This collection suffers from indescriminate inclusion. For example, the first story, "The Fir Tree" by Hans Christian Andersen, is sad and even demoralizing, much like other Andersen tales. Poor little fir tree--there is no Christmas spirit by the time you get to the end. If you are persistent you will probably come across a good story, but I'm not sure the effort is worthwhile. ( )

One of my favorite Christmas stories is in this book; I read it aloud every year: A Christmas Memory, by Truman Capote. ( )

This is quite a good anthology, mixing the familiar with the less-often found in the Christmas genre. ( )