A Lot Like Christmas, Connie Willis
This is an expanded version of Willis' Miracle and Other Christmas Stories, with one story ("The Pony") removed and five new stories added, including the inventive "All Seated on the Ground," about alien visitors who respond only to certain verses in Christmas carols. (The protagonists in this one are named Calvin and Meg, a neat touch.) I'm a particular favorite of "Miracle," as it's a humorous story about a young woman who favors Miracle on 34th Street over It's a Wonderful Life. In a completely different vein is the thriller "In Coppelius' Toyshop," about a selfish man who gets his just desserts. The other carryovers are "Inn" (a woman involved with her church's Christmas program helps two strangers who show up unexpectedly), "Adaptation," "Cat's Paw" (a Poirot-like mystery tale with a twist), "Newsletter," and "Epiphany."
Besides "All Seated," the new stories are "All About Emily" (where an aging actress meets a very unusual rival), "deck.halls@boughs/holly" (a Christmas decorator meets an unusual client), "Now Showing" (what's going on in that multiplex, anyway?), and "Just Like the Ones We Used to Know" (involving an uncanny snowstorm).
Connie Willis writes a heck of a story, and her Christmas stories are no exception. Old films, faith, Christmas carols, church pageants, country house Yuletide mysteries, and snowstorms all receive new twists in this collection. A great choice if you want something different in Christmas tales.
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