The Ultimate Guide to Holiday Books for Kids
It’s no secret that I have a love of reading that keeps me up way too late some nights! Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been the one to stay up reading under the covers til I finish my book or fall asleep, whichever comes first. Since becoming a parent, one of the things I’ve always wanted to pass on to my children is my love for reading. Ever since they were old enough to understand (and actually way before that lol) Tim and I have come together with our kids during bedtime to read books together as a family. I once read that reading with your children is one of the biggest indicators of developing their own love for reading, and well, it’s just stuck with me!
I have to say, I think it really has transferred to our kiddos too! Bear is an epic reader at age 7 - devouring any and everything he can get his hands on, and at 4 I can see Cami’s imagination really developing as we continue to have fun with stories that get her mind going!
The last couple of years, we’ve started a holiday tradition of snagging a few holiday books every December to read with the kids at night, leading up to Christmas Day. We’ve even done a Christmas Eve gift that includes a fresh pair of xmas jammies, a book, and some cocoa mix as a fun way to make the night special.
I recently discovered the magic that is Usborne book through my friend Beth Martin of Pineapples + Plaid. She had been posting about all of the fun books she was reading with her kids lately, and turns out they were all from Usborne!
Here are some fun facts about Usborne:
Crowned Children’s Publisher of the Year 2020
Usborne is one of the world’s leading independent children's book publishers and proud to be a family business
Usborne books are available around the world, in English and in over 130 other languages and dialects
Creating brilliant books for all children - and looking after people and the planet while we do so.
Usborne also uses independent consultants (like Beautycounter!) to help spread their unique books and by shopping with an independent consultant you help support a small business!
I’m not an Usborne consultant, but my friend Kelli Kutter (who I met through Beth!) is and she has helped me so much to find the books I’m looking for for Bear and Cami! It’s challenging when there are so many to choose from and both kiddos have significantly different interests and reading levels - I’ve relied heavily on Kelli to help me coordinate what I’m looking for! I’ve even told her, “hey, here’s my budget, here’s what the kiddos like, shoot me a list and I trust you!”. She’s that good.
For the holidays, it was a no-brainer to team up with Kelli to have her curate her top 12 kids books for the holiday season! I love this list because it has a little bit of everything for everyone - simple winter themed books for those who don’t celebrate Christmas, secular books around Christmas, and non-secular books focused around the nativity story as well.
I hope you love the list that Kelli has curated! Below are links to explore some of her recommendations - be advised that by shopping through these links you are supporting Kelli and her hard work as well as contributing to a virtual holiday party I’m hosting for her.
Keep in mind all of these books are currently in stock, but as the holiday progresses they may go out of stock! You’ll also want to order before December 16th to get your books before Christmas.
I really love how interactive Usborne Books & More are, especially for babies and toddlers.This sweet book has flaps to lift as you look for reindeer in snowy scenes.
Lift the Flap: Play Hide & Seek with Reindeer
Bring the Christmas story to life in this charming sticker book, from Mary and Joseph looking for a place to stay in Bethlehem, to the birth of Baby Jesus and the arrival of the shepherds and three kings. With over 190 reusable stickers of costumes, decorations and accessories.
Little Stickers Nativity Play
This book is 64 pages of Christmas puzzles and activities made for the 7-11 year old set. Great for taking along to family gatherings and keeping school-age kids busy during the break.
Christmas Activity Book
This activity book holds the sweetest paint-with-water pages for Christmastime. These are great for families with multiple kids because they all can have their own pages!
Enchanted Christmas Magic Painting Book
This large board book is amazing for young kids. It has scenes of animals being festive and comes with 15 super heavy-duty reusable vinyl stickers to place in the scenes creatively.
It’s Christmastime!
You can count this book as an investment that you will pull out year after year to delight your kids during the holidays. The sounds are sweet and lovely, and the book has an on-off switch on the back!
Winter Wonderland
This sticker book has adorable animals engaging in fun wintertime activities: snowball making, skating, making snowmen etc. With over 200 stickers it’s bound to keep your child engaged for a while!
Winter Wonderland Sticker Book
This book is a wonderful open-ended creative sticker book. It has sparkly stickers to decorate trees, ornaments, and all the festive things of the season.
Little Sparkly Christmas Sticker Book
One magical Christmas night, a little girl’s Nutcracker doll come to life! Peek through the pages to follow their adventures in this enchanting book.
The Nutcracker
A favorite that spans ages (great for adults also!), this book has velum pages that tear out to be colored and placed in windows for a festive decoration.
Christmas Stained Glass Coloring Book
This sweet book includes real twinkle lights on every page of the story, lending its own magic to the holiday season. Again, there is an on-off switch.
The Twinkly Twinkly Christmas Tree
This book is great for babies and toddlers alike, and is great for fans of the Usborne “That’s not my…” series.
Touchy-Feely Nativity
There are also SO many amazing books that are not holiday related! If you’d like personal assistance choosing books, you can reach out to Kelli directly at kelheartsscience@gmail.com. If you’d like to explore the website on your own, you can click HERE to explore!
Please follow along @jess.holdthespace on IG for a fun giveaway around these books as well!