Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days

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The recipes were wonderful too-- I'd been uncertain about how it would be to listen to a recipe, but most of the recipe chapters were focused on the stories behind the food, with the actual instructions to the point and never dull. Jeanette Winterson: 'The male push is to discard the planet: all the boys are going off into space' ". The Guardian. 25 July 2021. Archived from the original on 31 August 2021 . Retrieved 3 September 2021. This is a physically beautiful collection of a dozen (for the twelve days of Christmas) new short stories, alternating with a dozen pieces about food (each ending with a recipe), all with a Christmas or winter theme, topped and tailed with an introduction and a Christmas message. I use, but don’t read cookery books, and to my surprise, the musings on food, festivities, and ritual (4*) were far better than most of the stories (2* - 3*), some of which felt more suited to Halloween. Many of the stories would be fine for family reading; the food passages would be of less interest to children. The recipe essay was fascinating and discusses how March 25th was always the legal New Year though we celebrate it on Jan 1st (oooooh, so thats why the end of the fiscal year is later). I enjoyed learning how Britain did not adopt the Gregorian calendar until 1752 and had been 11 days off from everyone else for awhile because of it. This is also a lovely reflection on Winterson’s childhood and Mrs. Winterson using a comb and paper to sound the trumpet for the apocalypse so the family could practice what to do. I think I am going to borrow Winterson’s tradition of burning the calendar on the new year, seems fun.

Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days

Some of these stories, though, are ghost stories, and that's another case altogether! I enjoyed these thoroughly. They have old rooms and creepy happenings and are in the best traditions of M. R. James & co, but at the same time, I liked it that they're modern and not pretending to be otherwise. As an added bonus, there are recipes included in between each chapter. I enjoyed the commentary and history that went along with them. There's very few I'd actually make, but they were fun to read. Nothing to do with Shakespeare’s will, but an apparently formulaic ghost story - until the grand reveal, which was a total surprise, though perhaps shouldn’t have been, as it touches on issues Winterson cares about.Snowmama has an inventive snow woman coming to live to help a abandoned girl ( I broke into Store's Stores! But that's stealing! Yes it is. But that's wrong! So is a child with nothing to eat.) and the third story, Dark Christmas, is the gothic Christmas you didn’t knew you needed till you read it.

Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days - Goodreads

For me, this was a perfect introduction to this author’s work. I’m not sure how many of these stories I will specifically recall next year, but what will stand out most in my mind include the beautiful prose as well as the spirit and generosity of Jeanette Winterson and her love for Christmas, family and friends. I’ll certainly be interested to read more of her work now I’ve had a taste of what she has to offer. Spellbinding… artfully structured, unexpectedly funny, and impressively dynamic.”— Elena Sheppard, Los Angeles Review of Books Devilishly scintillating and quite touching… buy and adore this astute, wildly inventive and totally unique book.”— Alexis Burling, San Francisco Chronicle A perfect Christmas book for December – Christmas Days by Jeanette Winterson Christmas Days – the blurbYou can heal the past. It may be fixed as fact… but it isn’t fixed in the ongoing story of our lives.” I never sought to avoid the overwhelming fire of existence. It’s not death that’s to be feared. It’s eternity. Do you understand?'