Happy Holidays, everyone! Last year around this time, I published a special holiday post about holiday movies you can study to improve your writing and we had a ton of fun (Die Hard is a Christmas movie no matter what the naysayers may think).
This year, I thought we would focus on holiday books and stories you can read during the snowy season with your favorite hot drink and your coziest blanket. Some of these stories are perfect for reading aloud to your children, but most can be enjoyed by all ages.
One great perk about this list is that you can read all of the stories for free online. After dropping some serious cash on gifts for friends and family, your wallet will appreciate becoming no lighter as you read your way through these holiday books and stories.
Here are ten holiday tales you can read online for free.
1) A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Ebenezer Scrooge is an old miser who cares about nothing but his money and himself. He treats his employee Bob Cratchit cruelly, forcing him to work on Christmas. But then Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his old business partner Jacob Marley, along with the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come. After these visits, Scrooge emerges from the experience a kinder, gentler man.
There’s a reason this Dickens novella is one of the most well-known Christmas classics with countless adaptations. Because of this story, “bah humbug” and calling a negative or miserly person a “Scrooge” has become a part of pop culture. And who doesn’t love to watch a cold old man see the error of his ways and transform into a warm-hearted one? At just sixty-four pages, you will easily be able to enjoy this story in between wrapping last-minute presents.
You can read this novella for free on Project Gutenberg.
2) How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr. Seuss
This story follows the grouchy, solitary Grinch, who hates Christmas with every fiber of his being. He decides to cancel Christmas by stealing gifts and presents from the nearby town of Whoville on Christmas Eve. Ultimately, the Grinch finds that Christmas is about more than material things and begins to see its true value.
Like Scrooge, the grumpy Grinch has become a hallmark of pop culture and a typical insult for those who aren’t showing enough Christmas spirit. With Dr. Seuss’s trademark whimsical language, this is a perfect book for you and your young ones to experience together.
You can enjoy a reading of this book (with text and pictures) for free on the Brightly Storytime YouTube channel.
3) “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
In this story, the detective Sherlock Holmes and his sidekick Dr. John Watson work to find a jewel thief. As London prepares for Christmas, a near-priceless gemstone, the “Blue Carbuncle”, is stolen from the hotel suite of the Countess of Morcar. Sherlock thinks through various brilliant deductions involving a battered hat and a goose in order to ascertain the identity of the Blue Carbuncle’s thief.
If you like your holiday stories with a hefty dose of mystery, this is the read for you. It is the seventh story in the collection The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and was first published in The Strand Magazine in January 1892. It is a classic Sherlock Holmes tale with a dash of holiday cheer.
You can read this story (and all the others in the collection The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes) for free on Project Gutenberg.
4) Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie
On Christmas Eve, the elderly, tyrannical Simeon Lee invites his estranged family for a reunion. However, this reunion is interrupted by the crash of furniture and a wailing scream. Upstairs, Simeon Lee is lying in a pool of blood, his throat slashed. The fastidious detective Hercule Poirot offers to assist and finds amongst the family not mourning but mutual suspicion. It seems every member of the family had a reason to hate the old man.
Here’s another one for you mystery lovers out there, and Hercule Poirot’s Christmas is an entire novel rather than just a short story. The detective Hercule Poirot was one of crime master Agatha Christie’s most famous and popular characters and appeared in thirty-three novels, two plays, and more than over fifty short stories. If you pair this with “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle”, you can enjoy holiday mysteries the whole season long.
You can read this novel for free on Internet Archive.
5) “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry
“The Gift of the Magi” tells the story of a young married couple. They each want to buy a secret Christmas gift for each other but have very little money. They make sacrifices to be able to afford their gifts and ultimately learn powerful lessons about love and gift-giving.
This story was originally published in The New York Sunday World in 1905. Even if you don’t know the title of the story, you have likely seen it adapted in some form or another. The twist of the story is well-known and considered an example of comic irony. This is a holiday classic to make you appreciate the love you share with others.
You can read this short story for free on Project Gutenberg.
