Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012 - Finished

Thank you Michelle @ The True Book Addict for hosting this challenge.

I know it is early as this challenge doesn't finish till the 6th of January but I am not going to read any more Christmas books or stories now.

I have reached my goal as I have read every single book / short story on my to read list + 3 more.

my list of books / short stories read:

1. Christmas Eve at Swamp's End by Norman Duncan 
2. The Christmas Bake-Off by Abby Clements
3. Snowed Under by Jude Ryan
4. One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson
5. Bah, Humbug! A Romantic Comedy Novella by Heather Horrocks 
6. Embers of the Raven: a Christmas Story from Greenland by Chris Paton
7. The Christmas Angel by Abbie Farwell Brown 
8. A Little Book For Christmas by Cyrus Townsend Brady 
9. Christmas with Grandma Elsie by Martha Finley 
10. 'Tis the Season by China Miéville
11. Falling for Christmas by Debbie Macomber
12. Santa Maybe by Scarlett Bailey
13. A Simple Amish Christmas by Vannetta Chapman
14. Ravenmind: a Christmas Story from Greenland by Chris Paton

Some of the books were quite a disappointment but others were a joy to read, quite a mix of books for me this year.

my list of films:

1. Winnie the Poo: A Very Merry Poo Year
2. The Bear by Ramond Briggs
3. A Christmas Carol (Patrick Stewart)
4. A Carol Christmas  (Tori Spelling)
5. It's a Wonderful Life (James Stewart)

 I have enjoyed this challenge and I am already looking forward to next year.

Ravenmind: a Christmas Story from Greenland by Chris Paton

The Greenlanders cannot rest, for after the troll comes the wolf. Discover more of the drama under dark winter skies when Tulugaq the shaman and Nissimaaq the great hunter must defeat the shapeshifting Aarluuk.
Inspired by Greenlandic mythical beings, this short Christmas story continues the journey begun in Embers of the Raven. Return once more to the dramatic winter landscape of Greenland with a festive twist for the holidays. From Goodreads

Another enjoyable short story set in Greenland. This time with a vocabulary before the story starts.  The new foe the shape shifting Aarluuk is very strong but again all ends to a certain extent reasonably well. I am looking forward to read more about Paninguak.

This book qualifies for:
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 22nd of December 2012)

A Simple Amish Christmas by Vannetta Chapman

Annie Weaver always planned to return home, but the 20-year old RN has lived in Philadelphia for three years now. Her time of rumschpringe is about to come to an abrupt end, bringing for Annie an overwhelming sense of loneliness. She returns home and finds herself face-to-face with a budding romance with an Amish farmer and Annie has several important choices to make. From Goodreads

This book is a romance but it is also about what kind of job is for you and coming to terms with what kind of person you want to be. There is of course a religious part as it is set in an Amish community but it is just showing their way of life.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 23rd of August 2012)

Santa Maybe by Scarlett Bailey

Amy Tucker is single. So single in fact she hasn’t had a man in her room for three years and her idea of a good time is buying new kitchenware at Ikea. So when she wakes up on Christmas Eve to find a strange man at the end of her bed, she is more than surprised.
Least of all, when the beautiful man claims to be Santa and has sexy stubble to rival George Clooney.
Santa whisks Amy on an exciting and unforgettable journey around the world through time and space. But can he really make Amy's Christmas dreams come true? From Goodreads

This is an okay story about Santa that has to make Amy's wish of love come true. It is a fun story that definitely doesn't portray Santa or his helpers and their world in the usual way. A nice short romance story.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012 

Falling for Christmas by Debbie Macomber

A Cedar Cove Christmas
Mother-to-be Mary Jo Wyse arrives in Cedar Cove on Christmas Eve, pregnant and alone. And there's no room at the local inn… However, the people in Cedar Cove are all willing to lend a hand. There’s more than enough faith, hope and love to go round this Christmas!
Call Me Mrs Miracle
Emily Merkle (call her Mrs Miracle!) is working in the toy department at Finley’s – a store that needs a Christmas miracle to keep the business afloat. Fortunately, it’s Mrs. Miracle to the rescue. Next to making children happy, she likes nothing better than helping others – including just a bit of matchmaking! From amazon.uk







Two very cosy stories. They both have families that are not perfect or very happy but of course they both end well. Two feel good Christmas stories. I might read more of  Debbie Macomber's books another time.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012

'Tis the Season by China Miéville

Call me childish, but I love all the nonsense – the snow, the trees, the tinsel, the turkey. I love presents. I love carols and cheesy songs. I just love Christmas™.'It would be a dream come true to be able to celebrate Christmas properly: to wake up to a Stocking™, visit Santa™ and open Presents™ around the Christmas Tree™. But this is a luxury reserved for those with shares in YuleCo – controllers of this joyful season – who don’t agree that it’s a holiday for one and all.In this short story, China Miéville’s astonishing imagination allows us a glimpse of how a dystopian Christmas might be. From Goodreads

It is the future and everything about Christmas has been taken over by YuleCo and people are not even allowed to wish each other a Merry Christmas if they haven't  got shares in the company. I am glad this story was short and if I hadn't read Un Lun Dun before I would most likely not read any of his books ever again.

