Kathy Hamilton One of the best things about the festive season is that it’s laden with traditions. From sipping homemade hot chocolate to visiting a Christmas market. But if you love reading these Christmas traditions for book lovers will be the perfect addition.
Try Icelandic “Jolabokaflod”
The Icelanders are well-known bibliophiles. So it should come as no surprise that they have a specific Christmas tradition surrounding books! Each Christmas Eve families in Iceland celebrate “Jólabókaflóðið,” or the “Christmas/Yule Book Flood.”. This is where families gift each other books and then settle down to read them on Christmas Eve. As with any tradition, there are some differences.
Many families choose to give each a new book, whilst others indulge in more of a book swap. In the second version, books are placed on the table and then each family selects the book they’d most like to read. The tradition is said to have begun in the Second World War when many supplies were scarce. But paper, and therefore books, remained readily available. I don’t know about you, but this sounds like a perfect Christmas tradition for book lovers.
Read a Christmas Classic Together
In the days before TVs and the Internet were commonplace, families often spent time reading aloud to one another. To me, the idea of gathering around to listen to a book being read sounds like a perfect Christmas Tradition for booklovers. The festive season is filled with nostalgia. And I love the idea of indulging in a pleasantly old fashioned pastime like this.
Perhaps you could even make it a month-long event. Choose a Christmas Classic like Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and read a chapter each night. Another great choice is The Christmas Miracle by Jostein Gaarder. Here the chapters even follow the days of Advent leading up to Christmas morning. You could even read The Night Before Christmas on, you guessed it, the night before Christmas!
Watch a Christmas Adaptation
Maybe reading out loud still reminds you of being at school. I get it! I hated being picked on to read to the class. A great alternative is to pick a Christmas book to watch instead! This is also a great Christmas Tradition for book lovers who don’t have fellow bibliophiles in the family! After all, who doesn’t love a good Christmas film?
From The Muppets’ Christmas Carol to The Grinch that Stole Christmas there are plenty bookish Christmas Adaptions to choose from. Did you know that the greatest Christmas Classic of all, It’s a Wonderful Life, is based on a book? It’s true! The screenplay was adapted from The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern.
Re-Read Your Favourite Book
Part of the joy of traditions is their familiarity. Each year we spend time surrounded by familiar rituals and activities that help fill us with the warm fuzzy feelings. So why not begin a tradition of re-reading a favourite book each Christmas? We spend so much time, especially as readers, constantly looking for a new author or a new book to keep us occupied.
So much so that it can feel hard to justify re-reading an old favourite. But the joy of Christmas Traditions for book lovers is that you can use them as a perfect excuse. So, when Christmas Eve comes around, why not pull you most loved book from the shelves?
Start a Brand New Book
If re-reading an old book isn’t your thing, why not start a brand new one? This is one of my personal Christmas Eve traditions. It began when I was unable to sleep for excitement as a child and now I continue it because it makes me so happy. Each Christmas Eve, after everyone has gone to bed, I curl up in bed and start a brand new book. Usually, I buy one in advance and enjoy the anticipation of starting it. However, it would be a perfect way to combine Jolabokaflod too.
There’s something really comforting about being snuggled in bed, looking forward to Christmas morning, and reading a new book. That’s why it’s a great Christmas Tradition for book lovers, it’s like an early present to yourself!
Buy a Christmas Recipe Book
This is a perfect Christmas Tradition for book lovers and bakers! Each festive season I always go a little overboard making sweet treats to enjoy. From my personal favourite, chocolate peppermint cookies to trying (and failing) to make the nicest gingerbread, I love baking.
If you’re the same, why not treat yourself to a new recipe book and then try out some of the festive bakes? That way, you get to enjoy a new bookish tradition, and your family enjoys eating a host of sweet treats. That sounds like a double win to me!
Make a Christmas Memory Book
Last up in this list of Christmas Traditions for book lovers is perhaps my favourite! I’m sure many of you have seen those one line a day diaries, there’s something so appealing about capturing transient feelings isn’t there? Although I never have the dedication to write one line every day, I love the idea of starting a Christmas Memory book.
A diary that can be packed away with the decorations and where each member of the family jots down their favourite memory from Christmas Day. It would be the perfect way to wrap up (get it?!) the holiday season. Just think of how wonderful those memories will be as time goes by- the perfect Christmas tradition.
