Have yourself a very bookish Christmas

Debbie Jacob

MY CHRISTMAS tree goes up the day after Divali because I like the feeling of going from light to light. For me, this time of year means home-made gingerbread cookies and a good book to read. Christmas is a time for reflection so it’s the best time to discover Caribbean writers and learn more about yourself.

There’s lots of good Caribbean book news. In February 2025, Diane McCaulay’s novel, A House for Ms Pauline, will be published, and it’s available for pre-order.

Dr Pat Mohammed’s biography of US-born Janet Jagan, wife of late Guyana PM Cheddi Jagan and prime minister in her own right, just hit the bookshelves.

It takes its place among many excellent Caribbean biographies we now have: Manning: Faith and Vision by Bridget Brereton, Son of Grace (a biography of Frank Worrell by Vaneisa Baksh), and Brian Lara’s autobiography, Lara: The England Chronicles.

Award-winning Jamaican author Marlon James’ HBO series Get Millie Black has garnered rave reviews on the internet. Discover his other novels and get to know your favourite journalists better through the non-fiction they have written. Andy Johnson, Ira Mathur, Judy Raymond and Lisa Allen-Agostini all have books.

Ask your favourite bookstores about Caribbean authors who are currently making waves internationally. Monique Roffey, Safiya Sinclair and Kevin Jared Hosein are the first three that come to mind.

Shivanee Ramlochan from Paper Based is a great resource for recommending books. Her book of poetry, Everyone Knows I am a Haunting, is still going strong.

Every year seems to bring more Christmas books than the years before. About 90 per cent of them are light and hopeful love stories. You have to be a detective to sift through the new releases and find Christmas stories focusing on the values we treasure, like kindness and generosity.

For over a decade, I have listed Mr Ives’ Christmas by the late Cuban American writer Oscar Hijuelos as one of my favourite Christmas stories. This novel, published in 1995, is described as “a tender, passionate story of a man working to rediscover what it means to love and forgive after unspeakable tragedy.”

The novel was difficult to find because it only existed in paperback. But a few months ago, Mr Ives’ Christmas became available on audible.com and on kindle.

This year, one of my best Christmas-book discoveries is Calm Christmas and a Happy New Year: A Little Book of Comfort and Joy by Beth Kempton. This is a guide written around many anecdotes that deal with the disappointments and stress of Christmas.

Kempton has practical advice on how to own your Christmas, create your own traditions, understand past hurts, and create a happy holiday for yourself. It’s an interactive book with questions for readers to answer after each section.

Last month I discovered my number one Christmas book, Small Things Like These, a novella by Irish author Claire Keegan. It’s just behind the Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown as my all-time favourite book.

Published on November 30, 2021, this Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, which was also short-listed for the Booker Prize, has inspired a movie starring Irish actor Cillian Murphy. He won an academy award for best actor in Oppenheimer.

Small Things Like These tells a heart-wrenching story that touches on so many important Christmas values: faith, hope, empathy and courage. A full review of this book is coming soon.

Two of my favourite Young Adult (YA) holiday reads are still on my all-time favourite Christmas book list. First, there’s Let It Snow by John Green, Lauren Myracle and Maureen Johnson and The Angel Tree by Daphne Benedis-Grab.

Three interlocking short stories that take place during Christmas come together to make this novel. The stories are light, but capture the spirit of Christmas for teen readers.

The Angel Tree explores the theme of altruism and anonymous giving in this Christmas mystery where the teenagers in the novel decide to find out who puts up the Christmas tree in the town square and provides gifts for the needy every year.

Christmas reading gives you the time to wind down from the holiday stress. This Christmas, create the holiday tradition of reading in your family. Read picture books to toddlers and children up to ten. Introduce your children to How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr Seuss and have a family reading of The Gift of the Magi by O Henry. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens should be on every Christmas reading list.

At Christmas, everyone deserves the gift of reading.