What do you think?
Rate this book
The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree
Though Marianna was almost ten and her brother Kenny was eleven, they had never had a Christmas tree—not once! Their mother didn't believe in doing things "like every tom-dick-and-harry." Maybe this year would be different, however, maybe she would say yes. Why even Allie McKaye, Marianna's best friend, had a tree, and she lived on a barge that tied up at Pier 16, just below Marianna's house in Brooklyn Heights.
When Marianna found a still-fresh tree, thrown out by students at a nearby college who had celebrated Christmas early, she took it home to the garden. And the next day, Allie helped her to drag more discarded trees home. When Mama found out they were right there, she'd probably choose one and say to bring it inside, Marianna thought.
This funny, tender, very human story with its unexpected ending, is illumined by the humorous understanding, the deep sense of childhood, and gentle irony that mark Eleanor Estes' memorable book, The Hundred Dresses. The background of Brooklyn Heights at Christmastime, affectionately portrayed, gives a special aura to this glowing new book by the greatly loved author who was awarded the Newbery Medal for her Ginger Pye.
When Marianna found a still-fresh tree, thrown out by students at a nearby college who had celebrated Christmas early, she took it home to the garden. And the next day, Allie helped her to drag more discarded trees home. When Mama found out they were right there, she'd probably choose one and say to bring it inside, Marianna thought.
This funny, tender, very human story with its unexpected ending, is illumined by the humorous understanding, the deep sense of childhood, and gentle irony that mark Eleanor Estes' memorable book, The Hundred Dresses. The background of Brooklyn Heights at Christmastime, affectionately portrayed, gives a special aura to this glowing new book by the greatly loved author who was awarded the Newbery Medal for her Ginger Pye.
79 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1973
About the author
Eleanor Estes
36 books275 followersEleanor Ruth Rosenfeld (Estes)was an American children's author. She was born in West Haven, Connecticut as Eleanor Ruth Rosenfield. Originally a librarian, Estes' writing career began following a case of tuberculosis. Bedridden while recovering, Estes began writing down some of her childhood memories, which would later turn into full-length children's books.
Estes's book Ginger Pye (1951) won the Newbery Medal, and three of her other books (The Middle Moffat, Rufus M., and The Hundred Dresses) were chosen as Newbery Honor books. She also received the Certificate of Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children’s Literature and was nominated for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award. By the time of her death at age 82, Estes had written 19 children's books and one novel for adults.
Estes's book Ginger Pye (1951) won the Newbery Medal, and three of her other books (The Middle Moffat, Rufus M., and The Hundred Dresses) were chosen as Newbery Honor books. She also received the Certificate of Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children’s Literature and was nominated for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award. By the time of her death at age 82, Estes had written 19 children's books and one novel for adults.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Read
October 26, 2016Two months to Christmas but this delightful book recommended by my GR friend Lori, hit the spot. A bit old-fashioned and perhaps better shared with a child, I still enjoyed curling up in a sunny spot and letting this book take me back to the excitement and smell of a real Christmas Tree.
As a side note back in my more crafty days I actually created a coat-hanger tree, similar to this
Make Your Own Coat Hanger Christmas Tree
with all the tinsel, adornments and lights. I think it may still be hanging out in my attic.
As a side note back in my more crafty days I actually created a coat-hanger tree, similar to this
Make Your Own Coat Hanger Christmas Tree
with all the tinsel, adornments and lights. I think it may still be hanging out in my attic.
January 17, 2017
This is the kind of Christmas story that speaks both of another time (when more people lived and worked on our northern seashores, docks and rivers) and of the timeless dynamics of family life at holiday time. This is the kind of Christmas story that begs to be read out loud and discussed around the family circle.
