Best wishes to everyone for the festive season!
Whatever your faith, or if like me you don’t have one, I hope you can celebrate the day with the ones you love.
If you fancy some light reading today, with thanks to the Tea and Ink Society, here are some classic Christmas stories:
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry
Probably one of the most famous Christmas short stories, this is the tale of a young married couple who desperately want to buy beautiful Christmas presents for each other, but lack the money to do so. They each make a sacrifice to buy the other a present, and the results are humorous and poignant.
Read it here
Christmas at Thompson Hall by Anthony Trollope
If you prefer funny, lighthearted Christmas fare, read this story about an English lady living abroad in Paris, who desperately wants to get back to her ancestral home in time for Christmas. This story is included in a nice hardback collection as part of Penguin’s Christmas Classics series.
Read it here
The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Fancy a Christmas-y mystery? It’s the holiday season in London, and when a stolen jewel turns up in a highly unusual spot, Holmes must use his powers of deduction to discover the identity of the thief.
Read it here
And some Christmas music too!
ANZ LitLovers LitBlog 
What a lovely Christmas gift from you to all of us. Best wishes for a very happy and safe Christmas and New Year, Lisa.
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By: Eleanor Dilley on December 25, 2022
at 9:32 am
Thanks, Eleanor, have a happy day!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 25, 2022
at 9:41 am
Enjoy a relaxing holiday season, Lisa. Thanks from a reader in Bendigo for all your posts this year which have led to some great reading journeys.
Heather
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By: Heather McNeill on December 25, 2022
at 9:48 am
Thank you Heather, it’s been a pleasure. Maybe we will meet up next year at the Bendigo Writers Festival!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 25, 2022
at 10:01 am
God Jul, greetings from the Åland Islands :)
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By: Jesper, The Biveros Effect on December 25, 2022
at 10:54 am
Takk skal du ha!
(From me and Google Translate which told me your greeting was Norwegian!)
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By: Lisa Hill on December 25, 2022
at 11:59 am
Close, Swedish, but the greeting is the same in our languages :)
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By: Jesper, The Biveros Effect on December 25, 2022
at 9:59 pm
Wishing you and yours a happy and safe Christmas and New Year Lisa. I haven’t been commenting here as much as usual as it’s been a flat out year, but I do come by and check what you are up to regularly! Thank you for all the work you must put into your blog all year – I hope you are taking a well-earned break!
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By: Sue on December 25, 2022
at 1:45 pm
Thanks, Sue, all the best to you and your family too!
We’re just back from lunch, so it’s definitely time for the annual collapse-on-the-sofa!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 25, 2022
at 2:31 pm
Well, another year almost over. Thank you for all you do for the readers and writers of the world Lisa, especially those in Australia and New Zealand. You constantly amaze me. I have managed to read quite a few of your recommendations this year. You never fail! Best wishes for a safe and happy Christmas, and a healthy and fun 2023.
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By: karenlee thompson on December 25, 2022
at 5:09 pm
Thanks Karenlee, you have a great Christmas wherever you are at the moment!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 25, 2022
at 8:10 pm
Merry Christmas, Lisa and thanks for the reading list!
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By: Emma on December 25, 2022
at 9:49 pm
Joyeux Noël!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 26, 2022
at 6:41 am
Merry Christmas to you and yours Lisa! :D
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By: kaggsysbookishramblings on December 26, 2022
at 6:07 am
And to you and yours too!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 26, 2022
at 6:42 am
Merry Christmas to you Lisa! We had a lovely day eating fresh caught WA seafood 🦞
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By: kimbofo on December 26, 2022
at 10:45 am
Very nice!
I have fond memories of fresh-caught WA seafood in a Fremantle restaurant overlooking the water. There are species you have that we don’t get over here, except maybe in *very* high-end restaurants.
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By: Lisa Hill on December 26, 2022
at 2:55 pm
Yea, we had western rock lobster which is much smaller than east coast varieties but the meat is sooooo sweet. Delicious. I still don’t understand the fish species here. And I really miss Victorian fish n’chips where the fish is flake/gummy shark.
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By: kimbofo on December 26, 2022
at 3:06 pm
Actually, I know this is disloyal, but Qld fish and chips is the best, made with John Dory.
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By: Lisa Hill on December 26, 2022
at 6:00 pm
Hmm… they make it with John Dory here too but I am not convinced
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By: kimbofo on December 26, 2022
at 7:14 pm
Maybe it was just the fish and chip shop in Burleigh Waters that did it so well.
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By: Lisa Hill on December 26, 2022
at 10:09 pm
Seasons Greetings to you and yours too Lisa. Hope you had a lovely relaxing day yesterday – not too hot I hope!
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By: Brona's Books on December 26, 2022
at 10:58 am
TBH The beans in the vegie patch weren’t happy but we humans barely noticed the heat. Compared to when I first bought the house (a 1950s weatherboard) we’ve got the passive temperature control down pat now with good insulation everywhere and shade trees and we didn’t even think to pull down the awnings or indoor blinds, much less use the AC or fans. We went from a cool house to an airconditioned restaurant for lunch, and then flaked in front of the TV for the afternoon. (I binge-watched a terrific Scottish series called Guilt on SBS on demand.)
There was fog today on Sydney Harbour, what strange weather everywhere!
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By: Lisa Hill on December 26, 2022
at 12:50 pm
Merry Christmas, Lisa 🎄❄️😊
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By: Vishy on December 27, 2022
at 3:45 am