Unwrapping Christmas [Hardcover]

Lori Copeland (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 18, 2007

It's that time of year again, and with excitement and high expectations, Rose has planned the perfect Christmas for her family and friends. But when she feels them drifting away during a time that should celebrate togetherness, Rose is forced to slow down in the most unexpected way. In this whimsical, uplifting story, she discovers the true meaning of giving.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

It's that time of year again, and with excitement and high expectations, Rose has planned the perfect Christmas for her family and friends. But when she feels them drifting away during a time that should celebrate togetherness, Rose is forced to slow down in the most unexpected way. In this whimsical, uplifting story, she discovers the true meaning of giving. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Lori Copeland is aandnbsp;bestselling author whose books includde Now and Always, Simple Gifts, Unwrapping Christmas, and Monday Morning Faith, which was a finalist for the 2007 Christy Awards. Lori was inducted into the Springfield Writers Hall of Fame in 2000 and lives in the beautiful Ozarks with her husband and family.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan; 1ST edition (September 18, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310272262
• ISBN-13: 978-0310272267
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #689,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

My husband and I live in the beautiful Ozarks. Our three sons, Randy, Rick and Russ live nearby so we get to enjoy our five grandchildren on a weekly basis. James, Joe, Josh, Gage and Audrey. Naturally I dote on the grandchildren! We also enjoy our many friends from our church and RV club.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's the most stressful time of the year, October 4, 2007

By 

Deborah "Books, Movies and Chinese Food" (Fairfax, VA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Unwrapping Christmas (Hardcover)

The Christmas season has come and Rose is busy, busy, busy with preparations for the holidays. She's worn out from doing all sorts of stuff for the church, cooking meals for sick friends, volunteering in the thrift shop, taking on prayer requests, etc etc. She doesn't have time for anything else including cooking dinner for her own family. Everyone else is getting grumpy and Rose is beginning to feel worn out. The Christmas season is starting to look not so jolly after all, but isn't a Christian supposed to put others first before themselves?

Ok so I know the Christmas season isn't for another 2 and a half months. But Sam's club already has Christmas trees and lights up! So what better way to get into this mood that this short novella from Lori Copeland. It's really a modern day holiday version of the story of Martha, the sister of Mary and Lazarus from the Bible. Christians today seem to think that they need to sacrifice their own needs and wants to make everyone else happy. I've seen many Christian families torn apart because they will go out and do things for others but not for their own children. Many pastor's and missionary spouses and kids suffer because of this type of attitude. This book showed that while there is a time to help others for the glory of God, you should also be careful of not trying to do things to make your own self look good. Know your limit and do not let false guilt take over you. The story is written really well and I enjoyed the characters and getting to know their busy hectic lives. It was funny at how Rose tried to figure all the different meals as she didn't have time to cook, who knew kids could get tired of pizza? I also liked learning more about the Advent with the tidbits at the beginning of each chapter. The only downside about this book is now I can't wait for Christmas to come. Even though this book is short, you will get a LOT out of it.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Story!, November 21, 2007

By 

J. Frye (Gulf Breeze, FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unwrapping Christmas (Hardcover)

I read this book in one sitting. It is the story of one who wants to help everyone and truly cannot say "no" to anyone. She takes on so much that her family never sees her and her health suffers. It's a message that needs to be spread: Know your limitations and don't allow your family to be left behind. A wonderful Christmas story!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars By the numbers, October 15, 2008

By 

P. Mann (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unwrapping Christmas (Hardcover)

In this novella, Rose is the mother of teenagers and the wife of a man who works long hours. Rose is no less busy, devoting herself to numerous charitable and church-related activities. As Christmas nears, Rose finds herself pulled in several directions at once. A woman at church is worried about a lump in her breast, and Rose wants to comfort her. Another woman's son is using drugs, and Rose wants to comfort her. Yet another woman is worried about her husband's ominous medical diagnosis, and Rose wants to comfort her. But Rose simply has too many demands on her time, including preparing the Christmas Eve dinner for her extended family.

"Unwrapping Christmas" moves along quickly, but there is little substance. Rose runs around lamenting the busyness of her life while accomplishing very little. Her husband criticizes her frequently for her failures as a mother while he himself misses family events. Meanwhile, there is a great deal of talk about God and prayer, but even this seems rather ho-hum, in part because of a curious grammatical choice. The author, for reasons that I do not understand, does not capitalize pronouns that refer to God.

There are, I believe, good intentions here, but the treatment is too superficial and too derivative of It's a Wonderful Life in spots to offer much insight or genuine holiday cheer, at least for me.