Christmas Stories and Fairy Tales for Children - World's Best Collection (eBook)

30+ Stories to delight & amuse, Incl. 'Scrooge (A Christmas Carol)' and 'The Night Before Christmas'

Charles Dickens (Autor)

Charles Dickens (Herausgeber)

eBook Download: EPUB

2018
620 Seiten
Imagination Books (Verlag)
978-1-928457-18-3 (ISBN)

Infos

Christmas Stories World's Best Collection

Think about your love for wonderful and beautiful Christmas stories..Think about how you love to share stories and fairy tales with your children...Think about the excitement both you and they feel when sharing wonderful stories together...

Do you want a collection of amazing, beautifully told Christmas stories and fairy tales? From some the most celebrated writers of all time?

The 'Must-Have' Collection - A Huge Collection

In this wonderful collection you get over 30 fantastic Christmas stories, including family favorites, holiday classics and delightful gems from celebrated writers. To delight and surprise both you and your children, for you to share together and become closer together, as a family.

Included Stories:

The Night Before Christmas - The classic rhyming story of the visit from Santa Clause by Clement Moore. It included the oft overlooked The Night After Christmas

The Gift Of The Magi - A touching and charming story from the famous writer O. Henry

A Christmas Carol (Scrooge) - The Classic tale from Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens Christmas Stories - A collection of 5 other Christmas stories from Charles Dickens, creator of one of the world's most well-known Christmas stories, 'A Christmas Carol'. The stories include, amongst others:

The Christmas Princess

The Christmas Goblins

The Song Of The Star

The Legend Of The Christmas Tree

A Western Christmas In The Old Days

What Christmas Is As We Grow Older

The Life And Adventures Of Santa Claus - A series of whimsical adventures about Santa Clause and how he came to be, and the fantastic adventures he had, all from the creator of The Wizard Of Oz, L. Frank Baum. Some of the stories include:

The Child Of The Forest

Claus Discovers Humanity

Claus Leaves The Forest

The Laughing Valley

How Claus Made The First Toy

The First Journey With The Reindee

When The World Grew Old

The Deputies Of Santa Claus

A Kidnapped Santa Clause

Other Stories In This Collection Include:

The Christmas Angel

The Child Who Had Everything But-

The House Of The Seven Santas

Mr. Kris Kringle. A Christmas Tale.

Sanat Claus's Partner

Your New Connection With Your Children

Imagine yourself jumping to any section and being able to read the wonderful and whimsical stories to your children... Imagine how you will feel about your children and how close you will all become as a family...

Get This Collection Right Now

This is the best Christmas Stories collection you can get, so get it now and start enjoying and being delighted and mesmerized by the words inside like never before!

Textauszug

A WESTERN CHRISTMAS IN THE OLD DAYS.

 

BY MRS. W. H. CORNING.

 

Christmas week there was no school, but such a succession of dining days, and visiting days, and day parties, and night parties, that Fanny, who looked forward to the week as a season of rest, thought that the regular routine of school duties would be less fatiguing.

 

Christmas at La Belle Prairie was the one jubilee of the year, something to be talked about for six months beforehand, and to be remembered as long after. It was a time of feasting and recreation for both master and servant. Days before, preparations commenced in the kitchen. Various smells issued from thence—savory smells of boiled, baked, and roasted meats; and sweet delicious smells of warm pastry and steaming cakes. Aunt Tibby was rolling pie-crust or stirring cake all day long, and the chopping of sausage-meat, the pounding of spices, and the beating of eggs were constantly heard. Everything was carried on with the greatest secrecy. The children were all kept out of the kitchen, and when "somefin' good" was to be transferred therefrom to Miss Car'line's store-room, Aunt Tibby came sailing in, holding it high above the reach of the curious little heads.

 

"I don't care," said Cal. "There's six pound-cakes all in a row on the store-room shelf. I see 'em when ma opened the door; and Marthy says one of 'em got currants in it, and there's a little shoat thar roasted whole. O! how I wish Christmas was come."

 

 

Coming suddenly upon Maud one day, Fanny found her with her apron half full of bran, while her fingers were busily at work upon a few pieces of faded silk. Maud tried to hide them at first, but finding by Fanny's question of "What is it, Maud?" that it was too late, she had looked up with a tired, flushed face and said:

 

"Miss Fanny, don't you tell now! will you? I'm makin' a pin-cushion for Aunt Phœbe, but it won't come square, all I can do. It acts awfully."

 

"Let me see what the trouble is," said Fanny, and sitting down, she examined the poor cushion; which, indeed, under Maud's hands, was not soon likely to come into shape.

 

"You see," said Maud, "I want to give aunty a Christmas gift, and I thought a cushion would be so nice, 'cause her old one that she wears pinned to her waist, you know, has burst a great hole, and the bran keeps tumbling out. I'm going to make her a right nice one, only I wish 'twas brighter, 'cause aunty likes red, and yellow, and all them, so bad."

 

Fanny searched her piece bag and brought forth bits of gay ribbon, the sight of which threw Maud into ecstasies of delight, then giving up the morning to the job, she cut and planned, and fitted and basted together, getting all in order, so that Maud could do the sewing herself.

 

"Aunty wouldn't think half so much of it if I didn't," said the child.

 

Well and faithfully Maud performed her labor of love, giving up her much-prized runs on the prairie, and resisting all the children's entreaties to play with them, till the Christmas gift was finished. It was no small task, for Maud most heartily hated to sew, and her fingers were anything but nimble in the operation. "I always did despise to sew, Miss Fanny," she said, "but I'm going to make this cushion for aunty anyhow."

