Customer Reviews

The Christmas Chronicles

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I didn't read the description. This is a compilation of Jeff Guinn's wonderful 3 Christmas books, not a new one!
If you have not read the individual books, then this is a fabulous book for you. The book is beautifully bound ... but if you thought it was a new one.... opps! Maybe Mr Guinn will give us a new one later.... I sure hope so.
JMHO //(*_*)\\

Great story for those of us who still believe in the spirit of christmas.
Love the History and the stories to go with it. Altogether an enjoyable read.

Really enjoyed Jeff Guinn's trilogy about St. Nicholas and his friends. It is intelligent and well written. I love that the story is fictional but interwoven with historical data. I read the first story to my 9 year old and he really got into it. He is at that age where belief in Santa is starting to fade, so this story didn't pander down or make fun of the tradition. This has all three of Guinn's stories. I am going to have a friend write an inscription by St Nick to help keep up the belief!

With the aid of his writer friend Jeff Guinn, Santa Claus helped me to once again rekindle the childlike belief in his gift-giving ministry and inspire me as I give my own gifts of dance, art, and lasagna every Christmas. Claus, his wife Layla, and Guinn give us a joyful yet serious journey through history, and they introduce us to some very powerful heroes along the way, most notably St. Francis of Assisi and Charles Dickens. Claus, with the aid of Guinn, shows time and time again how he and his wife and friends encourage writers in their art, for the art of writing is also the art of gift-giving. However, there are several flaws - because Claus is a bishop, wouldn't Easter be his main holiday? There is only one fleeting reference to Easter, although there are many to Jesus' Birthday, as they call Christmas at the beginning of the story before St. Francis actually calls Christmas Christmas. Perhaps Claus and Guinn could write a sequel - Santa celebrate Easter. The Resurrection, not the Birth, of Jesus was the main holiday for centuries, and an Easter book from the perspective of Santa Claus would perhaps make readers - especially maybe those under age seven, appreciate Easter and find ways of making it the spectacular occasion it once was back in the days of St. Nicholas of Myra's everyday ministry in Turkey. I found even more disturbing the glaring omission of Pearl Harbor Day, which is right after St. Nicholas' Day. I am sure Santa Claus would be deeply saddened of one of war's most horrendous tragedies occurring directly after the day in which he - one of the world's most beloved heroes - is honored. Lastly, there is no mention at all of Martin Luther King. The more I read about St. Nicholas, the more things I perceive him to have in common with Martin Luther King than with the Easter Bunny, as both St. Nicholas and Martin Luther King stood up for justice and truth and compassion in what we call real life, best known to one and all as history. The bottom line is that if a 50-year-old former skeptic can once again appreciate, through Guinn's excellent storytelling, the inspiring tale of Santa Claus, then perhaps this story can soften even the hardest of hearts. I recommend it be read and re-read every Advent and Christmastide, and, better yet, in the spirit of Santa Claus' legacy, given, in lieu of lumps of coal that only spurn resentment, to the Scrooges and naughty people on everyone's list, for few things can soften a heart as well as a delightful and warm, yet powerful tale such as The Christmas Chronicles.Letters From Father Christmas

Got this last year for a great price and read the stories in December. Awesome insights into Christmas and learned some fun things about history in a fictional story.

The book came just as described and in a very timely fashion. I like that were no surprises. Thank you for the great service!

The idea of Christmas stories as we know them being changed up a bit, put me off at first. I love Christmas traditions. However tradition runs through all of these stories. Some i was familiar with. Others i delighted in learning. All rendered in bright, new tellings that will definitely appeal to adults and older kids.
You'll appreciate the holiday even more after reading these.

The book does a wonderful job of pointing out the magic of Christmas and how our society has turned from a celebration of the holiday and spirit of Christmas to a shopping ordeal and loss of good will. It does a good job of returning nostalgic thoughts when Christmas held a ton of wonder for kids and parents getting the chance to see the utter joy and anticipation in their child's eyes. I loved being able to picture Christmas like it was as a child and should be today.

great book. quick shipping. just what you need to curl up with by your fireplace and some eggnog.

I bought this book as a gift so I have not read it. However, I understand that bargain books may have the sticker or the black mark on it to mark it as a bargain book and I absolutely was okay with that. What I wasn't okay with was a dust jacket cover that was wrinkled and ripped and FILTHY! and the edges of the pages, like when you look at the book closed, are AWFUL. Water spots, dirty, disgusting. Absolutely not worth the price I paid for it, but now it's too late to order anything else because it's for a coworker and our company shuts down for the holidays. But I honestly have NEVER been so disappointed with an Amazon order in my life. I'm giving 3 stars only because I don't want to knock down a rating too badly on what, content-wise, could be a very good book. If I'd ordered it for myself, it would have been okay, but it's in terrible condition to give as a gift.