Christmas Carol Book Tag

Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog! 

I've got another tag for you today. This is the Christmas Carol book tag, and it was created by Hailey from the YouTube channel Hailey in Bookland. There are ten classic Christmas songs here and each one is attached to a prompt. Well, you know how tags work. 

Enough chit-chat, let's get into it!

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1. You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch: Name a villainous character you couldn't help but love.

I'm not sure there are any true villains that I've read and really loved. I'm definitely not the kind of reader who falls for the bad guys. The most I'll go for is probably something like an anti-hero, someone who does bad things but not for the sake of being bad. That probably makes me boring, but I don't think I can change it. I suppose the most villain-like character that I enjoyed reading about is Nezha from The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang. He's more like an antagonist than a true villain, but as I said, I think that's about as villainous as I can get. 

2. All I Want for Christmas is You: Which book do you hope to see under your Christmas tree?

I almost never actually get books for Christmas, simply because I'm picky about what I buy vs. what I'll just get at the library, so if I ever do get something bookish as a gift it's usually gift cards to bookshops. That being said, the first book I'm going to buy with my Christmas money is absolutely going to be The Shattered City by Lisa Maxwell, which is the fourth and final book in the Last Magician series. I first read The Last Magician back in 2020 so I haven't been waiting as long as some of the fans of this series, but I'm itching to get my hands on this tome!

3. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: Name a favorite character that overcomes major obstacles and learns to believe in themselves.

This feels like a very fairy tale-esque sort of question, so I'll go with a fairy tale-esque book for the answer. I think Kiki from Kiki's Delivery Service is the perfect character for this prompt. While the obstacles she faces aren't like, high fantasy life-or-death obstacles, they're still real and important and all-consuming to a little girl, and that's the important thing to remember, I think. 

4. Santa Claus is Comin' to Town: Which characters would be on the naughty and nice lists, respectively? 

There are so many books I could choose from, but I'm going to go with one of my tried and true favorites, The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. I'm a firm believer that Patroclus would be at the top of the nice list, while Achilles would for sure get coal in his stocking. If Santa was a thing back in Ancient Greece, that is...either way, Achilles is on the naughty list for sure.

5. Frosty the Snowman: Which book just melts your heart?

The most wholesome book I can think of is probably The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. This is one of my most favorite books from my childhood, and to this day I still love the warm and fuzzy feeling it gives me when I reread it. 

6. Feliz Navidad: Name a book that takes place in a country other than your own.

I love reading books that don't take place in the United States, for obvious reasons I should think. So many of my favorite books take place in other countries (The Alchemist, The Song of Achilles, Fifty Words for Rain, and Loveless, just to name a few) but the most recent book I read that is set in a different country is Babel by R.F. Kuang, which of course takes place in England (and China, for just a little while).

7. It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year: Which holiday-themed book do you use to spread Christmas joy?

I don't really read Christmas books, just because they're usually romances, and we all know that isn't a genre I enjoy. But I'll never say no to classic children's books, like Olive the Other Reindeer or The Mitten. I don't think I have my copies of my children's books like that anymore, but I still remember the stories very well. 

8. Sleigh Ride: Which fictional character do you wish to spend the holidays with?

Hmm, this a tough question for me, mostly because I don't like many of the characters I read about. At least not in the way that I'd want to spend a holiday with them. Maybe Edaline and Grady from Keeper of the Lost Cities? They'd be so much fun to celebrate with (and Sophie too, obviously. Together we could teach the elves about Christmas and how humans celebrate). Plus I can only imagine all of the amazing food Edaline would whip up. 

9. Baby it's Cold Outside: Which book would you sacrifice to a fire to warm yourself up in the cold?

Ha! I love this question, it makes me laugh every time. There aren't many books that I really, truly hate (especially from this year, I hardly had any bad reads) but I'd probably feel okay with destroying My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Otessa Moshfeg. It just...was really bad. And I feel like I read a book entirely different from everyone else who loved this book, because I truly don't get it. 

10. Do You Hear What I Hear: Which book do you think everyone should read?

To avoid sounding like a broken record, I'm going to go with The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. I know that it's long and over-descriptive and intimidating, but there's a reason Tolkien is referenced so often. Nearly every fantasy novel today was inspired in some way by The Lord of the Rings. It's so incredibly important to the genre, and probably the most well-known classic fantasy novel in the world. I mean, even if you've never read it or seen the movies, you've no doubt heard the name. So if you're looking for a sign to pick up The Lord of the Rings in 2023, this is it!

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Alright, that's it for today! Tell me: what is your favorite Christmas song? I think mine is either "Winter White Hymnal" or "Mary Did You Know". They're both so amazing (and Pentatonix does wonderful covers of them both) and I listen to them on repeat every year. Let me know your favorite in the comments!

Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate, and Happy Holidays to all the rest!

Until next time.