This book qualifies for: 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012

Christmas with Grandma Elsie by Martha Finley

When Elsie welcomes her extended family to Ion for Christmas, Harold and Herbert Travilla decide to dedicate themselves to the Christian mission, and Lulu surprises a pair of burglars. From Goodreads

I have to change my one Polar bear rating to just bad as it is extremely seldom that I do not finish books, and I did finish this one but it was not easy. This book is very religious, and it kept pointing out how good they as Christians are. They have to be missionaries and save the heathens and Mormons. Read this book only if you are very religious. I will not read any more of her books.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 3rd of November 2012)

A Little Book For Christmas by Cyrus Townsend Brady

Containing a Greeting, a Word of Advice, Some Personal Adventures, a Carol, a Meditation, and Three Christmas Stories for All Age.

Well, Cyrus Townsend Brady was a also priest so it was to be expected that there were some Bible related quotes and stories in it. I liked the Christmas stories in the book.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 1st of December 2012)

The Christmas Angel by Abbie Farwell Brown

What would people do if they found her childhood toys lying in the street? Act selfishly? Miss Terry tossed each toy one by one to the snowy sidewalk in front of her house. But her heart is moved when she sees the Christmas Angel kicked aside. Remembering all the years it graced her family mantel, she rushes to rescue it. Back inside, the Christmas Angel comes to life, and reveals the actual destiny for each toy, and for Miss Terry, that she could have never imagined.  From Goodreads.

Miss Terry wants nothing to do with Christmas and decides she wants to burn a box of toys from her and her brother's childhood. Suddenly she decides to put them one by one out on the side walk and see what people will do. She sees people fighting over them, throwing them out in the street and steals one that she wrapped which makes her believe there is no Christmas spirit. This is where the Christmas Angel comes in, after she has rescued it back into the house it comes alive and tells her the story of what happened to each item after she turned away from the window. A heart-warming cosy Christmas read and of course it ends happily.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 3rd of November 2012)

Embers of the Raven: a Christmas Story from Greenland by Chris Paton

Beneath the dark polar night sky the troll lopes across the Arctic landscape collecting children for a feast. Nissimaaq, the hunter, enlists the help of a northern dwarf and his raven to return the children to their family before the turn of winter.
Inspired by Greenlandic mythical beings, this short Christmas story captures the dramatic winter landscape of Greenland with a festive twist for the holidays. From Goodreads.

This was a very enjoyable short read. I do like fantasy so this was right for me with both a troll, a dwarf and mythical beings. I also like that even though it has a happy ending, it does not end well for everyone.

This book qualifies for:
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 22nd of November 2012)

Bah, Humbug! A Romantic Comedy Novella by Heather Horrocks

Lexi Anderson is an up-and-coming, Martha Stewart-type TV hostess whose two kids love the Jared Strong adventure novels, which happen to be written by their new neighbor, Kyle Miller. For the first time in his writing career, Kyle has writer’s block--until he sees the snowman on his lawn and realizes it’s the perfect solution to his plot problem. He digs in and discovers two things: one, his villain’s weapon will fit inside a snowman's body, and two, this particular snowman was supposed to be the backdrop for Lexi’s next show. From this improbable beginning comes friendship, but can there be a happy ending for a woman who is afraid to get close again and a man who has shadows from his childhood? Families join together and hearts are healed as this couple goes walking in a winter wonderland. From Goodreads.

A cute Christmas Story with a very fast romance, they met and got engaged in 6 days! But it was nice and entertaining.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 3rd of November 2012)

One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson

Graphic designer Natalie Pearce faces the most difficult Christmas of her life. For almost a year, her mother has lain in a nursing home, the victim of a massive stroke, and Natalie blames herself for not being there when it happened. Worse, she’s allowed the monstrous load of guilt to drive a wedge between her and everyone she loves—most of all her husband, Daniel. Her marriage is on the verge of dissolving, her prayer life is suffering, and she’s one Christmas away from hitting rock bottom.
Junior-high basketball coach Daniel Pearce is at his wit’s end. Nothing he’s done has been able to break through the wall Natalie has erected between them. And their daughter Lissa’s adolescent rebellion isn’t helping matters. As Daniel’s hope reaches its lowest ebb, he wonders if this Christmas will spell the end of his marriage and the loss of everything he holds dear. From Goodreads.




