“No string of lights could shine brighter than the nativity that represented the real meaning of the holiday.”
When 9-year-old Charlee Alexander’s father loses his business, the family is forced to move from their suburban home to a trailer park. Her parents hope it will be a fresh start for her older brother as he wasn’t doing well in school. However, her father has a hard time finding paying jobs and has to stay out long hours. Her mother has to find work, too. The bright spot in life for Charlee is their widowed neighbor across the field – Marva Ferguson. Charlee and Marva become fast friends to the point that Marva invites the Alexanders to join her for Thanksgiving dinner.
I went through my library’s app to see what holiday books were available to check out as ebooks and The 13th Day of Christmas was one of them. I usually read mostly holiday themed books in December to get into the Christmas spirit.
At Thanksgiving dinner, Charlee passes out and at the hospital, she is diagnosed with a brain tumor. The weeks that follow are full of medicine, hospitals and tiredness. Marva starts getting more tired, too, and the friends have to start talking via walkie talkies. Then, Charlee gets a surprise on Dec. 13 – a letter from some elves explaining how they wrote the 12 Days of Christmas song. Each day a new letter comes with a small gift. Christmas will reveal the writer of the letters and how the tradition is tied to the real meaning of Christmas.
The 13th Day of Christmas is a bittersweet holiday book. The light-heartened of the letters and presents is a contrast to the darkness of cancer, depression and financial struggles. It is a story of hope and how loving one person can often change your life. I enjoyed the message it brought to my holiday season.
Do you have a favorite holiday book? Share in the comments!