An adolescent 17-year old boy goes with a youth group on a 12-day skiing holiday in the mountains. He is an introverted nerd, shy and inhibited, brought up by strict and protective parents. But he is full of inner energy and emotions which he would like to show and share. He is in love with a girl, but has no experience and is puzzled by the complexities of building a relationship. He is aware of his boundaries and limitations and is anxious to overcome them. This is not very easy for him, but he works hard towards this goal while he experiences an emotional roller coaster between greatest joy and deepest desperation, between love and jealousy. The story takes the subjective viewpoint of this boy. The reader follows his thoughts and inner reflections throughout these twelve days of that winter holiday, while he is learning and will eventually be able to overcome the wall that seems to surround him. In the meantime there is a lot of snow, skiing, mulled and sparkling wine, and going to the cemetery at night.

A counting book that highlights the wonders of winter It’s wintertime! The time for snow, mittens, and 12 days of surprises. In this high-energy, curious classroom, the teacher introduces her students to a new winter activity every day—from making paper snowflakes, to building sugar cube igloos, to playing with jingling bells. As the days get colder and the gifts add up, the classroom is transformed into wintery chaos. Inspired by the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” this book uses accumulative verse as readers count to 12 along with the class and explore the funny, intricate illustrations. It includes a punch-out snowman paper doll that young readers can dress up and use to decorate their own winter wonderland!

A fresh twist on the lyrics from The 12 Days of Christmas, this brightly illustrated picture book is a woodland animal counting tale that celebrates the return of the sun’s light on the Winter Solstice with a 12-day party. “On the first day of winter the Good Earth gives the sun a cardinal in a fir tree.” That cardinal’s name is Carl, who begins the tale with a letter he writes to the reader, along with an invitation he hangs on a tree branch to welcome the woodland animals to the upcoming Solstice Party. An imaginative read-aloud animal counting tale, every turn of the page shows artfully drawn woodland creatures gathering in greater numbers, encouraging the child to look for and count each animal as the guest list grows day by day. "On the second day of winter the Good Earth gives the sun two polar bears and a cardinal in a fir tree. On the third day of winter the Good Earth gives the sun 3 caribou, 2 polar bears and a cardinal in a fir tree." Every turn of the page brings in more characters--jolly snowmen, a 5-pointed star, rabbits romping, salmon streaming, foxes napping, field mice nibbling, birch trees dreaming, and barn owls swooping. In the surprise ending, the sun rises a bit earlier on the last day of the party (January 1st) and reaches far, far into the future with its many rays to bring back a dozen very special presents for the Earth in return—”12 months of days awaiting”. A fun read-aloud counting tale about the joy of giving and receiving gifts, this book offers a grateful and hopeful start to the New Year. Stories spring to life with the included Audio Soundtrack Our TIMBER! Talking Book audio soundtrack included with the book creates an immersive experience with a lively reading of the story accompanied by music, sound effects and the sounds of nature. To turn on TIMBER! simply scan the QR code at the beginning of the book with a smartphone or tablet with a 3G or WiFi connection. When the webpage loads, press play to hear the soundtrack. A gentle tone tells the child when to turn the page to sync the words with the action and have the scene spring to life in their imagination. An important first step to becoming an independent reader, this soundtrack lets the child listen to the book over and over and over again.

"These Twelve Days" is an informative, entertaining family guide to understanding and celebrating the traditional twelve days after Christmas. It shares the history of the days following Christ's birth, from the Feast of Stephen to the Feast of the Holy Family, from the stories of Mary and Joseph to those of the Holy Innocents and the Magi. This book gives families meaningful ways to keep the joy and excitement of Christ's birth alive after Christmas Day.

Whether they're decorating Easter trees or celebrating Wagner's birthday by playing recordings of his Ring cycle operas and incinerating a model of Valhalla on an outdoor barbecue to the closing strains of "Gotterdämerung," Americans know both how to create and how to celebrate holidays. Jack Santino's guide to such frivolity is a wonderfully readable exploration of holidays, periods of festivity, and life-cycle rituals and celebrations. Santino draws on history, anthropology, popular culture, and folklore to show the intricate relationships between holidays and the roles that celebrations and rituals play in people's lives.

From the manger of Jesus Christ to the 21st century, this encyclopedia explores more than 2,000 years of Christmas past and present through 966 entries packed with a wide variety of historical and pop-culture subjects. Entries detail customs and traditions from around the world as well as classic Christmas movies, TV series/specials and animated cartoons. Arranged alphabetically by entry name, the book includes the historical background of popular sacred and secular songs as well as accounts of beloved literary works with Christmas themes from such noted authors as Charles Dickens, Louisa May Alcott, Hans Christian Andersen, Pearl Buck, Henry Van Dyke and others. All things Christmas are available here in one comprehensive volume.