From Ancient…
This year sees the 40th anniversary of the BBC TV version of John Masefield’s popular Christmas story, The Box of Delights. Masefield’s book was written in 1935 as a sequel to his earlier The Midnight Folk. In its time, critics said The Midnight Folk could stand alongside great children’s books such as The Water Babies and Alice in Wonderland, but it never caught the public imagination. In contrast, The Box of Delights has been adapted numerous times for both radio and the stage. For one thing, my mother could remember listening to it on Children’s Hour with her brother and sisters.
Pic by Robert Arden, via Pixabay
The theme music used for that radio dramatisation was The First Nowell variation from Victor Hely-Hutchinson’s Choral Symphony, which was also used for the 1984 TV adaption. You can enjoy the whole of that piece here, ornamented by AntPDC’s beautiful film.
The cutting edge effects used in the 1984 version of The Box of Delights cost a million pounds – an amazing expenditure for children’s TV at the time – will seem strange to children brought up with YouTube and Netflix effects. Maria Jones, a character in The Box of Delights, thought Christmas ought to be brought up to date, ‘…with gangsters, and aeroplanes and a lot of automatic pistols.‘ Now we’ve all grown up, we can enjoy seasonal reads with all those things, plus romance!
…To Modern
Here’s my roundup of seasonal reads. All these books have been written by members of Courtyard Writing Matters, the writing group chaired by author Joanna Maitland – and me.
To find out more about each book, click on its title within the text.
Wouldn’t it be lovely if dating today was about romance, rather than selfies and social media? Inspired by Jane Austen, Bridgerton, and a thousand and one perfect romance stories, contemporary matchmaker Emma Love makes it her mission to find love for everyone in Ally Sinclair’s The Christmas Season – but while she’s busy making matches for her clients, will Emma’s own perfect partner slip away?
Joanna Maitland’s To A Blissful Christmas Reunion is a lovely seasonal story about rekindling lost love. Choosing a Christmas tree brings Gabe and Lucy together when the gulf between them seemed unbridgeable.You can read my review of it here.
In Evonne Wareham’s Romantic Suspense What Happens at Christmas, someone wants ultra sexy Andrew Vitruvius dead. He is rescued by Lori and her four-year-old niece, and goes into hiding in the Brecon Beacons. This thrilling novella has an unexpected twist at the end, and is a real page-turner.
Jill Barry’s Under the Mistletoe is a box set containing The Christmas Getaway and Crazy Days of Christmas. In The Christmas Getaway, Lulu’s charming boyfriend Ravi suggests a relaxing getaway during the festive season. Their not-so-traditional Christmas turns out to be anything but relaxing. Despite everything, can Lulu rekindle her love for Christmas? In The Crazy Days of Christmas, Lucy clashes with James, the replacement chef at her bistro. He has some wild ideas, but there’s more to him than Lucy realises. Could it be that love is on the menu this holiday season, or will it all be a recipe for disaster?
Alex is a party girl with a penchant for free flowing Prosecco. Her devilishly handsome scientist boyfriend, Charlie, loves jazz and dinner for two. Just before sharing their first Christmas together, Alex goes out of town and does something she will later regret. Is Charlie the forgiving kind, or will Alex be Single by Christmas? A feel good, Christmas novel with very few mince pies, not much snow and absolutely no mistletoe – just a couple of best friends, a sociopathic nemesis and a lot of drinking.
A Florentine Christmas: Three families. One city of art. A holiday that will change everything.
The cobblestone streets of Florence set the scene for a reunion years in the making. Three couples embark on an Italian adventure. But Florence has more in store for them than Botticellis and bistros, and one couple’s world is rocked when their daughter drops a bombshell.
Sara Downing’s A Head Over Heels Christmas is the third in a trilogy, but it’s also a standalone read.
In A Lion is not Just For Christmas by Henriette Gyland, circus performer Justine works with big cats and is asked to spend a few weeks settling a retired lion into his new environment. Tom Yates is groundsman at the stately home in Norfolk where the lion has been relocated. He resents her presence , but revises his opinion when he sees the bond between her and the big cat. She and Tom grow close, although the lady of the house, Priscilla is not so easily won over. She sees Justine as a threat to her plans for the manor. When unsettling events occur, Justine begins to wonder if there is more to Priscilla’s animosity than meets the eye. Can Justine keep herself and everyone else safe until it’s time for her to leave and start a new life elsewhere?
And Last, But By No Means Least…
Cath Barton is reading a micro story on North Manchester FM on Saturday 14th December as part of the station’s annual 3 Minute Santa stories.
Take a bow, all you talented members of the Courtyard Writing Matters group!
To find out more about my own books, click here.