Have you ever wanted to attend a Victorian Christmas celebration? Well now you can, in Once Upon a Christmas Feast you not only get an original story, but menus, recipes, favorite Victorian Christmas stories and songs. What's in this jam-packed Victorian Christmas celebration of a tome? First: an original Once Upon a Wedding short story. "Once Upon a Fairytale Christmas." The Duchess of Keystone is an unconventional woman who loves fairytales and happily ever after endings. When it comes to Christmas, she loves nothing better than to have her family gathered at her estate enjoying Christmas joy, food, games, and entertainment. This year, her niece Margause arrives to view the wonder of a fairytale Christmas celebration. At three, Margause loves to slip into the library of the ducal estate, where her parents fell in love, and peruse the books she hopes to read one day soon.Observant and advanced for her age, Margause notices that her aunts and uncles are not as happy as they should be about her Aunt Kate’s upcoming Twelfth Night wedding to a handsome, charming Irish rogue. She also doesn’t understand why her mother’s former governess Katherine tries so hard to cheer up Scroogish Sir Robert. It seems obvious to Margause that Sir Robert would need Mr. Dicken’s three ghosts to make him feel any Christmas joy. But then, what else does the Duchess of Keystone offer everyone, but a chance at a fairytale Christmas, where miracles happen around every corner. Next: An Appendix of traditional Victorian Christmas stories and essays by Charles Dickens...what? You didn't know "A Christmas Carol" wasn't his only Christmas story? Nope. Dickens, along with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, are actually responsible for making Christmas the holiday we celebrate today. You'll also find it handy to have the lyrics to several Christmas favorite songs, so you can make sure to lead your family in rounds of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" without messing up the lyrics. All in all, Once Upon a Christmas Feast is your guide to celebrating a very Victorian Christmas.

"Diverting, delightful and deliciously weird enough to satisfy the most demanding appetite." — Christopher Hadley, author of The Road Folklorist Ben Gazur guides you through the dark alleys of British history to uncover how our food habits have been passed down through generations of folklore. Who was the first person to throw salt over their shoulder? Why do we think carrots can help us see in the dark? When did we start holding village fairs to honour gigantic apple pies? Or start hurling ourselves down hills in pursuit of a wheel of cheese? Gazur investigates the origins of famous food superstitions as well as much more bizarre and lesser-known tales too, from what day the devil urinates on blackberries to how to stop witches using eggshells as escape boats. Hilarious and fascinating, A Feast of Folklore will introduce you to the gloriously eccentric folk who aren’t often noticed by historians. Here lies a smorgasbord of their dark remedies and deadly delicacies, waiting to be discovered.

The award-winning "Sweet, Funny, and Strange" series of anthologies from the Bethlehem Writers Group, continues with this collection of twenty-five tales about real, legendary, or imaginary animals. From snakes to ducks to unicorns, there are tales here to match any mood, provide a chuckle, or warm a heart. Among our tales, Peter Barbour recounts a legend in "Why Bats Live in Caves,'' Jerome W. McFadden asks the question of what animal to choose to be in "Recycled,'' A. E. Decker shares an appreciation of cephalopods in "Tipping Point,'' Ralph Hieb imagines an unconventional pet in "Buttons,'' and Diane Sismour, in "Critter,'' reveals that mules are not the only equines that can have a stubborn streak. In addition, we are happy to present the winning stories from the 20 I 9 and 2020 Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Awards. Angela Albertson, our 20I9 winner, shares her heartfelt "Oranges and Roses,'' and our 2020 winner, Brett Wolff, gives us a good laugh in "Hubbard Has a Fancy Bra." This eclectic assemblage of stories includes terrific tales from beloved BWG authors including Courtney Annicchiarico, Jeff Baird, Jodi Bogert, Marianne H. Donley, DT Krippene, Emily P. W. Murphy, Christopher D. Ochs, Dianna Sinovic, Kidd Wads­worth, Paul Weidknecht, Carol L. Wright, and Will Wright. So cuddle up with your favorite pet-real or imaginary. No matter. You'll find just the right story to share.

An ideal Christmas, birthday or shower present! A Continual Feast continues online! to follow the blog. A cookbook full of wonderful recipes and ideas drawn from throughout the Christian tradition, with suggestions about when, and why, these dishes might be served. It contains more than 275 recipes with which to celebrate all the holidays throughout the Christian year, as well as the many shared rituals that strengthen family bonds and enrich the significance of the day to day events of our lives. How these rituals, rites and feasts came about, how they are celebrated around the world, and how you can bring them into your home are described every step of the way. Includes wonderful illustrations. A Continual Feast brings new meaning to "breaking bread together." A book to cook from and learn from, it includes: menus for holidays and every day recipes for all occasions from church picnics and Sunday suppers to birthdays, namedays, confirmations, and baptisms; wonderful cooking projects for children; recipes for Christmas giving; thoughtful suggestions on taking food to others; customs associated with many great Christian holidays from Advent through Pentecost as well as various saints days around the world; traditional meanings associated with particular foods; tips on fasting and abstinence; recipes that incorporate leftovers; quotations from the Bible and various theological and gastronomic sources; many recipes of varied ethnic origins; a wealth of Christian history and thought.

A collection of stories, poems, legends, folktales, and carols relating to Christmas.