Cozy Christmas Chapter Books to Read Aloud

The epitome of cozy, right? Snuggled up under a fuzzy blanket, in the glow of the lights, or perhaps by a fireplace, reading a Christmas themed novel. The most wonderful time of the year! These chapter books are perfect additions to your December TBR pile!

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You may also enjoy listening on Audible! We love our “silver plan” on Audible- one book/credit every other month, to supplement our library’s free offerings. You can read about the Ins and Outs of Audible in my post here.

We just adore Tumtum & Nutmeg. This series is charming– centering on a mouse couple who live in the home of a single dad and two kids who could use some encouragement and looking after; Tumtum & Nutmeg are up for the job in each of their adventurous tales! Lots of excitement in this Christmas edition!

The Family Under the Bridge. I read this to my first when he was 4.5. While a classic and wonderful I may have jumped the gun at that age… I asked– probably too often– if he wanted to abandon it, and he always insisted he wanted to know what happened next! We DID complete it, and I’m planning to reread it in the future. This an older book with some difficult vocabulary and a slow paced plot but truly uplifting.

Winterfrost. I read this myself last year and found it absolutely enchanting, and this year when I pulled it out to share with my kids, my 6yo said he already knew the story… Apparently he listened to it in Audible without my remembering he did! A year later he retold most of the story to me! The story takes place in Denmark and centers on the “nisse” of folklore of the region.

The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street. Ah, the Vanderbeekers. The family you want to move in with, or at least visit quite frequently. The characters are so vivid, the family so real and endearing. In this, the first of the series, the family’s lease is not being renewed on their home in their brownstone in NYC. The kids band together to try to convince their curmudgeonly (misunderstood) landlord that he should let them stay. This all takes place in the 11 days leading up to Christmas. We’re listening to this on audio right now and have idled in the driveway/parking lot/etc more than once to finish out chapters!

Nutcracker Mice. We adored this! My 6yo in particular is obsessed with the Nutcracker, and he’s been asking so many questions about the “backstory” of the mice… So, this story was a treat for him! We enjoyed the imaginative plot as well as the creative reworking of the Nutcracker ballet which made the mice the good guys. We all wished we could watch the alternate story as a ballet in person!

A Little House Christmas Treasury. After having finished the Little House series this year (road trip survival guide, thanks to the brilliant narration of Cherry Jones), we adored re-reading the Christmas chapters from each book all in one volume. They have such a way of re-orienting our perspective! (Their Christmas gifts were a tin cup, a candy, and a penny??!)

Special Gifts (Cobblestreet Cousins) I’m including this in the Christmas roundup, though it centers around Winter Solstice. At 55 pages with some pencil illustrations throughout, this is a quick but lovely story. Over Winter Vacation, the cousins decide to ask an elderly neighbor to teach them to sew. They celebrate the Winter Solstice with a special meal and the very best gifts– an original poem and song created by the girls.

Otto and the Secret Light of Christmas. This is labeled a picture book, due to the illustrations on every page. But it is very long and I can’t forsee anyone could read it in one sitting. We read it through the month of December. It’s charming and reads like a Nordic folktale.

All Creation Waits. Not exactly a chapter book, this is marketed as an advent devotional, but it’s not quite that either in my opinion. Each day’s readings are nature focused. We learned so much about the wintertime habits and survival of the creatures featured. Only one reading would be considered “religious”, Day 25, and it was more about the Great Love from Above than anything.

Audiobooks

We’ve listened to several of the novels listed above as audiobooks. The two below are audio-only!

Cinnamon Bear. I heard about this from Janssen over at Everyday-Reading, and my kids have loved it! (We listened on Audible.) It’s a radio series from 1937 and delightfully old fashioned. It follows the adventures of twin brother/sisters who find that their beloved Christmas star is missing as they are decorating their tree, so they set out to find it in the attic, only to be whisked away on a fantastical adventure. They follow Cinnamon Bear to Maybeland, where they encounter a dragon, a witch, a whale, a queen, a rhyming rabbit, a magician, cowboys, a gentle giant, and even pirates. The adventure concludes with a trip to the North Pole to meet Santa Claus himself! (We listened to this on Audible, but you can purchase this without a subscription, or get audio CDs as an option.)

Classical Kids Christmas.  Poetry and classic carols, intertwined with facts about how Christmas has been celebrated traditionally around the world. It’s very well done and quite beautiful & rich. (There’s also a Classical Kids Tchaikovsky!)

What are your favorite cozy books to read at Christmastime? Connect with me in the comments below, or on my Instagram or Facebook accounts.