Holiday Cheer for the Ears

Traveling “over the river and through the woods” to visit relatives this holiday season? There are some new holiday-themed audio books that will make trip more enjoyable and will make the miles fly-by.

You Better Not Cry: Stories For Christmas written and read by Augusten Burroughs
You’ve eaten too much candy at Christmas…but have you ever eaten the face off a six-foot stuffed Santa? You’ve seen gingerbread houses…but have you ever made your own gingerbread tenement? You’ve woken up with a hangover…but have you ever woken up next to Kris Kringle himself? Augusten Burroughs has, and in this caustically funny, nostalgic, poignant, and moving collection he recounts Christmases past and present—as only he could. With gimlet eyed wit and illuminated prose, Augusten shows how the holidays bring out the worst in us and sometimes, just sometimes, the very, very best.

Augusten Burroughs, bestselling author of Running with Scissors, writes and reads his Christmas themed memories as only he can.

Wishin’ and Hopin’: A Christmas Story written and read by Wally Lamb
It’s 1964 and 10-year-old Felix Funicello is sure of a few things: The birds and the bees are puzzling, television is magical, and this is one Christmas he‘ll never forget. Set in the halls of St. Aloysius Gonzaga Parochial School in Connecticut, young Felix learns about French kissing and cultural misunderstanding all the while barreling toward one outrageous Christmas. A vivid slice of 1960’s life, this book is a wise and witty holiday tale that celebrates where we’ve been - and how far we’ve come.

The Christmas List by Richard Paul Evans
In this wonderful holiday book we meet James Kier. James is a fierce and ruthless businessman. He does not care who he hurts as long as he's making money in the process. One morning he wakes up and reads his own obituary in the newspaper. He is shocked when the on-line obits by those who worked for him and knew him....told it like it was. Jim then decides to straighten out his life and wants to make right all the wrongs he has done in his life: hence The Christmas List.

The Christmas Cookie Club written by Ann Pearlman
The Christmas Cookie Club, is a tradition started some sixteen years earlier. Marnie (the head cookie bitch) and eleven of her closest friends, have kept this tradition going. The friends share how they met, their joys, their struggles, their disappointments, and more. They laugh together and cry together. Their stories are told in twelve alternating chapters, each of which includes a tasty sounding Christmas cookie recipe for readers to try.

Knit the Season written by Kate Jacobs
Knit the Season is a celebration of special times with friends and family. The story begins a year after the end of Knit Two, with Dakota Walker's trip to spend the Christmas holidays with her Gran in Scotland-accompanied by her father, her grandparents, and her mother's best friend, Catherine. Together, they share a trove of happy memories about Christmases past with Dakota's mom, Georgia Walker-from Georgia's childhood to her blissful time as a doting new mom. From Thanksgiving through Hanuk­kah and Christmas to New Year's, Knit the Season is a novel about the richness of family bonds and the joys of friendship.

Here are some other Classic holiday titles on audio that will get you into the Spirit of Christmas:
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens read by Jim Dale (reader of the Harry Potter books)
A Child’s Christmas in Wales written and read by Dylan Thomas
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry read by Julie Harris
And for the Kids -

How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson.

So why not start a new family tradition while driving to Grandma's house and listen to a wonderful Christmas audio book.

Have a Safe and Joyous Christmas from Talking Books Plus!