Keeping Christmas by Dan Walsh

Title: Keeping Christmas

Author: Dan Walsh

Pages: 224

Release Date: September 1, 2015

Genre: Christmas Story

Publisher: Revell

Format: Hardback (also available in eBook)

Note: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

About the book:

     Nothing is more beautiful than family.

     For the first time since their children were born, empty nesters Judith and Stan Winters spent Thanksgiving without the kids, and it’s looking like Christmas will be the same. Judith can’t bring herself to even start decorating for the holiday; her kids always hung the first ornaments on the tree, ornaments they had made each year since they were toddlers. Sure, the ornaments were strange-looking – some were downright ugly – but they were tradition.

     With Judith refusing to decorate the bare spruce tree in their living room, Stan’s only hope for saving the holiday is found in a box of handmade ornaments . . .

Excerpt:

     Stan opened the ugly ornaments box and pulled out the top three ornaments, the ones wrapped in green paper, the kids’ favorites, and set them on the coffee table.

     He picked up the first one, the biggest one – Anna’s blue pinecone – and began to unwrap it. Without thinking, Judith walked up, stopped him, and gently took it out of his hand. She wrapped it back up, set it carefully in the box. Then picked up the other two ornaments, put them in the box, and closed the flaps.

     “What’s the matter?” Stan said. “Did I do something wrong?”

     “I don’t think I can do this.”

My review:

     This is a new Christmas favorite!

     I absolutely LOVE this story! The main characters are some of the most well written ones I’ve ever met. I felt an almost immediate connection especially with Judith. My heart was breaking for her throughout most of the story.

     There were some wonderful discussion about how disappointments in how family relationships can develop. They can affect people for the rest of their lives. This is so much a part of life for everyone. I found the way it was handled and how close friends stepped in to help very encouraging. We can all learn something from this wonderfully heart-warming story. I may very well find myself re-reading this book every year. This story would make a great Christmas movie.

     This is another book that has touched me so much I have to give it 10 stars here on my blog. I basically read it straight through with minimal breaks. You won’t go wrong in spending a few hours of your leisure time with these wonderful people.