It was a hectic week, which means not much knitting got accomplished. Nothing old is done. Nothing new is started. Tomorrow I vow to do one or the other.

I’ve done better on the reading front. I read the first chapter of The Muse of Nightmares, which is dark (duh!) and kind of maybe don’t want to read it right now. I was able to renew it, so maybe I’ll put it aside and try again next week. I have plenty of other paper books to choose from, including Glad Tidings, two holiday romance novellas which have been perfectly adequate bathroom reading but seem unlikely to advance beyond that. I think I’ll finish The Wolves of Willoughby Chase next, provided I can lay hands on it quickly. Otherwise, Christmas Caramel Murder, Christmas at Eagle Pond, and Ghosts of Greenglass House are the leading contenders to read next.

I’m listening to Michelle Obama’s Becoming, which she reads, and I now feel like I have a wise girlfriend keeping me company while I wash the dishes at night. I also have Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery out on audio, which is by the same author who wrote The Bookshop on the Corner, which was fine, but nothing particularly special. I’ve listened to the first few chapters, because a lot of people seem to really think it’s sweet, but I’m not sure I’m invested enough after the first few chapters to keep going. There’s probably another half hour before we learn what the driving force of this book’s plot is going to be (there’s been almost 45 minutes of set-up so far), so I suppose I’ll give it that much. Otherwise, I’ll probably just return to hanging out with Michelle.

Season’s Greetings! We’re already several days into Hanukkah, are officially into the Christian Advent season, and narrowing down on the end of the year. I hope you’re making the most of it, regardless of what you’re celebrating!

Speaking of celebrating, Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm is doing just that today and has a post full of family joy!

In the meantime, in honor of the third day and fourth night of Hanukkah today, I thought I’d share a video with you from a cappella group Six13:

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday from That Artsy Reader Girl asks about our top ten list of cozy, wintry reads. Unsurprisingly, I’m going to focus my list on Christmas reads. (Readergirl3 also narrowed her topic similarly and we have a bunch of the same books in her list.)

Here are 11 of my favorites (once I got going, I ran long…)

1. Dylan Thomas’ A Child’s Christmas in Wales beautifully captures the nostalgia surrounding the holidays. If you can find the audio of Thomas reading it himself, it’s worth a listen. Similarly a staged reading of the text also makes for an enjoyable evening.
2. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. Also has, as I recall, a decent 1980s made-for-tv adaptation.
3. The Birds’ Christmas Carol by Kate Douglas Wiggins: An overly melodramatic Christmas picture book about a sick girl and her neighbors from the author of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm.
4. The Polar Express, a picture book by Chris Van Allsburg, tells of a boy’s test of his faith. I first read this in French in high school, and it’s a beautiful read-aloud in any language.
5. My True Love Gave to Me, edited by Stephanie Perkins, gives you a dozen YA love stories in a range of genres from some of the top authors writing for teens today. Not all 12 stories were loved, but I could appreciate even the ones I didn’t.
6. Speaking of which, Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! gives you three interrelated Christmas stories from John Green, Lauren Myracle, and Maureen Johnson.
7. For many years, I did not enjoy Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, but for the past decade or so, I’ve finally grown into it. I’m currently waiting on an audio version read by Jim Dale from the library.
8. Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas is the source material for the original cartoon and the subsequent movies and may be one of the few times in history where the book and the adaptation are equally good.
9. It’s been nearly a decade since I read Connie Willis’ Miracle and Other Christmas Stories, but I’d totally read the sci-fi Christmas-themed collection of stories again (or, at least, most of them).
10. A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg gives you everything you expect from a Flagg novel — lots of laughter, Southern charm, and quirky characters. I don’t know if Southerners enjoy her writing, but this Northerner sure does.
11. Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares, by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn, is a sweet YA romance set in New York City and features one of my favorite grandfather characters in recent memory. Plus, it told me that I could find copies of the OED at The Strand if I were willing to shell out for one.

How about you? What’s on your list of cozy, wintry reads?

