The best Christmas books offer cosy escapism during the festive period (roaring fire and glass of mulled wine optional, but recommended). Whether it’s a romantic comedy or a fantasy novel in a snowy other-world, the criterion is simple: it’s got to give you that warm, fuzzy feeling.
Classics like Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol will never get old, and Louisa May Allcot’s Little Women equally puts you in the festive spirit. Some famous tomes are family favourites – think Raymond Briggs’ The Snowman or Chris Van Allsburg’s The Polar Express (the movies are even more enjoyable afterwards).
Contemporary literature has just as much to offer. Laurie Gilmore – a Gilmore Girls-inspired alias – has taken TikTok by storm with her small-town book series Dream Harbor, and the novel The Christmas Tree Farm is a favourite among fans. Similarly reminiscent of Hallmark movies, Christina Lauren’s New York Times bestselling novel In a Holidaze nods to The Holiday.
Some Christmas books evoke the season thanks to their childhood nostalgia – see JK Rowling’s Harry Potter book series or C S Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Others like Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief or Claire Keegan’s Small Things Like These might tackle difficult themes, but remind the reader to be grateful during the festive period – just like A Christmas Carol did on its release in 1843.
With festivities fast approaching, I’ve curated a selection of the best Christmas books to hunker down with as the nights draw in, from cosy crime to romance and fantasy.
The best Christmas books are:
- Best overall – ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens: £4.99, Amazon.co.uk
- Best Christmas novella – ‘Small Things Like These’ by Claire Keegan: £8.49, Amazon.co.uk
- Best Christmas romcom – ‘The Christmas Tree Farm’ by Laurie Gilmore: £9.19, Amazon.co.uk
- Best classic Christmas book – Little Women’ by Louisa May Allcot: £5.99, Amazon.co.uk
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‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens, published by CreateSpace
Best: Christmas book overall
Release year: 1848
Published in 1848, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens has had a huge impact on the way we continue to celebrate Christmas today. Set amidst the Industrial Revolution, Christmas was a fading tradition. Dickens’ novel had a moral mission behind it: to keep the Christmas spirit alive while also encouraging charitable endeavours by the more well-off. The famous story follows the cold-hearted and money-obsessed Ebenezer Scrooge.
On Christmas Eve, he is visited by three ghosts from the past, present and future, who each deliver a cautionary tale on where his selfishness will lead him. Come Christmas morning, he’s transformed by what he saw – deciding to embrace the spirit of generosity and kindness for the holidays. Dickens succeeded in his mission – the novella became a bestseller and placed family and charity at the heart of Christmas festivities in the Victorian era and beyond.
Buy now £4.99, Amazon.co.uk
‘Small Things Like These’ by Claire Keegan, published by Faber & Faber
Best: Christmas novella
Release year: 2022
Set in the 1980s, Claire Keegan’s quiet but deeply affecting novella offers a snapshot of the Magdalene Laundries in Ireland. It follows Bill Furlong, a kind, dutiful father who works as a coal and timber merchant. The weeks leading up to Christmas are always his busiest as he does his rounds in the small town, providing families and businesses with coal.
When he attends the local church, he discovers a starving young woman in the shed where the coal is kept. A series of icy encounters with the nuns leads him to believe she might not be the only one suffering at the hands of the church.
In just 128 pages, Keegan deftly paints a portrait of both human evil and compassion. Recounting one unassuming man’s stand against the church, it’s haunting yet hopeful, and can be finished in one short winter’s afternoon.
Buy now £8.49, Amazon.co.uk
‘The Christmas Tree Farm’ by Laurie Gilmore, published by Harper Collins
Best: Christmas romcom book
Release year : 2024
To match the cosy, small-town feeling of her books, Laurie Gilmore writes under an alias inspired by Lauren Graham’s Gilmore Girls lead character. Her Dream Harbor series has won itself a loyal following on TikTok thanks to likeable characters and romcom story lines.
The third book in the series, The Christmas Tree Farm, is set in the fictional, picture-perfect town of Dream Harbor. Kira North hates Christmas, but she’s just bought a Christmas farm – in true romcom fashion, a dreamy man finds himself trapped by a snowstorm at the farm.
What follows is definitely predictable, but romance fans will be charmed by the familiar tropes and will-they-won’t-they plot of the festive book. It lined the shelves of bookstores last Christmas and is likely to be everywhere again for 2025.
Buy now £9.19, Amazon.co.uk
‘Hercule Poirot's Christmas’ by Agatha Christie, published by Harper
Best: Christmas crime novel
Release year: 1938
Agatha Christie is peerless in the cosy crime genre, and her famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, is one of literature’s most famous characters. Published in 1938, Hercule Poirot’s Christmas is a classic murder mystery that takes place on Christmas Eve. The story centres on the Lee family, who gather at the mansion of Simeon Lee – the tyrannical and wealthy patriarch – for a rare reunion. On Christmas Day, Simeon is found dead in a locked room with his throat slashed (it wouldn’t be an Agatha Christie novel without a gruesome murder). Enter Poirot, who just so happens to be in the area visiting a friend. As he investigates the brutal murder and interviews each family member, it soon becomes clear that everyone has their own motive. Dun dun duuun!