 

 

It was finished at last, and, as Maud expressed it, "was just as beautiful as it could be." There never was a prouder, happier child. She did not thank Fanny in words for her assistance, but that night she came softly behind her, and putting her arms around her neck, gave her an earnest kiss, a proceeding which called forth an exclamation of surprise from Mrs. Catlett, for Maud was very chary of her caresses.

 

Christmas morning came, and long before daylight, every child upon the place, both black and white, was up ready to "march in Christmas." There had been mysterious preparations the night before, such as the hiding of tin pans and glass bottles under the bed, and the faint tooting of an old horn, heard down at the quarters, as though some one was rehearsing a part. Fanny was also astonished by an application from little "darky Tom" for permission to use her school-bell, the said cow-tinkler not being remarkable for sweetness of sound.

 

"O, yes, Tom, you may take it; but what can you want of it?"

 

"Couldn't tell no ways, Miss Fanny," said Tom, with a grin. "Mebbe Miss Fanny know in de mornin'."

 

Morning did indeed bring an explanation of the mystery. Assembling in the yard, the children marshaled themselves into marching order; Maud, of course, being captain, and taking the lead, bearing an old tin horn, while little black Tom brought up the rear with Fanny's unfortunate cow-bell.

 

In this order they commenced "marching in Christmas" to the music of the horn, the beating of tin pans, the rattling of bits of iron and pieces of wood, the jingling of bells, and the clapping of hands. Into the house, and up-stairs to the very doors of the sleeping-rooms, they all marched with their horrid din. It was received with tolerable good-humor by all but Nanny, who, deprived of her morning nap by the tumult, raved at the juvenile disturbers of the peace, and finally threw her shoes at them as they stood on the stairway. These were directly seized upon as trophies, and carried off in triumph to the quarters, where the young performers went through with the same operations.

 

"Christmas gift! Christmas gift!" was the first salutation from the servants this morning, and it was well worth while to give them some trifling present, were it only to hear their extravagant expressions of gratitude and delight. It was impossible to forget for a moment that it was Christmas. One could see it in the faces of the servants, released for a whole week from their daily tasks, and rejoicing in the prospect of dances, and parties, and visits to friends and kindred on distant plantations. The children, too, with their boisterous merriment and constant talk about the holidays, seemed determined to bear it in mind, and the great dinner—the one dinner of the year—in the preparation of which Aunt Tibby had exercised all her skill; this, in itself, seemed to proclaim that it was Christmas.

 

"Oh, Miss Fanny," said little Joy, "don't you wish Christmas lasted the whole year round?"

 

The short December day was fast drawing to a close, as a party of four rode leisurely along the road crossing La Belle Prairie. The ladies, though scarcely recognizable in their close hoods, long blue cotton riding skirts, and thick gloves, were none other than Miss Nancy Catlett and our friend Fanny, while their attendants were Mr. Chester, the town gentleman, and Massa Dave Catlett, who had come over from his new home in Kansas, on purpose to enjoy the Christmas festivities on the prairie. One of those night parties, of which Nanny had talked so much, was to come off at Col. Turner's, and this was the place of their destination. In accordance with the customs of society in these parts, they were to remain until the next day, and, accordingly, black Viny rode a little in the rear, mounted upon old "Poke Neck," and bearing sundry carpet-bags and valises, containing the ladies' party-dresses.

 

Just at dusk, our party reached their journey's end, and dismounting one by one from the horse-block in front of the house, they walked up the road, and were met in the porch by Miss Bell Turner, Nanny's particular friend. This young lady, with long curls and a very slender waist, performed the duties of hostess in a free and easy manner, ushering the gentlemen into the parlor, where a fire was blazing on the hearth, while the ladies, with their attendants, were conducted up-stairs to the dressing-room.

 

Here a dozen or more were engaged in the mysteries of the toilet, braiding, twisting, and curling, while as many servants were flying about, stumbling over each other, and creating the most dire confusion in their efforts to supply the wants of their respective mistresses. The beds and chairs were covered with dresses, capes, ribbons, curling-irons, flowers, combs, and brushes, and all the paraphernalia of the toilet, while the ladies themselves kept up a continual stream of conversation with each other and their attendants.

 

Into this scene Nanny entered with great spirit. Shaking hands all round, and introducing Fanny, she hastily threw off her bonnet and shawl, and bidding Viny unpack the things, she set about dressing in good earnest.

 

"How nice to get here so early," she said. "Now we can have a chance at the glass, and plenty of room to move about in."

 

Fanny wondered what she called plenty of room, but had yet to learn the signification of the term when applied to the dressing-room of a western party. Thicker and faster came the arrivals, and it being necessary that each lady should undergo a thorough transformation in dress, before making her appearance down-stairs, the labor and confusion necessary to bring this about can be imagined. Such hurryings to and fro, such knockings down and pickings up, such scolding and laughing, in short such a Babel of sounds as filled the room for an hour or two, Fanny had never heard before. Completing her own toilet as soon as possible, she seated herself upon one of the beds, and watched the proceedings with great interest.

 

"You Suke, bring me some more pins, directly." "O please, Miss Ellen, mind my wreath!" "Jule, how much longer are you goin' to keep the wash-bowl?" "Dar now, Miss...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 2.8.2018
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Kinder- / Jugendbuch ► Bilderbücher
• Themenwelt: Kinder- / Jugendbuch ► Jugendbücher ab 12 Jahre
• Schlagworte: best christmas stories • christmas stories for kids • Christmas Story • Wizard of Oz • xmas stories • xmas stories for kids • xmas story
• ISBN-10: 1-928457-18-5 / 1928457185
• ISBN-13: 978-1-928457-18-3 / 9781928457183