Because of the holidays I’m doing a lot of house and dogsitting at the moment, and driving more than I usually do: consequently I’m also chewing through some audiobooks! Recently I finished two short Christmas “reads”.

First up, Walter Matthau reading The Night the Grinch Stole Christmas. I’m pretty sure anyone reading this knows that story, but just in case: there’s a fellow named The Grinch who lives above a little village called Whoville, populated solely by Whos. The Grinch is not a fan of noise, and the Whos are especially noisy at Christmas, so the Grinch decides to steal Christmas and shenanigans ensue. This story, read by Walter “Grumpy Old Men” Matthau is as wonderful as you might expect. I was cackling the entire time.

Next up, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever!. I watched a theatrical version of this a few years back, but beyond the initial premise (terrible kids bully their way into being the stars of the Christmas play), I’d forgotten everything. Narrator C.J. Critt has a fine voice and delivery for general narration, and her vocals for different characters are varied and not horrifying like Tim Curry’s in A Christmas Carol. The story, for those who haven’t watched the new movie, is about the Herdman family coming to a church because they heard there was food, then bullying their way into the pageant. The Herdmans are raised by a single mother who is always working, so they’re absolutely feral. They’ve also never heard the Christmas story, so Best Christmas Pageant Ever allows readers to experience it through fresh eyes: the bewilderment that an innkeeper wouldn’t find room for a pregnant woman, rage at Herod’s baby-killing, etc. Because the Herdmans don’t have the assumed knowledge how The Characters Should Be, Mary is played more like an emotional Italian mamma, thumping the baby Jesus to make him burp and yelling at strangers to give the baby some space, and the wise men/three kings are not noble arcanes but suspicious foreigners who might very well narc on Jesus to Herod. Unrestricted by convention, the kid’s strong personalities give the performance a burst of unwieldly energy and actually make the audience think more seriously about the Christmas story. Comic, thoughtful, and touching.