Pre-Owned Chicken Soup for the Soul: It's Christmas!: 101 Joyful Stories about the Love, Fun, and Wonder of the Holidays, (Paperback)

I first must admit that I always want a perfect Christmas. Meaning, perfect decorations, perfectly wrapped gifts, and the perfect atmosphere. Well, I picked up a copy of this book and all that changed. Normally, I read very slowly, but I could not put this book down. Chapter after chapter told of the true importance of Christmas. People helping other people, the joys of the simple things, families that were happy despite having hardly anything, cute stories of precious children, family traditions, stories with some humor, etc. This book made me realize that having a perfectly decorated house is not what Christmas is about. It is about joy. The joy that you get from the small things. It really made me open my eyes. It is not a sad book of doom and gloom. It is a happy book about people who are happy and spread that joy even though they may have little. It makes you appreciate all of the joy we have surrounding us without the gifts and all of the Christmas buzz going on around us. I cannot stress enough how great this book is for anyone. Most of the time Christmas is a very stressful time as we try to do all of the things we think we should. This book shows that Christmas doesn't have to be that way. It can be very simple and very joy filled without all of the stress. Pick up a copy for yourself to read through the New Year or for next Christmas. This would also make an excellent gift for anyone.