Thanks for stopping by to open another “door” of the Virtual Advent Tour. Only three weeks until Christmas!

Today you get another post from me, and I thought I’d share a recipe that seems like it would be a good fit for making at this time of the year. It’s fast, requires only items that I think a lot of folks would already have in their kitchen, and is flavored with both cinnamon and nutmeg, spices that encompass all the good things I associate with fall and winter holidays. Way back when, I used to play host to a lot of friends on the weekends and used to try to come up with interesting things to serve them for brunch if we weren’t planning to head to the local diner, and this was a favorite. It comes from my favorite cookbook, Marion Cunningham’s The Breakfast Book (a chatty collection of morning meal recipes that would make a fantastic present for someone who loves to cook):

1/3 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar (less if desired)
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup milk

Topping
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350° F.

Grease muffin tins.

For the puffs: Beat shortening, sugar, and egg in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Add to the first mixture. Pour in the milk and beat until blended and smooth.

Fill the muffin tins about two-thirds full. Bake about 20 minutes, or until lightly golden.

For the topping (Have this ready to go when the puffs come out of the oven): Mix together the cinnamon and sugar in a shallow bowl.

Place the melted butter in a bowl just big enough to hold one puff (an ice cream bowl, maybe?).

As soon as the puffs are done, remove them from the pan. Dip them one by one into the melted butter and then roll them in the cinnamon-sugar.

Delightful when served warm with a cup of tea or coffee, but also tasty when cool.

That’s it from me. I hope to see you back here tomorrow, where we’ll be heading back to Letters from a Hill Farm. (Nan’s post will go live later in the day, so maybe check in after work tomorrow, rather than before.)

Welcome back to the Virtual Advent Tour! Today’s host is me!

Music is so important to making my holidays what they are. I grew up in a household where a stereo was always on, and my dad has been a big proponent of making Christmas mixes since before I was born. So I thought today I’d share three songs for your holiday listening pleasure that I’ve encountered for the first time this year:

The first is a re-imagined “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” updated for a #MeToo world. While I agree with those who say that it’s not the original intention of the song’s writers to make it seem creepy, I think some of the actions described in the song, combined with the frequent age discrepancies between the male and female singers in the duet, hit a little too close to reports from survivors of sexual assault/harassment to make it a completely comfortable song for me to listen to. Your mileage may vary, and I respect that, but for others who’ve moved away from the song, this version from Lydia Liza and Josiah Lemanski may give you a way back in:

Phoebe Bridgers (with Jackson Brown) dropped this cover of McCarthy Trenching’s “Christmas Song” last week, and I can see it getting a lot of play at my house this year:

Finally, singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson lost both her parents in the last year and wanted a way to reclaim the holidays at a time that was so hard for her. This version of “All I Want for Christmas Is You” with Leslie Odom Jr. gives you an example of what you’ll find on her new album, Songs for the Season:

That’s it from me. Join us again tomorrow for the Virtual Advent Tour. And if you want to join in with the writing of posts, drop me a line in the comments and we’ll find you a date that works.

Welcome back to Day 2 of the Virtual Advent Tour! I hope you’re enjoying the weekend so far.

Today’s host is Bridget of The Ravell’d Sleave, whose family is commemorating a major milestone event today. Head over to her blog to read all about it.

Be sure to stop back tomorrow for our next stop on the Virtual Advent Tour!

If you’re enjoying the Virtual Advent Tour so far, consider joining our merry band of writers. You can find the current schedule on yesterday’s post. Just leave a comment letting me know what date you’d like to claim!

More holiday links:

• Drops is doing their annual Christmas pattern giveaway through Dec. 25.
• The Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge is underway now through Jan. 6. In addition to reading holiday-themed books, there’s also a category for watching themed movies and for reading books with children.
• Riveted is letting you read recently published YA novels for free on their site during the lead-up to Christmas with their annual 25 Days of Christmas celebration. I can’t endorse any of them personally, but there are several authors I’ve enjoyed on the list.