Buy now £7.99, Amazon.co.uk
‘Little Women’ by Louisa May Allcot, published by Alma Classics
Best: Classic Christmas book
Release year: 1868
Watching either of the film adaptations of Little Women or reading Louise May Allcot’s seminal novel is a Christmas tradition in many households. The story follows the four March sisters – Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy – as they navigate coming of age in a quiet Massachusetts town during the American Civil War.
Allcot challenges gender tropes of the time with her strong female characters, from the tomboyish Jo and the artistic Amy, to their mother, who raises them alone while their father serves as a chaplain in the army. Christmas recurs throughout the novel, which treads themes of charitable spirit and emphasis on family and reflection during the holidays (drawing parallels to Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol across the pond). The tear-jerker scenes are balanced by joyous moments, and the snowy New England setting only adds to the cosy feel.
Buy now £5.99, Amazon.co.uk
‘The Green Road’ by Anne Enright, published by Vintage
Best: Christmas family drama
Release year: 2016
Anne Enright knows how to pull on heartstrings with her writing. The Green Road is no exception. A story of one family coming together at Christmas for the final time in their childhood home, it takes place in a small town on Ireland’s Atlantic coast. Spanning three decades, the novel centres on Rosaleen – the matriarch of the Madigans – as her four children grow up and leave the west of Ireland for various corners of the world. Now in early retirement, she decides to sell the house and divide up the proceeds – but not before one final Christmas. The sale causes upset among the siblings, who believe their childhood is being erased. The themes of family and repaired relationships combine with the relatable hilarity of Christmas reunions. In the background, the wintery landscape of Ireland is beautifully brought to life.
Buy now £5.99, Amazon.co.uk
'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ by C S Lewis, published by HarperCollins Children's Books
Best: Adventure Christmas book
Release year: 1950
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe vividly captured my imagination when I first read it as a child. It's equally enjoyable as an adult, instantly conjuring up the mythical, snow-blanketed world of Narnia. The story follows siblings – Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy – who are evacuated during the Second World War to a professor’s old country house. Opening a wardrobe door lands them in the lush, wintry landscape of Narnia, where they meet Aslan, the Great Lion, befriend the faun Mr Tumnus, and battle the evil White Witch. Not only is the winter wonderland setting tinged with a festive feel, but Father Christmas even makes an appearance on his sleigh.
Buy now £7.99, Amazon.co.uk
‘A Court of Frost and Starlight' by Sarah J Maas, published by Bloomsbury
Best: Romantasy Christmas book
Release year: 2020
If you’re a ‘romantasy’ reader, chances are A Court of Thorn & Roses is your bible. At just 272 pages, the novella in the TikTok-viral series is a perfect Christmas read. A palette cleanser before the tense final book of the series, the story sees Feyre, Rhys and their friends working to rebuild the night court in Velaris following the destruction of the war. Taking place around the winter solstice, Maas sets a beautifully Christmassy scene, from snowball fights to gift-giving. Unlike the previous books, the novella is told from alternating perspectives, from Cassian to Mor. Serving as a companion piece to the main plot, nothing really happens, but the richly drawn characters do the heavy lifting.
Buy now £5.50, Amazon.co.uk
‘Winter’ by Ali Smith, published by Penguin
Best: Seasonal Christmas novel
Release year : 2018
The second book in Ali Smith’s seasonal quartet, Winter, evokes the feeling of the darker, brisker and frostier months. Set during the Christmas period, it’s a cosy winter read with powerful themes, from the passing of time and family to the Brexit fallout and Grenfell Tower fire. The plot – which centres on a dysfunctional family gathering at Christmas in Cornwall – has a Hallmark movie feel, but Smith’s prosaic writing elevates it beyond the usual tropes.
The story follows Arthur, who pays a stranger, Lux, a young Croatian woman, to pose as his girlfriend for a visit to his mother, Sophia’s home for the holidays. Sophia’s estranged sister Iris, an activist, also joins in the festivities. Loosely inspired by Shakespeare’s play Cymbeline, the family ponder everything from nature and art to the UK’s political landscape. It’s thought-provoking but sufficiently Christmassy.
Buy now £9.19, Amazon.co.uk
What are the best Christmas books?
When it comes to Christmas books, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is as influential as it is still enjoyable. Scrooge’s classic redemption arc is one of the most famous stories in literature, with its themes of charity, generosity and kindness during the Christmas season embodying the festive spirit. Where contemporary literature is concerned, The Christmas Tree Farm, Winter and The Green Road all evoke the feeling of Christmas and serve as the perfect cosy read.
Why you can trust IndyBest reviews
Daisy Lester is a senior IndyBest writer at The Independent. She specialises in reviewing books. She always has her finger on the pulse when it comes to new releases from both debut authors and acclaimed writers. Daisy knows what makes a gripping, moving or important story, whether it’s a romantic comedy or historical drama. She loves books of every genre, from satire to mystery and crime, so there will be a book for every taste in her round-ups.
For more recommendations, read our review of the best books to read this year
