Fill My Stocking

by Alan Titchmarsh

Fill My Stocking is a collection of Christmas anecdotes, stories, poems, and sketches from Alan Titchmarsh, beautifully illustrated with his own watercolour vignettes. This anthology combines well-known favorites with Titchmarsh's own self-penned festive pieces, and collected together for the first time, this is the perfect stocking filler for his legions of fans.

Genres: Christmas, Humor

192 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Book Enhances the atmosphere and spirit of Christmas.

[Alison Barton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely wonderful - we sat round the table before Christmas several evenings, myself Ed & Cara just before she left home & we each picked out our favourite bits of the book. Very good book to have around at Christmas to keep dipping back into.

[Ane Cathrine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute collection of both Christmas songs, plays, poetry and short stories. Some where classics, like an excerpt from Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol, and other where silly stories written by the author himself to entertain his family at Christmas time. Some of my favourites where Albert and the Liner by Keith Waterhouse (that one made me tear up), Politically Correct Snow White by Alan Titchmarsh, and Pride and Prunejuice by Alan Titchmarsh (both plays and both hilarious)

[Michael Romeo Talks Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

This a fun and entertaining Christmas read. It has become a tradition for my wife and I to read it to each other as the holiday approaches.

[Jayant Kashyap · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully funny and witty book that deserves to be filled exactly in any stocking.

[Capn · Rating 3 out of 5]

As described. Handy as a reference. Think he didn't include the best bit of Dylan Thomas's A Child's Christmas in Wales, and I think everyone's familiar with Rat and Mole at Christmas (who doesn't love The Wind in the Willows?! Or, more aptly, who reading such a book as this would despise TWitW? Not many, I'd wager). Has made me wish to look into Delafield's Diary, but the Diary of a Nobody excerpt did nothing for me out of context.

[Sheena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book! A book that you will want to re-read every year. Really gets you in the mood for the festive season. Can be shared with the whole family.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great little book. Read it every Christmas for some fond memories and traditions.

[Katie Cat Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christmas. England. Mixed bag.

Story: Split into sections, this book includes poems, essays, plays and more, some by the author, others also.

Language: The copyright says 2005 but it reads like the early 1980s. There are a lot of problematic texts, especially against women, the disabled and more. There are also many classic poems and excerpts.

Characters: include the author, his family, Christian and non-Christian characters.

A mixed bag. Some sections I disliked intensely and was ready to put the book down. At the same time I enjoyed the classic songs and poems and thought it was nice to have them all in one book. There were also some texts focusing on rural England and dialects, which were interesting. Overall, the good bits stayed with me so I give it a positive rating.

[Sarah Dunsbee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some really nice extracts from good books but too much of A T s own writings for me personally....

[Sharon Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely book that shares the Christmas spirit

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable. A delightful collection of traditional Christmas carols, contemporary poems and modern re-imaginations of fairytales. Easy to fall into and flip through at free will.

[Cheryl]

According to a Vintage... group member, read this for Albert and the Liner.

[Dark-Draco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just the sort of book that appears on the shelves around Christmas time! This is a collection of all sorts of chrismassy pieces, from quite famous poetry and quotes, to carol lyrics, to bits of humorous verse and plays by Titchmarsh himself.

Probably my favourite bit was the 'PC' version of Snow White. I was snorting aloud with laughter as the 7 Dwarfs (or vertically challenged persons) were renamed Happy, Special Needsy, Sleepy, Hypo-Allergenic, Bashful, ASBO and Paramedic (the latter because with the busy, stretched to the limit NHS, it would be wrong to suggest that Doc's can be at one families beck and call all the time!).

The perfect time of year to read this - enjoy the bit of fun!

[Barrie Bromley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not normally a fan of Alan Titchmarsh's writing, I chose this because, he has compiled a volume of poetry and prose on the subject of Christmas. Yes, there is some of his own work but, there are also pieces by Shakespeare, Gervase Phinn, Keith Waterhouse and, John Betjeman. An excellent compilation that you can dip in and out of.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marmite!

[Mavis Hewitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wide selection of extracts from 18th to 20th century, quite a lot of his own work, but good for getting in the Xmas mood