They set fire to Fred Shoemaker’s toolshed, blackmailed Wanda Pierce to get her charm bracelet, and smacked Alice Wendelken across the head. And that’s just the start! When the Herdmans show up at church for the free snacks and suddenly take over the Christmas pageant, the other kids are shocked. It’s obvious that they’re up to no good. But Christmas magic is all around and the Herdmans, who have never heard the Christmas story before, start to reimagine it in their own way.This year’s pageant is definitely like no other, but maybe that’s exactly what makes it so special.

    It has withstood the test of time to become a holiday classic.Author Joan Walsh Anglund's timeless brave cowboy character was inspired by her own son when he was a lively young boy. The Cowboy's Christmas tells a wonderful tale of the special little boy's adventures with his imaginary friend, Bear, as they shop for presents, bake cookies, and decorate for the holidays.Any child (or parent!) can relate to the cowboy's behavior in the days leading up to Christmas, as "somehow, the cowboy never seemed to cause trouble anymore." He becomes "especially good" and begins to go shopping, hang festive Christmas decorations, bake wonderful cookies, wrap packages, and run errands-all with Bear's help!Joan uses two colors to help tell the cowboy's simple but charming story-black to represent the boy's real world and red or green to depict the fantasy world he shares with Bear. This seasonal gift book is a heartwarming follow-up to Cowboy's Secret Life, Cowboy and His Friend, and The Brave Cowboy, which was first published in 1959.

    But as the house groans at the seams with partridges, calling birds, swans, maids-a-milking, and more, will Annaple really succumb to the romance of it all?

    Contains "a Christmas Carol", "The Chimes", and "The Cricket on the Hearth".

    His cat Cricket tells him the story of the stable cat who watched as the baby Jesus was born, and he explains the mystery as to why cats are calm and happy--because they, too, were "blessed with the glory of Christmas love".