As avid book lovers (and collectors), narrowing down our favorite holiday books to just twenty-four seems like a daunting task. there are so many wonderful holiday books and more coming out every year. With careful consideration, we’ve narrowed down our favorites to 24 of our favorite holiday books that we love to read every year.
You are reading: Best christmas books for 2nd graders
Note: We didn’t include any “nativity” related books in this list so they are all appropriate to read at school (if you can do Santa related Christmas activities at your school). We also aim for books that don’t have too much text and don’t include any board books on this list.
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1. The Sweet Smell Of Christmas By Patricia M. scarry: join little bear as he gets ready for the holidays, giving readers the chance to smell six wonderful scents including apple pie, christmas tree, hot chocolate and more.
Did you have this book when you were a child? it was a favorite in our childhood home that we both cherish in our hearts. and I am delighted to say that my children now love it too. is one of the first books we read every year.
2. dream snow by eric carle – on christmas eve, the old farmer falls asleep wondering if christmas will come when there is no snow. he dreams of a snowstorm coming to cover his animals with a blanket of snow. Christmas morning, he wakes up and discovers that it really has snowed!
We highly recommend getting the hardcover version of this book which has a special effects button at the end of the book. that + the simple transparent snow pages make this simple book one that children will want to read again and again.
3. snowmen at christmas by caralyn buehner – it’s christmas eve and people are comfortable in their beds, but something is stirring outside. the snowmen are getting ready to celebrate! Under the glow of moonlight, all the snow families are sneaking off to gather in the town square for a night of carols, dancing, and an exciting visit from the snowman Santa.
Snowman books are all favorites, but Christmas is at the top of the list.
4. Allan Ahlberg’s Merry Christmas Postman – The Merry Christmas Postman brings a batch of wonderful letters for Christmas, including notes from the Big Bad Wolf and all the King’s Men. Open this book, pull out the letters, and find out which favorite characters would write for each other, and reimagine beloved stories together.
This is one of my children’s favorite books every year. the little letters you can pull out of each pocket are so cute.
5. finding christmas by lezlie evans – the squirrel, the mouse and the hare are getting ready for christmas. While the mouse is looking for the perfect gift for the hare, he finds a sick swallow in the snow. the three friends bring swallows home and try to nurse the bird back to health. the squirrel and the mouse realize that their christmas presents will help swallow to recover. when they hand out their presents to help swallow them down, they find the holiday spirit.
6. The Story Orchestra: The Nutcracker, Adapted by Katy Flint, Follow Clara on a magical Christmas adventure in this musical retelling of the Nutcracker Ballet: press the button on each beautiful scene to hear the vivid sound of an orchestra playing Tchaikovsky’s score.
My daughter got this for Christmas a couple of years ago and she absolutely fell in love with it. the arrangements are beautiful and each button only plays a short snippet, so she doesn’t commit to hearing a very long tune as soon as they press the button. it’s really magical to read with music.
7. here comes santa cat-by deborah underwood-christmas is coming and cat has a feeling she’s not on santa’s “nice” list. meaning? no gifts for the cat. so he tries to be nice, but kids, it seems, aren’t crazy about his gift-giving. still, the cat might surprise himself, and best of all, he might even meet the man in the red suit and get his own festive surprise from him.
This book is sweet and hilarious. we love all books about cats, but this is definitely our favorite.
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8. Bear Stays Up for Christmas – by Karma Wilson – Bear’s friends are determined to keep Bear up for Christmas! So they wake up the bear and ask him to help them find a Christmas tree, bake cakes, hang stockings, and sing Christmas songs. The bear stays awake when he discovers that giving is one of the best Christmas gifts.
9. Mr. willowby christmas tree – by robert barry – christmas is here and mr. the willowby tree has arrived. there’s just one big problem: the tree is too tall for her living room. cut the top to fit, and soon the top of that tree is passed over and over to bring Christmas cheer to all the animals in the forest.
10. olive, vivian walsh’s other reindeer – olive looks a lot like a dog but… she thinks she’s a reindeer. Knowing that it’s the time of year when all the reindeer help Santa, he decides to hop on a bus to the North Pole. Santa feels that Olive is just what his sled-pulling team needs. and he is right! olive saves the night with his unusual ‘reindeer’ abilities; olive is good at looking for sticks, smelling trouble, and being sweet.
11. how do dinosaurs say merry christmas? From Jane Yolen: From decorating the tree to wrapping presents, little dinosaurs love to celebrate Christmas and everything related to it. With decorations on the branches and carols singing on the doorstep, the spirit of Christmas is finally here and filling the hearts of families everywhere. But when the stockings are hung on the fireplace and the cookies are left out for Santa, how do the little dinos go to sleep? It is so exciting! How is it possible for them to calm down and behave?
