Christmas Media, or Why I Hate Libraries

I hate libraries.

They should be renamed Hives of Temptation, or at least post signs outside their buildings that say things like, "WARNING! This building poses extreme danger to your current reading list! If you have a set plan concerning the books you're going to read over the following months, STAY AWAY! ESPECIALLY if it's Christmas!"

Yes, there I was, in the children's section of the library, when a small Christmas book display caught my eye. At first the only book I saw was A Christmas Carol, which I thought was odd, because that's really not a children's book at all, so I foolishly went over to see if it was adapted or abridged or something.

I never did find out, for alas, a second after arriving at the display, my eye was caught by the crazy beautiful front cover of a book called The Legend of Holly Claus. In another second, I'd made my next mistake: picking up this book to look at the synopsis, a move which not only made me want to read the book but also revealed the book that had been positioned behind Holly Claus, a book with an equally beautiful cover and that screamed early-1900s called The Box of Delights.

Holly Claus is about Santa Claus's daughter, who has to journey into Victorian New York in order to break a spell on her homeland, Forever (Santa Claus is the King of Forever. Look me in the eye and just try to tell me that isn't one of the awesomest things you've ever heard). The Box of Delights is about a young boy who is given a magical box "which allows him to travel freely not only in space but in time, too" (so, basically, he has a TARDIS) that a witch and wizard who head a gang of criminals want. Already, these synopses were weakening me.

Then, upon further inspection, I discovered two more interesting things: one, Holly Claus, while not written by her, has been welcomed into the Julie Andrews Collection, which, according to the notation on the back of the book, "encompasses books for young readers of all ages that nurture the imagination and celebrate a sense of wonder"; two, The Box of Delights has a glowing review by C. S. Lewis quoted on its back cover.

Dash it.

Anyway, in case you hadn't gathered this yet, every argument I could present to myself was in vain, and, disregarding my reading list and the number of unread library books I already had, I checked them both out.

Interestingly, this occurrence fits in beautifully with what I was already planning on posting about today - Christmas media. I briefly mentioned it in my last post, but I'm expounding on it now. Much of my Christmas spirit comes from Christmas movies and books and music. It figures, too. I created this blog and themed it as I did because I have a thing with fiction. I love movies. I love books. I love TV shows. I love stories. I'm not sure why. I just always have. Hearing stories is my favorite pastime; composing them is my favorite form of expression. And around Christmas, I feel like I can't get enough of Christmas-themed stories.

Accordingly, I had my best friend in the whole wide world over last Friday to accompany me in a heavenly enjoyment of Christmassy-ness. We watched It's a Wonderful Life (it was my first time seeing it), The Nativity Story (which I hadn't seen in years), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (which was as wonderful as always), and White Christmas (which I think might be my favorite Christmas movie) (might be) (maybe) (I have a lot of trouble picking favorites).

While we're at it, let me just say really quickly that my favorite Santa Clauses ever are James Cosmo in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Edmund Gwenn in Miracle on 34th Street, Mickey Rooney in Santa Claus is Coming to Town, and Alec Baldwin in Rise of the Guardians.

There's so much good, spirit-boosting Christmas media out there. There's also some heartbreakingly un-Christmassy media in existence. It can be so unpleasant watching commercials around this time of year, because they're all so materialistic and exploitive. Christmas is when you get stuff; you need more toys. Then there's all the awful, mindless, doddering Santas, like the fainting one with the obviously fake beard in the M&M's commercial, or the one in the new Gordman's commercials. And that's not even addressing new Christmas "comedies" that I never have and never will see. You know the ones I'm talking about. I shouldn't have to name them.

Like many of my posts before, this one doesn't really have a point. Just that I love Christmas, and I love the stories that strive to capture Christmas, to belong to Christmas, to make you feel like it's Christmas. When you sometimes feel like you live through stories, as I do, having stories that make you feel deep down that Santa is real and Jesus still loves you is joyfulness itself.

To conclude, here is a somewhat unrelated but still very Christmassy quote that I really really like: "A gift from a stranger is a small miracle, a selfless act done without reward, and it's at the heart of Christmastime, this simple act. This is where Santa Claus lives, you know, in the quiet act of kindness to a stranger. That's why he sneaks into the house and why we never catch him at his act. We can't, the moment is gone if we catch him: a work of the heart indeed requires no witness but, perhaps, God... To play Santa Claus you must become the Holy Stranger, the hidden Gift Giver, and that, ultimately, has nothing whatsoever to do with a Disney film or the Coca-Cola Bottling Company." - Kevin Murphy

Merry Christmas, everyone.

~Pearl Clayton