So, this starts out really slow and I initially thought I wasn’t going to finish it but I think some of that was my anticipation to get to the parts I knew from the movie.

I almost put it down for good but I decided to push through and I’m so glad I did. This book is funny as hell. Now, I will say that I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed it as much without the movie to reference and hearing the actors and actresses voices in my head lol. That made certain parts even funnier.

There’s some added context and information in this book that the movie doesn’t get into and to be honest… I enjoyed those parts more than the parts I knew!

A surprisingly cute read. Glad I took a chance on it!

This is one of the rare cases in which the movie is miles better than the book. For one thing, although the movie was theoretically set in Northern Indiana, what it showed was the Cleveland of my youth, including Public Square, the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, and the legendary Christmas toy displays in the windows of Higbee's Department Store.

That said, Jean Shepherd is interesting enough a comic writer that I would like to read some other of his works. In a way, A Christmas Story is cobbled together from two other books, mostly from In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash and partly from Wanda Hickey's Book of Golden Memories, and Other Disasters.

Now I have to see that movie again ...

When I found out that A Christmas Story, one of my favorite Christmas movies, was based on books written by Jean Shepherd I immediately went to my library and checked one out. I loved reading about the hijinks of his childhood. This book got me thinking about the quirkiness of all families and made me think about viewing some of my own family quirks (like our Norwegian Code of Silence) with humor instead of annoyance, embarrassment, etc. Kind of weird that I got a lesson out of a book that is meant to be humorous and entertaining. One part made me think of my own dad, "He was always an aggressive sleeper. Sleep was one of the things he did best, and he loved it. Some look upon sleep as an unfortunately necessary interruption of life; but there are others who hold that sleep is life, or at least one of the more fulfilling aspects of it, like eating or sex. Any time my old man's sleep was interrupted, he became truly dangerous." My sister and I called my dad a bear when we were little because he hibernated. It was funny to read someone else's account of the same thing!

It's easy to see why Shepherd's stories have been adapted into radio dramas and movies.

His characters are so absurd and over-the-top that they feel real. The Old Man in the book isn't terribly similar to mine, yet through his antics and frustrations I can see reflections of my own father. The same is true for the mom, the kid brother, the schoolyard bully, and so on. Shepherd tells the hilarious story of one family living in Northern Indiana, yet it has given millions of readers and viewers the chance to laugh at their own families. It's the irony of great storytelling that by telling a particular, well-realized story, you give the reader the chance to see themselves in it.

Also, Shephard's prose is top-notch! It's so detailed and descriptive that I found myself laughing all the more at not only what was going on in the plot, but also Shephard's details and comparisons. His writing is so quick and readable.

Honestly, this book is a master class in writing a comedy: universal characters, ridiculous situations, and quick, witty descriptions that keep the reader turning the page without even noticing it.

read for winter bingo, set up by A.G.M. Campbell

A Christmas Story collects the vignettes that inspired the plot of the classic movie from Jean Shepherd's "semi autobiographical" short stories collections, so you don't have to search through them yourself

I listened to the audiobook, which had sound effects and was pretty well acted.

Stories included: the quest for the red ryder BB gun, the decoder ring, the leg lamp, the fight with the bully, and the Bumpus hounds taking the ham (in text, Easter; in the movie, the Christmas turkey) Not included: the triple dog dare!!!

The first three are very similar to the movie and are very funny to read... I absolutely recommend checking those out, especially the Red Ryder one for the charming bit of Ralphie talking about what he gifts he has for his family and the "You'll never guess what I got you" teasing he does with his dad. It's pretty cute.

But... then we delve into toxic masculinity territory with the bully story and Ralphie becoming acquainted with his "tasmanian devil" or otherwise the totally normal impulse in man to commit violence.

Other stories have a theme of his father ("The Old Man") screaming and lashing out, and then his little brother wailing or hiding when that happens and Ralphie also being in terror and, uh.... what? Is Jean Shepherd okay? I don't know how biographical these stories are but all that is kind of messed up. I can't help connecting Ralphie's violent outburst with his father's abusive behavior.  It's a lot.

The final story, about the Bumpus family, is a carchiteure of hillbillies, a loud, huge family with many dogs and an aversion to hygiene that came from "deep Kentucky" to move next to their normal family and it's... pretty awful. A particularly memorable bit is the introduction of the "ripened" 16 year old daughter who "the old man" oogles alongside her family, other neighbors, pretty much every boy in town... I mean, looking through the windows, watching her dress level of creepiness.

And let me iterate: she's fucking 16.

