A Family Christmas
Search in google:
When I began assembling [this] collection, I was skeptical that I would learn anything new about Christmas, but reading and reflecting on the history and spirit of Christmas brought back many memories, and taught me a great deal . . . The literature of Christmas ranges from the miraculous to the tragic, the profound to the ridiculous, but always represents the connection to something larger than ourselves." -Caroline KennedyIn A Family Christmas, Caroline shares the Christmas poetry, prose, scriptural readings, and lyrics that are most dear to her, drawing on authors as diverse as Harper Lee, Nikki Giovanni, Martin Luther King Jr., Billy Collins, John and Yoko, and Charles Dickens. There are also many lesser-known gems throughout and personal treasures from her own family -- including a young Caroline's Christmas list to Santa Claus and a letter from her father as President to a child concerned about Santa's well-being. This diverse and unique anthology will become a timeless keepsake, and will enrich your heart and mind with the spirit of Christmas.A Family Christmas includes selections from:Groucho Marx, Emma Lazarus, Mark Twain, Sandra Cisneros, David Sedaris, Pearl S. Buck, Truman Capote, Kurt Vonnegut, Gabriela Mistral, Ogden Nash, Clement Clarke Moore, Vladimir Nabokov, Marianne Moore, Calvin Trillin, E. B. White, and many more.Publishers WeeklyKennedy, who possesses a proven track record for bringing literary anthology into the publishing mainstream, offers a potpourri of her favorite stories, poems, essays, scriptures and songs associated with the holiday season. Though David Sedaris's performance of his whimsical monologue "Six to Eight Black Men" provides a notable exception, the narration duties fall to a rotating cast of veteran readers. Some standout performances include Barbara Caruso's rendition of Grace Paley's "The Loudest Voice," Jeff Woodman's presentation of Truman Capote's "A Christmas Memory" and Saidah Arrika Ekulona's brief but riveting selection from Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girlby Harriet A. Jacobs. Some listeners might have preferred a greater proportion of contemporary recordings from their original sources. Also, some of the letters, telegrams and other correspondences are choppy relative to the overall flow of the collection, and the musical selections sometimes serve as pleasant interludes rather than stand-alone works of expression. However, in an era when Christmas has become a polarized tug-of-war between religious and secular arenas, Kennedy strikes an appealing balance that celebrates diverse perspectives. The enclosed booklet is helpful for tracking down specific material. Simultaneous release with the Hyperion hardcover. (Oct.)Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information
We Need a Little Christmas Jerry Herman vLetter to Santa Caroline Kennedy xiIntroduction Caroline Kennedy xiiiThe Gracious Time 1The Gracious Time (from Hamlet) William Shakespeare 3Psalm 8 4Credo Edwin Arlington Robinson 5Letter to Fred Allen Groucho Marx 6Relative Pronouns E. B. White 7Keeping Christmas Henry van Dyke 10White Christmas Irving Berlin 12Deck the Halls 13Deck the Halls$dWelsh Traditional Carol 15Under the Mistletoe Countee Cullen 17Messiah (Christmas Portions) Mark Doty 19Little tree E. E. Cummings 23The Christmas Tree Emma Lazarus 25Christmas Trees: A Christmas Circular Letter Robert Frost 28A Christmas Tree Piri Thomas 31Christmas Party at the South Danbury Church Donald Hall 37The Loudest Voice Grace Paley 38Peace and Goodwill to Managers George Bernard Shaw 45The Old Scout: The Season of Letter-Perfect Families Garrison Keillor 47The Computer's First Christmas Card Edwin Morgan 50Lynch v. Donnelly, 465 U.S. 668 (1984) 51The Holly and the Ivy$dEnglish Traditional Carol 54Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town 57Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town Haven Gillespie J. Fred Coots 59A Visit from St. Nicholas Clement Clarke Moore 60Is There a Santa