entrance fee. For grades 4-7. RC 37023.
The Miracle Tree by Christobel Mattingley.
A woman, her husband, and her mother, separated by the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, are reunited one Christmas by a very special tree. For grades 4-7 and older readers. RC 28722.
Plain Lane Christmas by C. Walter Hodges.
The families who live about their shops on quaint, crooked Plain Lane fight City Hall when bulldozers and cranes threaten to demolish their neighborhood in the name of progress. A cheery Christmas story for grades 4-7 to share with older people. RC 15056.
The Quiet Little Woman by Louisa May Alcott.
Stories by Alcott from the 1870s. In “The Quiet Little Woman,” thirteen-year-old Patty, an orphan, dreams of being adopted but is placed as a servant in the large Murray household. Through Aunt Jane’s intervention on Christmas day, the Murrays begin to appreciate Patty’s loving nature. For grades 4-7 and older readers. BR 12725 and RC 50119.
Red Ranger Came Calling: A Guaranteed True Christmas Story by Berkeley Breathed.
In 1939 a nine-year-old boy calls himself Red Ranger of Mars after a movie hero, Buck Tweed. Red wants a Buck Tweed bicycle for Christmas but knows his aunt can’t afford one. When he discovers an ancient man who claims to be Santa Claus, Red (although a nonbeliever) asks him for the bike. For grades 4-7. RC 43470.
The Silent Bells by William Mackellar.
A young Swiss girl dreams of the day the cathedral bells in her village, which no one has heard, will break their long silence. According to legend, the bells will peal only when a very special gift is presented at the crèche on Christmas Eve. A tender story for grades 4-7. Also good for family sharing. RC 14554.
The Silver Touch, and Other Family Christmas Stories by Margret Rettich.
Twenty-three humorous stories about the mix-ups, mishaps, and triumphs of Christmas. Translated from the German by Elizabeth D. Crawford. For grades 4-7. RC 13523.
Soup on Ice by Robert Newton Peck.
In December the small town of Learning, Vermont, is colder than the North Pole. But Rob and his best friend Soup can’t spend too much time worrying about the temperature—they’ve got big plans for the town’s Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. For grades 4-7. BR 6769.
To Every Season: A Family Holiday Cookbook by Jane Breskin Zalben.
Presents a brief history of holidays throughout the calendar year with recipes for traditional favorites. Covers New Year's, Valentine's, St. Patrick's, April Fools', Easter, Passover, Mother's Day, Memorial Day, Father's Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas. For grades 4-7 and older readers. BR 14146.
The True Story of Christmas by Anne Fine.
British schoolboy Ralph William Mountfield is sent to his room on Christmas Day. But Ralph may be glad to stay out of the way as hoards of eccentric relatives arrive, like Great-granny with her acerbic wit, soppy cousin Titania, and "destructo twins" Sylvia and Sylvester. For grades 4-7. RC 57570.
Truth and Consequences by Miriam Young.
Kim almost loses her best friend and nearly ruins Christmas for her whole family before she learns the difference between tact and truthfulness. For grades 4-7. RC 10085.
Winter Holiday by Arthur Ransome.
The Walker and Blackett children, spending the Christmas holiday by a lake near the mountains, are detained an extra month by quarantine for mumps. They go on an exciting, imaginary adventure to the North Pole. For grades 4-7 and older readers. RC 30558.
The Wicked Tricks of Tyl Uilenspiegel by Jay Williams.
Four humorous tales about a Dutch folk hero, a light-hearted rogue who performs outrageous tricks. Includes a Christmas story in which Tyl tricks the Spanish soldiers attacking a starving Dutch town into feeding their own sumptuous Christmas dinner to the hungry Dutchmen. For grades 4-7 and older readers. RC 17394.