An okay book but no more than that. It did make me cry in parts but that is not actually difficult! A family falls apart because the wife feels guilty of her mother's stroke. It all ends happily, actually the mother dies on Christmas Day but as everybody has forgiven each other it is a happy ending. Not an author I will look for again.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 15th of October 2012) 

Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012 - Update

I have read 3 short stories and watched 3 very different Christmas dvd's.

The stories are:

1. Christmas Eve at Swamp's End by Norman Duncan - 32 pages
2. The Christmas Bake-Off by Abby Clements - 25 pages
3. Snowed Under by Jude Ryan - 44 pages

The Dvd's are:

1. Winnie the Poo: A Very Merry Poo Year
2. The Bear by Ramond Briggs
3. A Christmas Carol (Patrick Stewart)

Snowed Under by Jude Ryan

With just seven days until Christmas, Janna Myers needs a snowplough to get through the mountain of work on her desk. Not that she cares, though. This holiday season, like all the ones before it, she plans to spend curled up with her laptop, visions of pound signs dancing through her head. When a blizzard traps Janna in the country with handsome Alistair Randall, CEO of the UK's biggest Christmas tree supplier, Janna must either embrace the holiday spirit or risk losing her PR firm's biggest client. Can Janna muster up some Christmas cheer, or will her bah humbug attitude cost her dearly? From Goodreads.

Another short Christmas story. This one scores extra for mostly taking place in Scotland near Aberdeen. I am very fond of Scotland.

This book qualifies for:
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012,
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge

The Christmas Bake-Off by Abby Clements

With Christmas just around the corner, the residents of Skipley village are gearing up for the annual bake off, and tensions are high.
Winning means a lot to everyone involved - talented cake-shop owner Katie dreams of baking stardom, Rachel wants to prove she's more than a stay-at-home mum, and John hopes his culinary skills will impress the woman he loves.
But when the judges discover that some cakes have been tampered with, the villagers' loyalties are called into question - whose ambition would stretch to sabotage, and why? From Goodreads.

A very short cute love story, only 25 pages. All the villagers have their reasons for wanting to win the Bake-Off. As always in a cute story like this it all ends well.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 

Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 3rd of November 2012) 

Christmas Eve at Swamp's End by Norman Duncan

A Christmas short story from before 1923. Pattie Batch a young woman from Swamp's End up North near the Canadian border who has recently lost her mother is desperately wanting a baby.
This 32 page short story was okay but no more than that. Her wish comes through on Christmas Eve.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 27th of December 2011) 

Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012 - Start

Michelle @ The True Book Addict is hosting the Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012.

I took part in the 2011 challenge and have been waiting for the challenge to start again this year. Then I go and miss the start of it.
Never mind I am joining now.

My goal will be the level of Christmas Tree to read 5-6 books and I will also join for the additional level of Fa La La La Films:  watch a bunch or a few Christmas movies...it's up to you!

This is some of the book I might read during this December:

1. The Christmas Angel by Abbie Farwell Brown (100 pages)
2. A Little Book for Christmas by Cyrus Townsend Brady (116 pages)
3. Christmas Eve at Swamp's End by Norman Duncan (32 pages)
4. Embers of the Raven: a Christmas Story from Greenland by Chris Paton (short)
5. The Christmas Bake-Off by Abby Clements (25 pages)
6. A Simple Amish Christmas by Vanetta Chapman (290 pages)
7. Snowed Under: A Christmas Story by Jude Ryan (44 pages)
8. Falling for Christmas by Debbie Macomber (433 pages)
9. One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson (281 pages)
10. Christmas with Grandma Elsie by Martha Finley (237 pages)
11. Bah, Humbug! (A Romantic Comedy Christmas Novella) by Heather Horrock (96 pages)

Some of the films I am going to watch are:

1. The Polar Express, 
2. While You Were Sleeping, 
3. Christmas Story, 
4. A Christmas Carol (Patrick Stewart edition). 

The last two are repeats from last year but they are brilliant films so that is fine. The first two I have also seen before but they didn't make it on the list last year so we will watch them this year. I hope to watch more.

I will not start my reading until December

HERE is where all the posts for this challenge will be