The 10 Best Children's Christmas Books to Read All December

It's December 3rd and you've already read the same Christmas book four nights running. The best children's Christmas books are the ones you can still read with a straight face on December 22nd, when your kid asks for it again and you know every page turn by heart.

So that's how we built this list. Every pick here is rated on the age it really works for (not the age on the back cover), the kind of Christmas it's about, and how well it holds up as a nightly read-aloud. Some families want Santa and reindeer, some want snow and a tree, some want the nativity. You'll find all three.

If you're building a bigger bedtime routine around the season, our guide to bedtime stories and reading with little kids has more ideas for keeping it short and sweet when everyone's tired.

How we picked

We started with a vetted pool of Christmas picture books and rated each on three things. First, the age it really works for, sometimes younger or older than the publisher says. Second, the kind of Christmas it covers: Santa and reindeer, tree and winter, or faith and nativity. Third, repeat-read stamina: rhythm, humor, and whether a grown-up can stand it by mid-December. Awards and starred reviews counted, but a book had to earn its spot as a read-aloud. A couple of good ones missed the cut, like The Jolly Christmas Postman, whose pull-out letters are easy to lose and whose US availability is unclear.

Bear's friends keep him awake for Christmas, and along the way he figures out that giving is the best part. School Library Journal gave it a starred review and said kids will ask for it again and again, and thousands of Goodreads readers back that up. The rhymes work for a 2-year-old and still land with a first grader, which is a rare stretch for one book.

It's the Christmas book most parents can half-recite from their own childhood, and it still works. Penguin Random House markets it as a #1 national bestseller, and Kirkus called it "Irrepressible and irresistible." The Grinch gives kids a safe bad guy to boo, and the ending gives you something to talk about besides presents.

Chris Van Allsburg's train ride to the North Pole won the Caldecott Medal and made the New York Times bestseller list. Amazon lists it for age 2 and up, but we think the hushed mood and rich pictures land best from about 4. It's the one to save for the night before Christmas, lights low.

It got four starred reviews, from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal and The Horn Book, and Kirkus said it "earns its 'Christmas classic' stripes with flying colors." The idea is sweet without being syrupy: Santa finally gets a Christmas of his own. If your shelf is all books you grew up with, this is the fresh one to add.

A dog named Olive hears "all of the other reindeer" in the song, decides it's about her, and sets off to join Santa. Thousands of Goodreads readers have rated it, and the misheard-lyric joke is right in a kindergartener's sweet spot. Bonus: there's a TV special for the night you need 25 minutes on the couch.

Little Blue Truck is a hugely popular toddler series, and if your child already says "beep" along with the regular books, this is the easiest Christmas win you'll get. It's the strongest pick on this list for a 2-year-old. Most of the classics above are a stretch at that age; this one fits right now.

Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen take on the question every preschooler eventually asks. It made Betsy Bird's SLJ Fuse #8 list of the best holiday picture books of 2023, and one rdbooks.org reviewer named it their top holiday picture book of the year. If your kid likes I Want My Hat Back, this is the Christmas version of that dry humor.

Mr. Willowby's tree is too tall, so the top gets cut off, and that top goes to a smaller home, which trims it again, all the way down to the tiniest house. Kids love guessing who gets the next piece. It's a good pick for the night you bring your own tree home.

Clement Clarke Moore's 1823 poem is the Christmas Eve read in a lot of houses, and by year two your kid will be saying "Now, Dasher!" before you do. It comes in many illustrated editions, so flip through a few and pick the art you like, since you'll be looking at it every year.

If your family's Christmas centers on the nativity, Ezra Jack Keats's take on The Little Drummer Boy is a warm, classic way in. It's from the same author as The Snowy Day, and the song gives you a built-in way to read it: sing the pa-rum-pum-pum parts and let your kid drum on their knees.

Bonus: a book starring your kid

A bonus from us, not part of the ranking: Tadpole Tales makes personalized hardcover picture books starring your own family. Tell us the story of your Christmas, like the year the dog ate a candy cane off the tree or your kid's plan to ride a reindeer to Grandma's, and we'll draw your kids, pets and grandparents into it. You preview every page and can change any line before it prints. Here's how a story becomes a printed book.

One honest tip: you don't need to buy all ten. Put a few on hold at the library, see which one your kid drags back to you every night, and buy that one. It's the one you'll be reading again next December. For more ways to fill the season, our holiday and seasonal ideas for families with little kids has you covered.