Miss Read's Christmas: Village Christmas and The Christmas Mouse by Miss Read, 173 pages

Miss Read's many fans will be delighted to renew acquaintance with two of her most popular Christmas novels, available here in one edition. In Village Christmas, a family new to Fairacre is viewed with suspicion by their elderly neighbors, the Waters sisters, until an unexpected turn of events works magic over both houses on Christmas Day. Meanwhile, Mrs. Berry, in the nearby village of Caxley, faces an equally eventful Christmas Eve in The Christmas Mouse when she is awakened by two unexpected intruders: a mouse and a bedraggled runaway boy, both taking refuge from a winter storm. Both stories are resolved in Miss Read's comforting style, as warm as the glowing coals of the cottage fire and the spirit of Christmas itself. Miss Read's Christmas Tales are a treat for those who already know Miss Read and a charming introduction to her books for those who do not. As in other books by Miss Read, this volume is complemented by John S. Goodall's delightful line drawings.