These stories were written 50-60 years ago, so I'm not going to hammer too hard about how problematic these stories are. They're clearly outdated and the worst parts are trimmed out and not in the movie. (At least, not to my memory!) I just, uh, wouldn't go so far to say I'm nostalgic for this type of Americana.

There's a lot of charm in these boyhood stories... half of them any way. Read at your own discretion and...

Be sure to drink your Ovaltine.

I think the writing style isn't what I expected. Also, I may have enjoyed it if I would've read it first then watched the movie.

I don't tend to read a lot of holiday-themed books. Even if I do, I usually end up reading them months away from the relevant holiday. I bought A Christmas Story last year when I found it for a good price, decided I would read it before Christmas rolled around again, and promptly forgot about it. I remembered I had it in my TBR pile just in time!

A Christmas Story is one of my favourite Christmas movies, so I was really curious to read the book. Although the book is comprised of five unrelated short stories, it manages to cover most of the major events in the film. I can't say that I was really surprised by anything in the book (other than the fact that, originally, the Bumpus hounds stole an Easter ham instead of a Christmas turkey); certain parts of the book were taken almost verbatim and put into the film.

While the stories are amusing, they seem a bit dry in comparison to the magic of the film version. I also wasn't crazy about the writing. The stories are told in an autobiographical fashion, with the narrator reminiscing about childhood events. However, the tenses were constantly switching between past and present tense (sometimes in the middle of a paragraph) and that grated on my nerves.

If you've seen the movie, you won't get much more out of reading the book. If you haven't seen the movie... where have you been every Christmas since 1983?

http://theladybugreads.blogspot.ca/20...

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. The story was nostalgic and charming. What I didn't like was the audio version of the story. Dick Cavett was monotone and the pacing was slow. But it was the audio production that got to me. It was so unnecessary and loud in some places. Plus, it was distracting when overlaying Cavett's monotone narration.

Can't believe it took me this many years to read the book on which my favorite Christmas movie is based. Like the movie, this is an utterly charming, cozy, and familiar novel brimming with nostalgia and the omnipresent joy and wonder of the Christmas season in kiddom.

We like to watch the movie every year during the holiday season as a family tradition. I decided I'd like to read the book prior to this year's holidays. It's much like the movie: funny, irreverent, and believable. The curmudgeon father is my favorite character. If you've seen the movie, you'll already know many of the plots in the book. If you're looking for light reading with a holiday theme, you might find this title satisfying.

The Christmas Story by Jean Shepard – narrated by Dick Cavett- is a 2004 RH audio publication. (Read from the book, published in 1983)

I knew the movie, which we have all seen ad nauseum every Christmas, was based on a book, but I’d never read it. The movie version is adorable, but I’ve seen it so many times I can almost quote it verbatim. I decided to stop watching it for a while because It was in danger of losing all its charm, due to the marathon showings of it on television.

But this year I caught myself thinking about holiday movies, the ones I watched growing up and the ones my kids loved, and the way television has burned me out on some of my favorites. So, this year I decided to read more Christmas themed books instead of watching the same movies over and over. But, when I stumbled across this book in audio format on Scribd, I couldn’t resist. I figured it would be a new way to experience an old favorite. However, I was taken aback when I discovered this book was not exactly family oriented.

The book is really like a set of related vignettes or a collection of short stories. Some have described them as essays. The Christmas themed story about the Red Ryder BB gun is super short and made me wonder where all the other parts were.

Have no fear! The ‘major award’ episode is here, as well as many other popular scenes from the movie, just not in the order I was accustomed to. The Bumpus’ family is described in full detail – something the movie doesn’t address-leading up to a different version of the holiday feast which was stolen by their dogs, but one that is equally madcap.

So, yes, I was able to enjoy a favorite holiday story in an all new way which was very refreshing and so much fun. Dick Cavett did an amazing job with the narration, and the book provides some background information which gave me a new perspective on some scenes in the movie version.
The book is just a funny as the movie, but just in case you have never read it, it should be noted the language can be moderately strong in some places, with adult themes and is not for younger children.

For me the book has a stronger feel of nostalgia and is even a little poignant on a few occasions. Shepard’s deadpan wit and folksy humor are juxtaposed against the adult man living in ‘modern’ day New York and the boy growing up in Indiana in the depression era. He has perfect, pitch, tone, and timing! He is occasionally wistful, with a little family tenderness managing to seep out, as well. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book today. It is very short, and only took a few hours to listen to the entire book.

If you love the movie, then you really must check out the book. I recommend trying the audio version, if you get a chance.

3.5*

Dick Cavett does a fine narration of this set of semi-autobiographical stories. Despite the title, only the first story is related to Christmas.