Tuesday, December 13, 2016

This was just an amazing read! History, nostalgia, and wonderful pictures may be found in Christmas Memories: Gifts, Activities, Fads, and Fancies, 1920's - 1960's, by Susan Waggoner. What a wonderful collection! There are memories of Christmases past, what the holiday season was like during the war, or the Depression. How the Kennedy's influenced how trees and houses were decorated ... all in all just a lovely book.

For a look at how some of the landmark homes decorate for the holidays without having to travel, pay a fee, or stand in line, try Christmas at Historic Houses, by Patricia Hart McMillan & Katharine Kaye McMillan. There's a brief history of each house, plus a bit about how Christmas was celebrated at the time the house was being lived in. Beautiful pictures, too.

I remember, vaguely, hearing about the Berlin Airlift in history classes, but not the 'spin-off' that dropped candy to children. Christmas From Heaven: the True Story of the Berlin Candy Bomber taught me about that! The book includes a dvd from the tv show so the credits look something like this: as read by Tom Brokaw, illustrated by Robert T. Barrett, written for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir by David T. Warner. (Since this was the book form, I would have bumped the author up in that order). ;-) It was Lt. Halvorsen who noticed the children gathered at the fence when he brought in supplies. He wondered what he could do for them. Find out! (There's a hint in the subtitle). :-) Wonderful illustrations are combined with old photos.

Reading Hermit With Dog

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