My Selection of the Best Christmas Books for Kids

The gift of a classic children's book will last them a lifetime but it isn't very easy to choose the best Christmas books for children. I've gathered a list of all the old favourites - the very best Christmas stories and children's classics; all those books beloved by children over the years and passed on in turn to their own children. Many classic tales are aimed at children and should be part of every child's basic education. Who doesn't know who Alice in Wonderland is? How sad not to have read Pinocchio.

If you are now convinced that the perfect gift is a book for Christmas, then the next question is "which one?".

The shops are full of books for children, but which are the best ones to choose? This is a personal list of Christmassy books that my son and I have both enjoyed the most over the years and I hope that you and the children in your life love them as much.

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Classic books - give them the gift this Christmas

Reading to children is a great pleasure, especially when the books are first-class, but children gain so much more through reading than a little entertainment. Sitting together, snuggled up on the sofa on Christmas day will bring you close together both physically and emotionally.

Children enjoy the attention, they love having you all to themselves; give them the gift of your time. They learn some great tales that will stay with them a life-time and they'll take it all in - the pictures, the story, the morals, the fun and the sorrow - give them the gift of cultural knowledge. They'll also be looking keenly at the text and it won't be long before they start to put two and two together - the gift of effortless reading!

So why don't you give them the gift this Christmas?

Image: The NIght Before Christmas, Amazon

An Otis Christmas is a newly published (October 2013) Otis book especially for Christmas. The little old Tractor, Otis, who loves his farmer and farm but was ousted by a big, brand new yellow tractor, receives his very first Christmas present, a splendid new, shiny horn.

Just have a look a the quality of the illustrations and the timeless tone of the story and I think you'll agree that this, like so many of my choices below, will be the Christmas classics of the future.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas is one of my all-time favourites. I loved Dr Seuss when I was a child, my son loves the stories and I have loved re-reading them. Fabulous stories, great illustrations, morally uplifting, silly language and wonderful rhymes - what more could you want?

My son and the whole family loved the film version of The Grinch and I have watched it more times than I can count. Never-the-less, each time I saw the film, I spotted jokes and little things that I had missed first, second, third ..... time around. Funny, poignant and with a great Christmas Spirit message this film is a winner for Christmas Day.

There are so many tried and tested authors who always come up with books that kids will love. They wrote the classics of the past and are writing the classics of the future. Here are just a few of my favourites.

These are authors that my son and I have loved over the last decade. They are suitable for younger children, say 3 - 7 years, and they can be relied on for a good story and super illustrations.

• A Charlie Brown Christmas

  Oct 16, 2003by Charles M. Schulz

• The Nutcracker

  Sep 18, 1999by Janet Schulman and E. T. A. Hoffmann

• Richard Scarry's Christmas Mice (Little Golden Book)

  Sep 9, 2014by Richard Scarry

• Little Bear (An I Can Read Book)

  Jan 1, 1978by Elsa Holmelund Minarik and Maurice Sendak

What are your favourite stories for children at Christmas? Are they included here? If not, do add yours to the comments box and I'll include it in the list to help other readers find the best books for children.