Joy to the World: A Victorian Christmas

by Cynthia Hart, Cynthia Hart

Text by Priscilla Dunhill. The Christmas we love today sprang from the festive parlors and bedecked halls of a century ago, where it lives still in the lush pages of "Joy to the World." A specially embossed and die-cut jacket wraps the book like a precious gift.
Selection of the Literary Guild and the Better Homes & Gardens Family Book Service. 199,000 copies in print.

Genres: Christmas, Nonfiction, History, Victorian

96 pages, Hardcover

First published January 11, 1990

Reviews

[Lisa Quillin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I treasure this book because not only does it have so many beautiful victorian pictures of Christmas and stories of Christmas's around the world and from way back when but mostly because my Mom bought it for me in 1990 and she wrote some beautiful words dedicating it to me. I miss her very much and will always treasure this book and many others she has gave me through out my life.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super quick read. I just love this era and I love the illustrations.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Victorian Christmas Joy To The World was written by Cynthia Hart, John Grossman, and Priscilla Dunhill first published in 1990. The contents are as follows:

Day of Days

A Bright and Happy Christmas

Deck the Halls

Santa and the Spirit of Giving

and

Merry Christmas to All

Day of days is two pages telling us of how the Victorians celebrated Christmas. With brandy, candied orange peels and evergreens. Cinnamon cookies, holly, velvet dresses and damask tablecloths. Victorians wrapped Christmas with tinsel, golden-haired cherubic angels and jolly Santas. They decorated their trees with stars and fruit, and invented the Christmas card. It was a family celebration. Later in the book we are given this poem:

In the hidden nooks and hollows
That the heart must seek for resting
May the bird whose name is Peace
Find a chosen place for nesting,
Where its song shall never cease.

written by Helen Maud Whitman

We're told that Victorians sang solos, duets and choruses in churches. They revived the jubilant medieval carols, which had spread across Europe by traveling troubadours. Victorians had wassail, holly, and Father Christmas. Father Christmas crowned with sprigs of holly, upon occasion got roaring drunk as he traveled about the countryside on foot or astride a white goat, stopping off at lodges and cottages to deliver gifts and share the wassail bowl. There seemed to be too many wassail bowls sitting around during the Victorian Christmas days. These are the kind of things you will learn in the Victorian Christmas book. Enjoy reading, stay away from the wassail bowl.

[Pamela Arrowood · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting, short read on the collective history of Christmas. I purchased this book secondhand for $6 from an antique store in Galena, IL while on holiday there during Christmas a yr ago...finally getting around to reading. It's also a beautifully illustrated book and I display as a coffee table book during Christmas. Worth buying if you enjoy rehoming good books like I do!

[Elena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful Victorian pictures along with interesting history about Christmas. Unfortunately, the library copy I read had been defaced with pen marks and random pictures cut out throughout the book. So it was impossible to thoroughly enjoy this book.

[Bayou des Cannes Cajun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable read. Interesting. Discussed a bit of the history more in-depth than usual but not minutiae​ and boring. Relaxing read. Succinct.

[Denise Kruse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely to look at. Text is opinionated and not particularly scholarly.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gorgeous and informative little book on this history of Victorian Christmas.

[Macey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful little book.

[Colleen Yeany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating details of how Christmas traditions developed in America as well as Britiain. Each authentic object photographed is indexed with date and materials.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've had this gift book for years...very pretty to look at.
Read my full review at http://www.dreamworldbooks.com/2011/1...

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated with reproductions of antique Victorian scraps. A Christmas book to treasure and pass down.