12. A Christmas for Bear by Bonny Becker – One frosty night, the bear hears a knock, knock, knock on his front door. “Merry Christmas!” cry mouse. Mouse is there for a Christmas party and Bear has never had one before, but he’s sure pickles (preferably from France) must be an essential component, along with reading a long, difficult poem. Trouble is, every time the bear returns from the kitchen with more treats, the mouse disappears, only to be found, small, gray, and guilty-eyed, scurrying under the bed or rummaging in the cupboard. will there even be a small gift involved? “swill!” scold the bear.
I love this Christmas story with the mouse and the bear. I just relate to that grumpy bear on a deep level.
13. toot and puddle: i’ll be home for christmas by holly hobbie-toot goes to a family reunion in scotland, and promises puddle that he’ll be back in the woodcock’s pocket in time for christmas. however, a major snowstorm leaves him stranded far from home on Christmas Eve.
life goal: find a friend who loves you as much as puddle loves toot.
14. The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. mooring
this choice is tricky because there are so many versions of the night before christmas that we love! and you must have at least one version of this book in your collection. Some of our favorite versions are illustrated by Holly Hobbie, Gyo Fujikawa, Daniel Kirk, Sara Gianassi, Jan Brett, Charles Santore, Jessie Wilcox Smith. and robert sabuda. I’m not going to lie, I could probably think of 24 versions of this that we love if you want to read one every night!
15. Michael Brown’s Santa Mouse: In this charming Christmas story, meet a nameless little mouse who is blessed with a big imagination and a generous spirit. he lives a very lonely life in a very big house. However, he loves Christmas very much and one Christmas Eve he surprises Santa Claus with a very unusual gift.
Heidi went to great lengths to locate a copy of this book last year and guess what they just reissued? say oh! however, I can see why because it is loved. we are both new converts to dear santa mouse. here’s hoping they re-publish the other books in the series eventually as well.
16. gingerbread man on the loose at christmas by laura murray: everyone in the class is busy practicing songs and making treats for their trip into town to thank the community helpers, and the gingerbread man has made an extra present sweet for someone but before he can deliver his gift, the whipping wind and swirling snow also reach the town. muddy sidewalks are no place for a cookie, but this gingerbread man won’t let bad weather stop him!
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We already know and love the gingerbread man from his other picture books, so it was easy to fall in love with his Christmas story! one of my favorite things about the gingerbread man books is that they have really great level 2 vocabulary words.
17. nicola killen’s little reindeer-when a jingling sound wakes her from her dream, a girl’s dreams come true when she comes across a lost reindeer in the woods. they embark on a magical adventure and it becomes a Christmas to never forget.
18. Chris Van Allsburg’s Polar Express: A boy, lying awake one Christmas Eve, is welcomed aboard a magical journey to the North Pole. . . Through dark forests, high mountains and an icy desert, the polar express heads to the city on top of the world, where the boy will make his Christmas wish.
We couldn’t skip this classic! It’s such a magical story.
19. olivia helps with christmas by ian falconer – christmas is coming up and olivia is incredibly busy. She has to wait for Santa, make sure Dad puts up the tree, wait for Santa, watch Mom prepare Christmas dinner, wait for Santa, supervise how carefully the stockings are hung, and of course, open her presents! ! you see how hard it is to be so helpful during the holidays!
20. When Santa Was a Baby by Linda Bailey – Santa’s parents think their little one is absolutely wonderful, even though he has a booming voice instead of a baby’s gurgle, he loves standing in front of the fridge, he gives away his birthday presents, he trains his hamsters to pull a matchbox sled… and has an unusual interest in fireplaces.
21. How to Catch Santa by Jean Reagan: Two narrator brothers give clever advice for “catching” Santa (Be Cunning! Be Smart! Be Kind!) on Christmas Eve. Full of humor and festive warmth, this is a fun read aloud for the whole family to enjoy!
22. Santa Rex from Molly Idle: The holiday season is here, and nothing says Christmas cheer like candy canes, hot chocolate, and dinosaurs! Cordelia is celebrating her favorite winter holidays with her friends from the Cretaceous and everything is going smoothly, as long as no one knocks down the Christmas tree. oops… too late! This year, will Santa Rex bring her everything she asked for?
23. Jingle Bells (Little Golden Book) by Kathleen N. daly, illustrated by j.p. Miller: A family of bears take some of the town’s animals for a sleigh ride, and end up helping Santa deliver his toys!
The text on this one isn’t that exciting (just the lyrics), but the charming illustrations win me over with every read.
24. Pick a Pine by Patricia Toht: A family visits a pine lot to pick out the perfect tree. Instructional rhyming text accompanies the family as they transport the tree, set it up, unpack the decorations, and find friends to help decorate it.
While this isn’t a complete list of all our favorite Christmas books, we hope it gives you a good starting point to work on your collection. want to see all the books in one place? click here to see the full list on amazon.
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