The Sage Record
Book Review - My 19th read of SKIPPING CHRISTMAS
Book Title SKIPPING CHRISTMAS
Book Author John Grisham
Pub. Year 2001
Genre Christmas Fiction
My Rating 5 stars
Ease of Read Very easy, enjoyable
ISBN 0385505833
I was attracted to this book because… In full disclosure, this is my 19th Christmas to read SKIPPING CHRISTMAS. In 2001, as a huge fan of Grisham’s stories, I was intrigued by the thought of a John Grisham Christmas story. Drawn by the title, I wanted to know what it meant to ‘skip Christmas.’ And once I saw the cover depicting one dark house on a street of Frosty-topped houses, I couldn’t wait to get home and start reading. After the first read, I was so taken with the story, I promised myself reading SKIPPING CHRISTMAS would become a part of my Christmas Traditions.
This book was about This is the story of Luther and Nora Krank’s approach to Christmas after their only daughter, Blair, leaves the Sunday after Thanksgiving for a year in Peru. Instead of facing their first lonely Christmas without Blair, the opt to skip Christmas, endure the ridicule of friends and neighbors and go on a cruise. And just when victory is insight, their world falls apart. At the darkest moment, the chastising neighbors circle around them, and their community efforts bring light and a reminder the really meaning of Christmas is sacrificially giving to others. It always reminds me of what C. S. Lewis says in the essay THE WEIGHT OF GLORY, ‘“Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbour is the holiest object presented to your senses.”
Things I liked about this book Grisham in an entertaining but powerful tale juxtaposes our society’s material aspects of Christmas against the birth of Christmas. Again and again, Luther asks ‘What does this have to do with the birth of Christ? As one of those rare stories where you laugh and you cry, it should be cherished.
Why you should read this book This is the CHRISTMAS CAROL of our time. Throughout the Krank’s struggle with skipping Christmas, I was constantly challenged with where do I spend my money and time at Christmas. And how am I treating those around me, when we should be honoring what Christ did for us, How can I reach out and love my neighbors.
This book lived up to the back cover copy The back cover of my 19 year old book shows one dark house, which is exactly the story. Why is there one dark house in the middle of Christmas.
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