6) Letters From Father Christmas by J. R. R. Tolkien
Every December, J.R.R. Tolkien’s children would receive an envelope bearing a stamp from the North Pole. These letters from Father Christmas were written in strange spidery handwriting and included drawings and sketches. They told stories of life at the North Pole—how the reindeer got loose and scattered presents everywhere, how the Polar Bear climbed the North Pole and fell through the roof of Father Christmas’s house, how there were wars with the horde of goblins who lived underneath the house, and more.
In this collection of stories, the fantasy master behind The Lord of the Rings series creates a fun and imaginative winter wonderland for readers young and old alike to enjoy. You will be charmed by the inventiveness of this classic holiday read.
You can read this book for free on Scribd—you just have to sign up for the site’s 30-day free trial.
7) “The Elves and the Shoemaker” by The Brothers Grimm
“The Elves and the Shoemaker” tells the story of a shoemaker who has fallen on hard times and only has enough leather to make one pair of shoes. When he sets everything out to make the shoes in the morning, he wakes to find a pair of well-made shoes already finished. He’s able to afford more leather when a customer pays a handsome price for the shoes, and each night the shoemaker leaves his materials out, the shoes are completed the next morning. He and his wife discover that elves are making the shoes, and over Christmas, they make clothes and shoes for them.
This story by the great Brothers Grimm is a lovely Christmas fairy tale that will warm your heart. It’s very short and would make a great bedtime story for children—particularly on Christmas Eve.
You can read this short story (and all of the other Grimms’ Fairy Tales) for free on Project Gutenberg.
8) “The Greatest Gift” by Philip Van Doren Stern
Feeling dissatisfied with his life, George Pratt contemplates suicide. He stands on a bridge on Christmas Eve and meets a well-mannered man. George tells the man he wishes he had never been born and the man tells him his wish has been granted. George returns to his town and finds that no one knows him. His friends and loved ones have taken different and often worse paths through life without him. Seeing the effect his absence has had, George appreciates the gift of life. He returns to the bridge and begs the strange man to return his life. The man agrees. George returns home with a renewed sense of gratefulness and finds everything restored to normal.
You are most likely familiar with the 1946 film It’s a Wonderful Life—it’s a staple during Christmastime in many households. But you may not have realized that the movie is based on this short story. I highly recommend giving it a read during this holiday season. It’s fascinating to read the source material of such an iconic film.
You can read this book for free on Scribd—you just have to sign up for the site’s 30-day free trial.
9) “A Visit from St. Nicholas” by Clement Clarke Moore
A family is settling down to sleep when the father hears noises on their lawn. Through the window, he sees Santa Claus in a sleigh pulled by reindeer. After the sleigh lands on the roof, Santa Claus enters the house through the chimney. He brings a sack of toys, and the father watches him deliver the presents and fill the stockings hanging by the fireplace. Santa Claus then bounds up the chimney. As he flies away, he calls “Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night”.
You may know this poem better by the names “The Night Before Christmas” and “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”. It is one of the most well-known verses written by an American and is often read around Christmastime. It also inspired the title of one of my favorite films—The Nightmare Before Christmas.
You can read this poem for free on the Poetry Foundation’s website.
10) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Taking place in 19th-century Massachusetts, this novel follows the lives of the four March sisters—sensible Meg, strident Jo, sweet Beth, and precocious Amy. As they cross from childhood to adulthood, they must figure out what a happy life would be for them and how to attain it.
While Little Women isn’t a holiday book per se, it contains several extremely memorable scenes set around Christmas. It’s the perfect book for reading by the fire and appreciating your loved ones around you. It has also been adapted to film several times—the 1994 adaptation is my personal favorite. So, once you’re done reading, you can enjoy the adaptation of your choice with your whole family.
You can read this book for free on Project Gutenberg.
I hope you will enjoy access to all these holiday tales beside a roaring fire with a nice cup of cocoa. You may not be rolling in dough after buying all those presents, but you can still enjoy a great read for free.
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