Christmas Books for Young Children

”Tis the season to be jolly semi-permanently curled up with a good book. This is our pick of the best Christmas books.

We don’t make a big deal about Santa (more on that here Montessori and Santa) or the whole naughty/nice thing (more on that here Why There’s No Elf on Our Shelf), neither are we religious so many of these books focus on experiences and family.

Pick A Pine Tree

We love this book! A simple rhyming story about a familiar tradition that lots of children will recognise. The illustrations are fun and lively and provide plenty of extra talking points.

Christmas is Coming, An Advent Book

What a book! I dislike traditional advent calendars (and the more recent gift versions) as they put a focus on getting rather than giving or doing. Well, here is the book to change all that! This book offers a different festive activity for each day in December. As a young family our traditions are still forming and this book is going to be very influential.

The Queen and the First Christmas Tree

This book is a wonderful account of how Queen Charlotte introduced Christmas Trees to England. This a great piece of historical fiction, worth a read for adults and children!

The Most Loved Bear

I may have let out a squeal of delight when I saw this book! This book is fun and heart warming, little bear has had so many children love him but always ends up back in the second hand shop.

Slinky Malinki’s Christmas Cracker

I’ll be honest, this isn’t the best of the Lynely Dodd’s books but if you’re a fan of the rest of the series then I’m sure you’ll enjoy it, especially if you own a cat! Slinky Malinki makes an awful mess by climbing the Christmas Tree!

Mog’s Christmas

This genuinely funny story of a cat watching her family doing crazy things like bringing a tree inside will make both you and your toddler laugh. Alfie is a huge Mog fan and we’ve been known to keep reading this book until February.

”Twas the Night Before Christmas

This edition from Sterling Kids Books and illustrated by Tom Browning is my favourite book on this list! It’s so gorgeous, the traditional style of the illustrations matches the familiar poem just perfectly. It’s full of Christmas spirit and I feel a bit sad putting it away every January.

Other Winter Books

These next few aren’t exactly Christmas books but they feel festive in a cosy sort of way and we pull them out every December 1st.

Sleep Tight Farm

By the time we start reading these we’ve usually spent November finishing a lot of the jobs it discusses. The light and minimalist illustrations suit this time of year perfectly.

One Snowy Night

(Not Montessori compatible.) We love Percy Books here! Alfie thinks the animals climbing into Percy’s bed is HILARIOUS and we end up recreating it a lot, so perhaps not a great one for bedtime!