Why is Christmas the way it is? How did we get from the birth of Jesus to everyone pushing their credit card and their belts to their maximum extent? Starting with the events surrounding Jesus' birth, this book takes us through centuries of commemoration, celebration and over-consumption. Along the way we'll find out why we eat turkey, how an obscure Turkish saint turned into a man flying a sleigh, and why that tree in your house should really contain an apple and a snake. Combining in-depth historical research, cheerfully irreverent humour and cutting-edge guesswork, Nick Page explores what this festival really means, and how we can get back to something real and true beneath all that wrapping.

Discover the meaning of the season’s traditions! Have you ever wondered why we celebrate Christmas the way we do? In this whimsical book, Jonathan Green tells you all about the fascinating stories behind our most beloved holiday traditions. Make yourself cozy by the fireplace, open up this fully illustrated treasure trove, and learn: Why we sing carols Why we burn Yule logs Why we hang stockings Why we kiss under the mistletoe Why we send greeting cards Why there are twelve days of Christmas And what is figgy pudding? Each chapter explores a different custom and its history: when and where it started, how it has changed over the centuries, and why we still love to recreate it today. You’ll learn why holly and ivy are important symbols, who Good King Wenceslas was, and why we eat turkey for Christmas dinner. Additional fun facts and trivia are sprinkled throughout, accompanied by classic illustrations. This is the perfect gift or stocking stuffer for curious-minded friends and family this holiday season!

In some respects, the contrasts of Christmas are what make it the most delightful time of the year. It is a time of generosity, kindness and peace on earth, with broad permission to indulge in food, drink and gifts. On the other hand, Christmas has become a battleground for raging culture wars, marred by debates about how it should be celebrated and acknowledged as a uniquely Christian holiday. This text argues that much of the animosity is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the holiday's core character. By tracing Christmas's origins as a pagan celebration of the winter solstice and its development in Europe's Christianization, this history explains that the true "reason for the season" has as much to do with the earth's movement around the sun as with the birth of Christ. Chapters chronicle how Christmas's magic and misrule link to the nativity, and why the carnival side of the holiday appears so separated from traditional Christian beliefs.

Ever wonder where some of our unique and meaningful Christmas traditions come from? Why are red and green popular colors of the season? Why is exchanging gifts a family tradition? Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas reveals the people, places, and events that shaped the best-loved customs of this merriest of holidays and how they all point to Christ. Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas includes insights about: Gift giving Christmas trees Caroling Nativity scenes Yule logs Stockings Advent wreaths Mistletoe Holly, and more! This is the perfect gift to infuse your celebration with spiritual insights, true-life tales, and captivating legends to intrigue you and your family. Bring new luster and depth to your modern traditions while you celebrate Jesus' birth. The traditions of Christmas lend beauty, awe, and hope to the holiday, causing people all over the world to anticipate it with joy. Warm your heart as you rediscover the true and eternal significance of Christmas.

The Tabloid Bible is a fresh and funny take on biblical literacy. Humorist Nick Page, who happens to take the Bible very seriously, captures perfectly the deadpan style of popular, sensational tabloids found in supermarket checkout lanes everywhere in his retelling of major biblical events from Genesis to Revelation.

BY THE SUNDAY TIMES NO.1 BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF A SHORT HISTORY OF DRUNKENNESS Discover the unpredictable origins and etymologies of our Christmas customs this festive season. For something that happens every year of our lives, we really don't know much about Christmas. We don't know that the date we celebrate was chosen by a madman, or that Christmas, etymologically speaking, means "Go away, Christ". We're oblivious to the fact that the advent calendar was actually invented by a Munich housewife to stop her children pestering her for a Christmas countdown. And we would never have guessed that the invention of crackers was merely a way of popularising sweet wrappers. Luckily, like a gift from Santa himself, Mark Forsyth is here to unwrap this fundamentally funny gallimaufry of traditions and oddities, making it all finally make sense - in his wonderfully entertaining wordy way. 'Witty and revelatory. Blooming brilliant' Raymond Briggs 'Everything we ever thought about Christmas is wrong! Great stuff' Matthew Parris

From Abelard to Zwingli, via a multitude of saints and sinners, Nick Page guides us through the creeds, the councils, the buildings and the background of the Christian church in an illuminating, and perhaps ever so slightly irreverent way. Well-known as a writer, speaker, unlicensed historian and general information-monger, Nick Page combines in-depth research, historical analysis and cutting-edge guesswork to explore how on earth the Christian church has survived all that 2,000 years of heroes, villains and misfits could throw at it (mostly from the inside) to remain one of the most influential forces in the world today. 'I was predestined to read this.' John Calvin. 'I felt my heart strangely warmed. Or it could have been indigestion.' John Wesley.