Welcome to another day of blogmas! Today I am hosting Kirsten who is a lovely lady you might have seen around on my Twitter. Kirsten has a book review/Christmas tradition post for you all today and it's about a very sweet book that I'd actually never heard of. So I hope you all enjoy this review of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson.
Growing up with my grandparents made me opt into a bunch of different traditions, things that most kids looked at and said ‘That’s weird.’ But I loved it. Every year, for as long as I could remember, we - my grandparents, sister and I - would read a book. One chapter per advent candy.
It wasn’t just any old book either, we’d read The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. This book shaped my Christmases, and not only that but how I viewed other people. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever is told in the point of view of a small child, whose mother has to take over the annual Christmas pageant one year.
The mother then wants to include everyone, which surprisingly includes the Herdman children. Now, these children are just about the most wild children you could think of. There are six of them, Imogene, Claude, Ralph, Leroy, Ollie, and Gladys. They smoked, cussed, and drank wine, which looking back is really alarming considering the age-group this book is aimed at.
The book in the beginning went on to say how awful the Herdmans are. But by the end of the book, the main character realises a very important lesson: Don’t judge a person by their appearance. (or a book by its cover, you could say.)
I guess, like the main character, by the end of the story I believed in the goodness of everyone as well. Well, maybe not the goodness of everyone… but I did believe in giving everyone a chance. And that’s something that hasn’t left me yet. :)
Merry Christmas! -Kirsten
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