Favorite Books (and More!) for Advent

One of the most exciting and comforting aspects of the end of the calendar year is surely the celebration of Advent, when Christians remember the first coming of Christ and anticipate the second. This season awakens a childlike and reverent wonder that’s a welcome respite from the commercialization that surrounds us during November and December.

I’ve enjoyed Advent both with my family (husband and four children) and also in a more solitary way, with my own daily Advent devotions. I’ll share both kinds of books here. I also became a Christian at age 30, and had absolutely zero previous knowledge of what Advent was or why we ought to celebrate it—so I also want to provide a few details to help those who are fairly new to the concept of the Advent season.

Let’s start off with something that definitely confused me many years ago: some Advent books/devotions are meant to be started on December 1, and some are meant to be started on the first Sunday of Advent, which falls between November 27 and December 3 on any given year. I’ll include the starting date below on each book, so you know what to expect.

Here’s how to determine when Advent begins: Advent always begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, so find Christmas on the calendar, and go back to the Sunday immediately before it. Then count back three more Sundays. and that’s the first day of Advent for the current year—which will always be somewhere between November 27 and December 3.

Also good to know is that the “twelve days of Christmas” come after Christmas Day, beginning on December 26 and ending on Epiphany, which is always on January 6. (A related Christmas decorations story: when I was first married, I innocently began taking the Christmas tree down on January 1, and my husband was horrified and insisted that we keep it up until Epiphany … and so for the past 31 years our Christmas tree has remained standing and fully decorated until at least January 6. I’m on board with this and have grown to like it.)

Now, what are you and/or your family going to be doing this Advent season? Here are some of my favorite books and more:

Advent Books for Adults (Personal Devotions)

Come Let Us Adore Him: A Daily Advent Devotional by Paul David Tripp

I really love Paul David Tripp’s writings; his New Morning Mercies is one of the best daily devotionals I’ve ever read (get it now if you don’t have it already, and start it on January 1). His Advent devotional will take you from December 1 to December 31. It’s written for adults, but it also includes suggestions for how to discuss the idea of each day’s devotion with children. As with all of his books, Come Let Us Adore Him is thoroughly Bible-based and points to our need for Jesus on every page.

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Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas by various authors

This has grown to be a popular series of books, with additional volumes for Advent, Lent and Easter, and everyday readings. Watch for the Light is the original Advent volume, with writings from C. S. Lewis, Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, Madeleine L’Engle, Kathleen Norris, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther, John Donne, and many more. It includes both prose and poetry of varying lengths, and isn’t always as obviously Christ-centered on every page as Tripp’s book above. But if you love good writing from a wide variety of ecumenical authors (meaning, from various Christian denominations), this is a good one. This book will take you from November 24 through January 7 if you choose to read each dated entry.

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All Creation Waits: The Advent Mystery of New Beginnings by Gayle Boss

This devotional is unique. Beginning on December 1, twenty-five short, illustrated essays depict how God’s creatures (chipmunk, honey bee, wood frog, wild turkey, Northern cardinal, lake trout, and more) instinctively respond to the season of encroaching darkness and waiting for a new beginning. The author created this devotional for her own sons, and it could be read with older children. What I liked about this one is the originality of it (for someone like me who loves nature and/or animals), and that I could reflect after reading each day: what does this have to say to me as a creature of God, made in the image of God? And how does this speak to the experience of waiting and anticipating Jesus right now? If you like thinking about those things on your own, and making the Christ-connections on your own or with older children, this is for you—but if not, then this one may feel a bit too secular. (There is an Easter devotional by this author, as well, but I didn’t care for that one so I won’t recommend that here.)

Advent Books for Families (Group Devotions)

The Advent Jesse Tree by Dean Meador Lambert

There are many “Jesse Tree” books out there, and I highly recommend that you get one of them for interactive Advent devotions with your children, especially children 10 and under. This one is my favorite. We really enjoyed making our own Jesse Tree (you can do this however you want—using a small actual tree, or one made of paper or fabric on the wall—and then you hang the ornaments on it each day while doing the devotion). For our ornaments, I copied the illustrations from the book onto card stock and my children colored them in (see photo). Why I love this particular Jesse Tree book: It’s simple, classic, and inexpensive; it gives you the symbol/picture, a memory verse, and hymn/song suggestions for each day; for each day, it first provides a children’s devotion along with Bible verses, discussion questions, and a prayer; and it also provides these same things on the following page for adults. It begins on December 1 and goes until Christmas Day.

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Jotham’s Journey: A Storybook for Advent by Arnold Ytreeide

We used an Advent wreath like this one on our table for many years during our evening devotions with our kids—candles and all, which was hugely fun for whoever’s turn it was to light and blow out the candle after dinner. While the candles burned, we read these Advent chapter books, which are perfect for ages 8-12 (older and younger children will also enjoy them). Jotham’s Journey (and its sequels, Bartholomew’s Passage, Tabitha’s Travels, and Ishtar’s Odyssey) is an adventure story that takes place during the time of Jesus’ birth. Each day’s reading also includes Bible verses and a short devotion for the family. Ytreeide provides details on how to use the book during Advent: you’ll always begin on the first Sunday of Advent, but because Advent ranges from 21 to 28 days each year, you need to adjust the final week’s reading to be sure you finish the book on Christmas Day, and he tells you exactly how to do this. He also includes a chart listing the first day of Advent and the day of Christmas Eve through the year 2078, in case you end up reading this with your great-grandchildren, as well. If you like these stories, the author has written similar books for Easter and the early church.

And more! Advent puzzles

I’m a huge fan of jigsaw puzzles (I began this hobby during the 2020 Covidtimes and now I can’t stop doing them—it’s one of my favorite go-to activities for relaxation and recharging). A few years ago, I was delighted to discover that there are many puzzling options out there for Advent. Each has 24 small puzzles that adults or children will enjoy, at less than 100 pieces each. Like books, puzzles are very economical because they can be brought out again every year. Put on the Christmas music and enjoy!

Advent puzzles that make one larger puzzle:

This one at left is a classic nativity scene with 24 little boxes that result in one larger, standard-sized picture by Christmas. At only around 40+ pieces per day, this is a great one to do with kids or by yourself if you’re new to puzzling or don’t have the patience for more pieces.

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Here’s a similar style to the one above, with the life of Jesus in stained glass.

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This one has a Christmas nostalgia vibe, with the end result being a larger collage-type puzzle.

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This one is Christmas Around the World and is kind of unusual in that it can be displayed as individual puzzles or as one large puzzle.

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Individual Advent puzzles:

This one has 24 separate puzzles of Christmas animals.

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This one is Christmas dogs.

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This one is a lovely collection of 24 Christmas Town pictures.

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Sets of 12 puzzles:

These are usually billed as “Countdown to Christmas, but you and I both know that the 12 Days of Christmas come after Christmas, so do these fun little puzzles whenever you’d like. One every other day will take you through Advent.

This one is winter lights in the city, 80 pieces each.

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This one  has 12 classic, more old-fashioned Christmas-related paintings, 100 pieces each.

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This one has 12 detailed and colorful winter scenes. I did this one last year, and it’s lovely. Very serene, snowy, and white, with tiny people and many, many evergreen trees.

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Maybe you’ve observed or celebrated Advent for years, or perhaps this is the first year you’ve decided to be more intentional about the four weeks before Christmas Day. I hope you enjoy these suggestions, and whether you’re relaxing and reflecting alone or with family or friends, I pray that you have a joyful and meaningful Advent season!

Cover image by Bruno from Pixabay

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