It is the story of a family scraping by with the father away, two kids in school and a young baby. The boy and girl siblings get along well, even if their personalities are significantly different. And it is the story of the girl's classmate who lives a quite different life on a barge that is moored not too far away. Each character from the kids to the mother to the neighbors has something to add about the Christmas holiday. The mother is under stress, only some of it described. Here is part of what Josiah excerpts in his review:
"They didn't go in for good-night kisses or being tucked into bed. Only Roderick (the baby) got good-night kisses or just any-old-time kisses. These would peter off after he stopped being a baby. Once good-night kisses had ended, it would be very hard to begin them again; they would all be too shy to try. Before, when her mother had said her own mother had died on Christmas Eve, Marianna had had a feeling of wanting to run to her mother, hold on to her, kiss her cheek. She should have. She should have begun again right then. But she couldn't." The poignancy of families growing up and apart is expressed here beautifully, in what I have to consider the best paragraph of the book. But love doesn't disappear even when physical affection does, and there's plenty of love to go around in Marianna and Kenny's family. I wish the same for everyone during the Christmas time of year, and always.
"For its winsome simplicity, there's a good chance I would give The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree two and a half stars. You won't be blown away by this book, but I think you'll find it increases your sense of holiday appreciation when December rolls around..." I don't disagree with Josiah's analysis. For me, this is a lovely, nuanced, story told by a master.
It is the story of a family scraping by with the father away, two kids in school and a young baby. The boy and girl siblings get along well, even if their personalities are significantly different. And it is the story of the girl's classmate who lives a quite different life on a barge that is moored not too far away. Each character from the kids to the mother to the neighbors has something to add about the Christmas holiday. The mother is under stress, only some of it described. Here is part of what Josiah excerpts in his review:
"They didn't go in for good-night kisses or being tucked into bed. Only Roderick (the baby) got good-night kisses or just any-old-time kisses. These would peter off after he stopped being a baby. Once good-night kisses had ended, it would be very hard to begin them again; they would all be too shy to try. Before, when her mother had said her own mother had died on Christmas Eve, Marianna had had a feeling of wanting to run to her mother, hold on to her, kiss her cheek. She should have. She should have begun again right then. But she couldn't." The poignancy of families growing up and apart is expressed here beautifully, in what I have to consider the best paragraph of the book. But love doesn't disappear even when physical affection does, and there's plenty of love to go around in Marianna and Kenny's family. I wish the same for everyone during the Christmas time of year, and always.
"For its winsome simplicity, there's a good chance I would give The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree two and a half stars. You won't be blown away by this book, but I think you'll find it increases your sense of holiday appreciation when December rolls around..." I don't disagree with Josiah's analysis. For me, this is a lovely, nuanced, story told by a master.
November 15, 2022
Ten-year-old Marianna wishes for a Christmas tree; just once she would love to have a Christmas tree. But her mother is adamantly against them - she just doesn't want to be like every tom-dick-and-harry. So Marianna, with the help of her eleven-year-old brother, Kenny, set out to try and convince their mother that a Christmas tree wouldn't be so bad.
It's an unexpected, and quite creative ending with lessons about understanding, love and friendship along the way. A good, family read.
Ages: 6 - 12
Cleanliness: Mentions Santa Claus, Halloween and the Easter bunny. A little girl shouts, loosing her temper at her mother. "Gol-durn" is said twice. Someone smokes a cigarette. "Lord, Lord" and "Gosh" are said a couple of times. "Shucks" is said.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell on Etsy!
It's an unexpected, and quite creative ending with lessons about understanding, love and friendship along the way. A good, family read.
Ages: 6 - 12
Cleanliness: Mentions Santa Claus, Halloween and the Easter bunny. A little girl shouts, loosing her temper at her mother. "Gol-durn" is said twice. Someone smokes a cigarette. "Lord, Lord" and "Gosh" are said a couple of times. "Shucks" is said.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell on Etsy!
December 11, 2014
Eleanor Estes's literary career spanned at least five decades, yet the gentle sweetness of her stories always seemed to stem most naturally from the carefree whimsy of the 1950s, when Ginger Pye, her Newbery Medal winner, was first published. The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree debuted in 1973, twenty-two years following the release of Ginger Pye, yet shares the same easygoing style and innocent charm of that earlier book, with nine-year-old Marianna having only the simplest of wishes for her coming Christmas. Most families who observe Christmas think little of purchasing a tree for the celebration, but Marianna's mother has been set against doing so for many years. There's no need to be "like every tom-dick-and-harry", she claims as her rationale for not indulging the holiday's cheer with a fragrant green tree in their house, though that may or may not be her real reason for refusing to put up a tree. Marianna and her eleven-year-old brother, Kenny, are tired of going Christmas after Christmas without the excitement of a twinkling, glistening, glowing tree to prop up in their front window, emanating warmth and hope to a world greatly in need of both. But their mother isn't one to bend on an issue when she's held out this long, and Marianna glumly accepts that this year, again, is likely to go by with no tree for their presents to be stashed under. Christmas presents without a tree? Most kids couldn't dream of such a setup, yet Marianna and Kenny have had to live with it their entire lives.