Claus? ("Yes, Virginia") Francis P. Church 63Letter to Michelle Rochon John F. Kennedy 65Letter from Santa Claus Mark Twain 66Santa's Stocking Katherine Lee Bates 69Mr. Edwards Meets Santa Claus (from Little House on the Prairie) Laura Ingalls Wilder 71A Chaparral Christmas Gift O. Henry 78Santa Claus Sonny Boy Williamson 84Saint Nicholas Marianne Moore 86Saint Nicholas (from The Christmas Encyclopedia) William D. Crump 88Six to Eight Black Men David Sedaris 92Santaland 2006 (from Santa Guide for the Macy's Santa) 97Children of the World v. Santa Claus Andrew J. McClurg 104The Deadweight Loss of Christmas (from American Economic Review) Joel Waldfogel 106NORAD Tracks Santa: www.noradsanta.org 112Father Christmas Executed Claude Levi-Strauss 116Christmas in Hollis: Run-D.M.C. 125Away in a Manger 127Away in a Manger William James Kirkpatrick 129Isaiah 9: 2-6 130Luke 2: 1-20 131Pedida de la Posada: Asking for Lodging 133The Stable Gabriela Mistral 136The Barn Elizabeth Coatsworth 138Presepio Joseph Brodsky 140The Puppy Who Wanted a Boy Jane Thayer 142Christmas Superstitions (from Christmas in the Mountains) Hubert J. Davis 146Christmas Eve-Nochebuena Cesar Vallejo 149Carol of the Birds-El Cant dels Ocells$dOld Spanish Carol from Catalonia 150Silent Night Joseph Mohr Franz Gruber 153Joy to the World 155Joy to the World! Isaac Watts G. F. Handel 157Christmas Sparrow Billy Collins 158Christmas Day in the Morning Pearl S. Buck 160Christmas Day at Sea Joseph Conrad 165Christmas Vladimir Nabokov 169A Christmas Memory Truman Capote 176Blond Natasha Trethewey 188All I Want for Christmas Is You Mariah Carey Walter Afanasieff 190Hark! The Herald Angels Sing-Hail the Heav'n Born Prince of Peace: Christmas in Wartime 193Hark! The Herald Angels Sing Charles Wesley George Whitefield Martin Madan Felix Mendelssohn 195Peace Henry Vaughan 197Letter to John Hancock George Washington 198Christmas Bells Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 201The Christmas Truce, World War I (from The London Times) 203Letter to Tommy, World War II Lt. Col. Ralph Noonan 206Telegram to the U.S. Ambassador, Moscow W. Averell Harriman 208A Christmas Sermon on Peace Martin Luther King, Jr. 209Christmas E-mails from Iraq Capt. Trent Weston Sgt. Mike Mira 216Happy Xmas (War Is Over) John Lennon Yoko Ono 220We Wish You a Merry Christmas: The Christmas Feast 221We Wish You a Merry Christmas: Traditional 223All you that to feasting and mirth are inclined Anonymous English (Medieval) 224"Amos 'n' Andy" Christmas Show Fails Test of Time (from The New York Times) Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 225Christmas in Qatar Calvin Trillin 230Christmas Laughter Nikki Giovanni 232Penalty for Keeping Christmas 234Grace Defended Cotton Mather 235From Martha Washington's Kitchen 237Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Harriet A. Jacobs 240Christmas in the Olden Time Sir Walter Scott 244The Second of the Three Spirits (from A Christmas Carol) Charles Dickens 246Salvation Army's Bounty (from The New York Times) 258Christmas Every Day William Dean Howells 262Christmas in the Tenements Theodore Dreiser 267Un Poquito de Tu Amor Sandra Cisneros 273Here We Come a-Wassailing: Traditional 278O Come, All Ye Faithful 279O Come, All Ye Faithful Frederick Oakeley William Thomas Brooke John Francis Wade 281Matthew 2: 1-12 282The Oxen Thomas Hardy 284A Christmas Carol Christina Rossetti 285Carol of the Brown King Langston Hughes 287Christmas Morning Elizabeth Madox Roberts 288The Gift of the Magi O. Henry 290The Real Gifts Parents Can Give to Children Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy 296Dreams of a Black Christmas Gwendolyn Brooks 299Christmas St. Augustine 306The First Nowell: Traditional 308Winter Wonderland 311Winter Wonderland Richard B. Smith Felix Bernard 313All's Noel That Ends Noel Ogden Nash 315Christ Climbed Down Lawrence Ferlinghetti 317Remembrance Is Sufficient E. B. White 320For the Time Being W. H. Auden 322Blow, Blow, Thou Winter Wind (from As You Like It) William Shakespeare 324Acknowledgments 327Credits 329
