Having refreshed myself with Christmas history via Restad and Nissenbaum, I felt I had to revisit this entertaining volume about the history of the elements of Christmas with almost all the emphasis on the US. Marling begins by "unwrapping" that ubiquitous bit of Christmas misdirection, wrapping paper (originally gifts were hung, unwrapped, in stockings, in wooden shoes, and even on the branches of Christmas trees), skips to the decorations of Christmas (the original trims of Christmas greens to candles and ornaments and finally to the putz village which begat Department 56 and other village manufacturers), the role of department stores in Christmas (displays, Santalands, and parades), how Dickens and Washington Irving contributed to Christmas nostalgia and thus to Christmas charity, the rise of the Christmas tree from family "toy" to public display, Santa Claus' evolution from "a right jolly old elf" to the hearty man portrayed in advertisements, American fascination with "different Christmases" including the portrayal of people of color, how Christmas cards came for a while to substitute for Christmas gifts, and the intriguingly-titled "How Bing Crosby and the Grinch Almost Stole Christmas" (and how a season run mainly by women is so male-centric).
Marling cites vintage magazine articles, advertisements, and illustrations (many included) to make her point, and I found it enjoyable that many of her cites came from my old favorite "St. Nicholas" magazine, where many of the Christmas tropes (children on trains experiencing a happy Christmas due to charitable passengers, poor children doing good deeds and receiving a Christmas reward, children learning to contribute to worthy causes rather than obtaining gifts themselves, etc.) were so popular. The illustrations (all in black and white, alas) are as enjoyable as the text.
Very happily recommended!
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