When Marianna meets Allie McKaye from her class, a girl whose mysterious living arrangement routinely prevents her from attending school for weeks at a time, Marianna sees there isn't any reason to avoid Allie, as many of her own friends do. Allie is like any other girl, but lives with her family on a barge in the harbor; when the barge casts adrift to travel, she can't come to school. Allie isn't comfortable having the secret of how she lives be commonly known, however, and Marianna's agreement to not spread the info to anyone but Kenny helps the two new friends bond even more quickly. Both girls are excited for the approaching yuletide season, though Marianna confesses to Allie her yearly disappointment over not having a Christmas tree. On the way home from school, dozens of used trees line the sidewalks where the college students live, disposed of by the kids prior to the holiday when they visit home, and the two girls wonder why they shouldn't bring one of these trees home to Marianna's house. She's sure her mother won't go for having a tree, even if it's free, but Marianna and Allie drag the evergreen home anyway, laughing and having fun all the way.
"Sometimes people do change their minds, even people who are very set on some idea."
—The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree, P. 9
This little experiment in seeing how far Marianna can push her mother toward accepting a tree at Christmastime expands when Marianna and Allie find it too hard to resist bringing all the abandoned trees home, filling Marianna's backyard with an abundant variety of festive greenery. It's going to be difficult to explain so many trees to Marianna and Kenny's mother, who never wanted a single one on her property, but Christmas spirit isn't so easily spoiled by a mother's flashes of annoyance and anger. Even great disappointment can be countered if one shrugs it off and won't allow it to ruin the holiday. Maybe Marianna can do something better than putting up a tree in every room of the house, or having a huge conifer to proudly position in her living room window. Maybe Marianna can salvage a perfectly dear, lovely Christmas, in a way that will satisfy everybody. Who better to save Christmas than a girl of nine?
Eleanor Estes always writes with luminous sensitivity to her characters and their situations, and this book is filled with examples of that. Marianna's newfound friendship with Allie is pure bonus to The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree, demonstrating that wonderful relationships can be discovered where most of one's peers aren't interested in looking, relationships that can be as strong and rewarding as any in life. Marianna's future wouldn't have been ruined had she not reached out to Allie, and I'm sure Allie's wouldn't have been, either, but it's a whole lot nicer to make a friend than not. One of my favorite parts of The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree is when Marianna ponders the slowly tapering displays of physical affection in her family as she and Kenny (and baby Roderick, too) grow up. "They didn't go in for good-night kisses or being tucked into bed. Only Roderick got good-night kisses or just any-old-time kisses. These would peter off after he stopped being a baby. Once good-night kisses had ended, it would be very hard to begin them again; they would all be too shy to try. Before, when her mother had said her own mother had died on Christmas Eve, Marianna had had a feeling of wanting to run to her mother, hold on to her, kiss her cheek. She should have. She should have begun again right then. But she couldn't." The poignancy of families growing up and apart is expressed here beautifully, in what I have to consider the best paragraph of the book. But love doesn't disappear even when physical affection does, and there's plenty of love to go around in Marianna and Kenny's family. I wish the same for everyone during the Christmas time of year, and always.
For its winsome simplicity, there's a good chance I would give The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree two and a half stars. You won't be blown away by this book, but I think you'll find it increases your sense of holiday appreciation when December rolls around, a quiet offering from a master writer whose every story for kids was a valuable gift. I encourage you to give The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree a read. I think you'll like it.
