M E R I D I A N     M A G A Z I N E

Books that Anticipate Christmas
By Holly E. Newton

Christmas is just around the corner, and I have some of the newest and best books and activities to give as gifts for this special season of the year.

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First, let’s begin with picture books for all ages:  A Christmas Treasury for Latter-day Saint Families, by Lloyd and Karmel Newell, is a beautiful book of “Christ-like” gifts delivered with the majesty of goodness and purity.  There are 25 chapters describing the gifts we all aspire to achieve.  Some include charity, peace and selflessness.  Each chapter has stories, quotes and poetry.  Many include the admonitions of apostles and prophets.  The pages are extra heavy and the pictures have an heirloom quality.  This book will be cherished throughout the year!

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Your eyes and ears are in for a real treat in this next picture book.  The message will linger for a long time and the pictures are breathtaking.  But the CD is just as mesmerizing:  God Bless Your Way:  A Christmas Journey is a story written by Emily Freeman, that was based on a song (that’s included) by Hilary Weeks.  The awe-inspiring illustrations are by Dan Burr.  This book is a must for Christmas!

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The Book of Mormon Says…, with illustrations by Debbie G. Harman, is filled with scriptures set with one scripture per page and surrounded by Harman’s folk-art work.  Simple yet powerful!

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The Boy Who Ate America, by Nathan Smith Jones, and illustrated by Casey Nelson, should have a byline that reads something like “…Or the Boy who Learns How to Feed his Soul.”  The title alone doesn’t reflect the great lesson and moral that it teaches in regards to spiritual food in comparison to worldly food.



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And, if you’re looking for the perfect gift for a sibling, mother, or relative, Ardeth G. Kapp has recently written a small size book for you!  The Joy of Believing is a wonderful blend of the author’s memories of Christmas’s past as she blends love for Christ and the true meaning of Christmas.  Here is a gift that you may end up giving to yourself!

Hidden Light:  Millennial Glory Volume I, by Wendie L. Edwards, is an exciting novel that takes on the possibilities of what might happen in the last days and makes it into a story.  Even though the protagonist and the other characters are fictional, the events that lead up to these possibilities are real and are supported with scriptural footnotes at the end of every chapter.  The story is suspenseful and riveting, but more than the story, the reality of what might happen in the last days will inspire the reader to become a better person!

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Sheep’s Clothing, by Josi S. Kilpack, will shock the reader into becoming much more careful when using the internet.  Jess’s parents are loving and supportive parents but what they don’t realize is that their teenage daughter is about to be caught up in a dangerous web of communicating with someone she’s never met.  And he convinces her to sneak out without her parents' knowledge.  It all seems so easy, and so disarming, just like the wolf in sheep’s clothing.  There’s much to learn in this captivating novel.

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The next four books are geared for ages 9 and up.  If you’re always on the lookout for an exciting and unusual mystery, The Candy Shop War, by Brandon Mull, is perfect for you!  Mull serves more unusual sweets with his creative flair and creates an adventure with a sugar coating that’s surreal.  Four kids go into the new candy store in town, but extraordinary things begin to happen to them.  But it’s a curious discovery that sets in motion their quest to find a hidden treasure.  This book is sure to please more than just your sweet tooth!  Once again, Mull delivers the goods! 

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Rescue the Prophet, by Rob Ficiur, is the second book in his “Time Travelers in Church History” series.  His first book is Trouble in Palmyra which I didn’t read, but from the reviews, it looks as good as this second book.  Tom and Becky travel back to 1830, and they witness the printing of the Book of Mormon.  Their adventure only gets more complicated when they find themselves stranded in Palmyra with no money and no means to get back to their normal time.  The excitement begins with the first page!

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The Final Farewell, by Patricia Wiles, is the fourth book in a clever and thoughtful series.  In this installment, Kevin is trying to decide about going on a mission or accepting an incredible scholarship.  The story reads with humor and flows with the sense and sensibility to guide youths at a crossroad onto better paths!

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Ambushed in Africa, by Sian Bessey, is another book in the successful series, “Kids on a Mission.”  Matt and his older sister, Emily, are about to open a magical envelope that will tell them where they are about to go on their secret mission.  The date and place of their newest mission is West Africa in the year 1978.  Matt soon realizes the vital importance of that date because that was the year when the blacks were permitted to hold the priesthood ― and their exciting adventure begins.

And I will end with activities that families can enjoy together.  Righteous!  A Book of Mormon DVD Game, is geared for fun and learning all at the same time and all centered around The Book of Mormon.  There’s trivia, word play memory and more.  Here’s a DVD that is perfect for FHE ― and any other night as well!

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Book of Mormon Family Night:  Lessons that Teach with Treats, by Cindy S. Pedersen, is packed with yummy lessons that will bring the family crowd together in fun and knowledge.  (Try the angel food cake recipe along with the great lesson in 3 Nephi when the people looked to the heavens and saw angels and then Jesus appeared.)

Book of Mormon Heroes Puzzle Cube has 6 different puzzles.  All you have to do is find them by turning the cubes over until they match.  The puzzles include Nephi, Captain Moroni and Mormon.

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