Christmas Stories, published by Everyman’s Pocket Classics
by Dear Librarian
This cute little book is a jam packed compilation of Christmas stories. In all there are twenty short stories from authors such as Willa Cather, Charles Dickens, Leo Tolstoy, Nikolai Gogol, and O. Hentry to name a few. The stories vary in length from 10-54 pages, so there’s a story in here for every reader. Some of the stories are romantic, some tragic, and some typical of a Christmas night scene. All are enjoyable and assuredly will put any reader in the Christmas mood.
William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is a timeless classic. While some may find Shakespeare’s use of language difficult to decipher, there are many versions of the tragic love story retold. This new version by Bruce Coville is beautifully illustrated by Dennis Nolan. The best picture by far is the balcony scene–it literally folds open and out of the book since it’s been expanded. At first you can see Juliet looking for her Romeo, and then you open up the page to see Romeo professing is love to his Juliet. This version is breathtaking and a relief for those who would like to read the story in prose rather than verse. 