When Marianna meets Allie McKaye from her class, a girl whose mysterious living arrangement routinely prevents her from attending school for weeks at a time, Marianna sees there isn't any reason to avoid Allie, as many of her own friends do. Allie is like any other girl, but lives with her family on a barge in the harbor; when the barge casts adrift to travel, she can't come to school. Allie isn't comfortable having the secret of how she lives be commonly known, however, and Marianna's agreement to not spread the info to anyone but Kenny helps the two new friends bond even more quickly. Both girls are excited for the approaching yuletide season, though Marianna confesses to Allie her yearly disappointment over not having a Christmas tree. On the way home from school, dozens of used trees line the sidewalks where the college students live, disposed of by the kids prior to the holiday when they visit home, and the two girls wonder why they shouldn't bring one of these trees home to Marianna's house. She's sure her mother won't go for having a tree, even if it's free, but Marianna and Allie drag the evergreen home anyway, laughing and having fun all the way.
"Sometimes people do change their minds, even people who are very set on some idea."
—The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree, P. 9
This little experiment in seeing how far Marianna can push her mother toward accepting a tree at Christmastime expands when Marianna and Allie find it too hard to resist bringing all the abandoned trees home, filling Marianna's backyard with an abundant variety of festive greenery. It's going to be difficult to explain so many trees to Marianna and Kenny's mother, who never wanted a single one on her property, but Christmas spirit isn't so easily spoiled by a mother's flashes of annoyance and anger. Even great disappointment can be countered if one shrugs it off and won't allow it to ruin the holiday. Maybe Marianna can do something better than putting up a tree in every room of the house, or having a huge conifer to proudly position in her living room window. Maybe Marianna can salvage a perfectly dear, lovely Christmas, in a way that will satisfy everybody. Who better to save Christmas than a girl of nine?
Eleanor Estes always writes with luminous sensitivity to her characters and their situations, and this book is filled with examples of that. Marianna's newfound friendship with Allie is pure bonus to The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree, demonstrating that wonderful relationships can be discovered where most of one's peers aren't interested in looking, relationships that can be as strong and rewarding as any in life. Marianna's future wouldn't have been ruined had she not reached out to Allie, and I'm sure Allie's wouldn't have been, either, but it's a whole lot nicer to make a friend than not. One of my favorite parts of The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree is when Marianna ponders the slowly tapering displays of physical affection in her family as she and Kenny (and baby Roderick, too) grow up. "They didn't go in for good-night kisses or being tucked into bed. Only Roderick got good-night kisses or just any-old-time kisses. These would peter off after he stopped being a baby. Once good-night kisses had ended, it would be very hard to begin them again; they would all be too shy to try. Before, when her mother had said her own mother had died on Christmas Eve, Marianna had had a feeling of wanting to run to her mother, hold on to her, kiss her cheek. She should have. She should have begun again right then. But she couldn't." The poignancy of families growing up and apart is expressed here beautifully, in what I have to consider the best paragraph of the book. But love doesn't disappear even when physical affection does, and there's plenty of love to go around in Marianna and Kenny's family. I wish the same for everyone during the Christmas time of year, and always.
For its winsome simplicity, there's a good chance I would give The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree two and a half stars. You won't be blown away by this book, but I think you'll find it increases your sense of holiday appreciation when December rolls around, a quiet offering from a master writer whose every story for kids was a valuable gift. I encourage you to give The Coat-Hanger Christmas Tree a read. I think you'll like it.
December 8, 2024
The kids enjoyed this one. I didn’t as much. If the mom wouldn’t have been so cold and unwilling to heal I would have felt it more redeemable.
January 5, 2012
Read this one with my 10-yr-old son during the holidays. It is the story of a 10-yr-old girl living in Brooklyn, NY who longs for a Christmas tree but whose mother refuses to allow one in the house stating repeatedly that she has no desire "to be like every other Tom, Dick and Harry" in the neighborhood. The family celebrates (if you can call it that) Christmas, exchanges gifts, etc, but no tree allowed? Obviously there is more to the story. Eleanor Estes is one of my favorite children's authors. She does not write down to her young audience but in refusing to spell out every little thing, a young reader can miss key subtleties that are here so even though the reading level of this can be easily handled by an advanced 2nd or average 3rd or 4th grade reader I'm glad that we read it together because I was able to make sure my son didn't miss several key subtleties. A nice, easy read for Christmas time that's devoid of sappy, overt sentimentality but still has heart.
