Five Books for your Winter Reading List.

In the Northern Hemisphere, it is winter. Many people around the globe are preparing to celebrate Christmas or another religious holiday. Snow is likely already on the ground, though I
sadly, I miss out on that wonder. While I’m normally very staunchly in the camp of “No Christmas Music until after Thanksgiving.” I’ve been listening to Christmas music since November first this year. The year has been far too stressful and far to quick for me to hold on to past preferences. Another thing I’m starting early? I’m picking up my winter reading list. I have been an incredibly slow reader this year. While typically I have read at least fifty books by this time of year, I don’t know if I’ve even broken double digits this year. I enjoy rereading The Christmas Carol every year to
get back into the Christmas mood, and I will be picking up that powerful little book early. I am also trying to prepare myself for a better mindset in 2025. I believe it’s never too late to
work toward better things, so I’m not a great fan of New Year’s Resolutions. Yet, there is something about a fresh new slate.

For me, there are very few things that better incite change and growth than a good book. So while I still have a few novels to finish up, I will be adding a few to my list as well. So should you. As 2024 comes to an end and a new year looms, I can’t advise a better course of action to prepare you than to pick up a few good books. Here are a few of my recommendations.

Classic Literature: The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

Even if you have not read the book, you likely already know the story. The Christmas Carol is considered the most adapted book in history. Not only did it kick off the conversation about
copyright on a global scale, but it has been adapted to stage and film and retold in many many forms. Still, for the sake of history and a full appreciation of the season, I cannot recommend
anything more highly. Before this little book was self-published with the last of Charles Dicken’s funds, Christmas was more or less considered a minor holiday. Festivities largely included
getting drunk, and employers only gave their employees the day off because of the church’s policy. Charle’s Dicken’s classic story not only created the holiday we know and love today, it
also created the culture of generosity and care for the less fortunate that so marks it today.

Science Fiction: The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

I have conflicted feelings about this book. The story follows a depressed individual who attempts suicide after her cat dies. She is taken to a library on the border of life and death where she can borrow a “book” that corrects one past mistake. She is then able to experience life in that universe for a time and, if she should love it, she can stay. But if the clock in the library moves
past midnight, she loses it all. This book explores concepts such as the multiverse and regret. It encourages readers to take their lives into their own hands and refuse to be victims of their circumstances. It has a wildly speculative premise, while still maintaining a character-focused, literary feel.

As a Christian, it was unsatisfying in only this note: the deeper meaning of life and of the story was rather weak. However, I do tend to call myself a “nihilist saved by grace”, and most
worldly claims to meaning don’t feel very impactful. This book not only is perfect to get you thinking about your life choices as we come up to the new year, but it also has a wonderfully chilly scene where the main character spends a life in the Arctic Circle as a scientist. Perfect for a cup of cocoa and a warm blanket.

Fantasy: At the Back of the North Wind by George McDonald

I may be usurping this space to talk about another classic book. As a teenager I read At the Back of the North Wind and the story has never left me. Theologian and pastor, George McDonald explores the idea of death and pain and how they fit into God’s will through the eyes of the child protagonist Diamond. He may have even been dealing with the death of his own young son, Maurice.

Diamond, a kind and loving child, befriends the North Wind, who allows him to travel with her as she carries out her assignments across the world. Some are kind and good, some seem terrible.
The book is packed with small nuggets of wisdom and wonder and delightful fairy tales. The reader finds out, very near to the end, that the North Wind was a form of death herself.

Diamond’s journey with her was seen by others as a grave illness. She does return for him near the end of the book. I cannot think of a single book that has lingered in my mind with the same wonder and beauty as At the Back of the North Wind. It has shaped my understanding of suffering and grief, and shown me the wisdom in befriending death and sorrow. If there is one book I recommend everyone reads, it would be this fantasy.

Indie Fiction: The Wolf Prince by Claire Banschbach

While this simple and digestible fantasy story is the second in a series, it stands on its own enough that it can be picked up on its own and enjoyed. With all the stress, and the twists and turns
around the holidays, sometimes a straightforward story with a clearly defined genre is a great relief. This fantasy doesn’t present anything particularly groundbreaking in its world-building or
storytelling, it doesn’t necessarily seek to. Its charm is all focused on the characters and themes.

The main characters are two brothers, one of which is afflicted with a curse that turns him into a wolf. The elder of the two, who is still in human form, tends to be somewhat unresponsible as a
prince and a brother but sobers up quickly when his brother is in need. The story is grounded in Christian morals while never becoming preachy or intrusive. Your emotions will be engaged
without driving you to the depths of darkness and despair as some darker fantasies may require. And what could a winter reader wish for more than a book full of distant wolf howls?
The best part of the deal is if you are enjoying the ride, there are several more books in the
series.

Nonfiction: If I Perish by Esther Ahn Kim.

If Science Fiction is where my fiction-loving heart rests, Auto-biographies are home for Non-Fiction. This auto-biography of religious prisoner Esther Ahn Kim (Known at the time by her
maiden name Ahn Ei Sook) Esther, a Korean Christian living and teaching during World War Two when Japanese forces took the country. The Japanese demanded that Esther, along with her fellow teachers, bow to the Shinto shrines they imported. When Esther refused she was hunted down and imprisoned.

The Story is powerfully impactful. Esther shares vulnerably about her fear of persecution, of imprisonment, and most frequently, of the cold. Winter is known, in most hemispheres, for its cold. Even here in Florida, you will often see us in sweaters. What I most remembered from this book was the author’s struggle with the cold and the pain and suffering it brought.

Winter is often compared to death and rebirth. Cold effectively shut down much of nature throughout a good portion of the year. In fall the dying comes, and winter is like a tomb. But just
as Esther’s story ends in freedom and strength, so does winter, and so does ours. Winter mimics the death of Christ, followed by the resurrection in spring. This book is a powerful
reminder to the Christian of how to suffer well and look forward to the coming spring. The perfect book to shore up your heart in the dark and cold months.

At the change from Summer to Autumn I recommended several books for fall. Did you read any of those? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Or perhaps you have already picked up several of these books. What are you reading this winter?