December 13, 2019
I'm usually a pretty big fan of Eleanor Estes, but this book was overall a rather sad read to me. While I enjoyed a lot of aspects of it - the way the siblings are so close to each other, and how they befriend an unpopular girl at school - I just couldn't get over how their mother came off as incredibly selfish for not letting them have a Christmas tree - for no better reason than "I don't want to be like everyone else" - sorry, that just doesn't sound like a reasonable position for not giving your children something perfectly harmless (which they can get for free) that they so desperately want.
December 27, 2010
A nice story, and very good for Christmas, though I wasn't totally satisfied by the ending. I really liked how the brother and sister got along so well and were nice to each other :-)
November 19, 2023
Estes was my favorite childhood author, and throughout the years that has never changed. This book, written much later in her career, was one that I hadn't read until now.
I gave the story four stars because I think that Estes had many wonderful elements in her writing. She was very sensitive to children's feelings, and insecurities. She writes about being poor in a way that makes me wonder if that was a part of her childhood.
Somehow I have the feeling that she tried to update the story in a way that might make it more current. The mother was an unusually odd character, and though written in the early '70's I felt that her personality was more like that of a beatnik in the 50's. She was very self-centered in her determined pursuit to be different, to the detriment of her children. She had odd ideas about the children's names and on a whim decided that they could no longer use nicknames. The father was absent throughout the story and the mother kept anxiously waiting for a letter from him as he was away doing research for a book that he planned to write. That part of the story seemed odd and incomplete as it was just dropped, never resolved. That could have made a very nice ending to have the father surprise the family just before Christmas, but it just simply stopped. I also felt that the mother's weirdness actually was rather damaging to the children.
Though she was older Estes had a wonderful reputation as a childrens' author. Perhaps her editor just didn't have the heart to tell her to make changes in the book.
I don't recommend this book for children nowadays. The story isn't strong and I think that there wouldn't be much to attract children today to it. I would say though that if you are wildly fond of Estes and her writings, like I am, that it would be worth reading just to give perspective to her entire body of work.
I gave the story four stars because I think that Estes had many wonderful elements in her writing. She was very sensitive to children's feelings, and insecurities. She writes about being poor in a way that makes me wonder if that was a part of her childhood.
Somehow I have the feeling that she tried to update the story in a way that might make it more current. The mother was an unusually odd character, and though written in the early '70's I felt that her personality was more like that of a beatnik in the 50's. She was very self-centered in her determined pursuit to be different, to the detriment of her children. She had odd ideas about the children's names and on a whim decided that they could no longer use nicknames. The father was absent throughout the story and the mother kept anxiously waiting for a letter from him as he was away doing research for a book that he planned to write. That part of the story seemed odd and incomplete as it was just dropped, never resolved. That could have made a very nice ending to have the father surprise the family just before Christmas, but it just simply stopped. I also felt that the mother's weirdness actually was rather damaging to the children.
Though she was older Estes had a wonderful reputation as a childrens' author. Perhaps her editor just didn't have the heart to tell her to make changes in the book.
I don't recommend this book for children nowadays. The story isn't strong and I think that there wouldn't be much to attract children today to it. I would say though that if you are wildly fond of Estes and her writings, like I am, that it would be worth reading just to give perspective to her entire body of work.
January 25, 2020
I discovered this sweet little book by one of my favorite children’s authors at my library book sale for $1, and started reading it at night to my little girls. They have been so troubled about the main characters, whose mother won’t allow a Christmas tree in their house because she doesn’t want to be like “every Tom-Dick-and-Harry.” I love the old-fashioned feel about this book, although it’s definitely more recent (60’s/70’s) than her other books I’ve read. Her life-lessons on loss, kindness, and individuality are timeless. It doesn't have quite as much closure as I was wanting, but still a sweet book.
August 2, 2019
Estes is one of my favorite children's writers, so I was very pleased to find this charming Christmas story of hers that I hadn't read before at John R King's in Detroit. The "modern" setting (1973) was a nostalgic bonus for me, as I would have been about the same age as the characters. Truly delightful.
January 5, 2026
a fun christmas read with the kids. short and different.
November 13, 2016
Kind of depressing. Emotionally instability of mom affects kids. Wouldn't read again, or recommend.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews