12 books of Christmas to give your true love and others

What began with Charles Dickens and "A Christmas Carol" has become a holiday publishing tradition. This year's Christmas-themed books - many in an appealing stocking-stuffer size - include big names from Wally Lamb to Kate Jacobs to Garrison Keillor. Here are 12 that capture the spirit of the season.

1. "Wishin' and Hopin'"

By Wally Lamb

Harper, 288 pp., $19.99

Genre: Comic novel

Setting: New London, Conn., 1964

What it's about:

Narrator Felix Funicello (third cousin of Annette, the former Mouseketeer turned beach-movie star) is the second smartest fifth-grader in a blue-collar Catholic school governed by ruler-slapping nuns. A new student from Russia (a Communist?) changes everything, including an unforgettable Christmas program.

Holiday cheer level: Lamb, a two-time Oprah Book Club pick, proves he can be short, sweet and funny, with a soundtrack by Dusty Springfield.

- Bob Minzesheimer

2. "A Christmas Blizzard"

By Garrison Keillor

Viking, 180 pp., $21.95

Genre: Gentle satire/fable

Setting: Contemporary Chicago and Looseleaf, N.D.

What it's about:

An obsessively insecure tycoon, haunted by his grim childhood, dreads Christmas, which he likes to spend in Hawaii. But a call from his hometown about a dying uncle summons him to North Dakota in the midst of a blizzard. In a fishing shack on the ice of Lake Winnesissebigosh, he finds new meaning in the mysteries of life.

Holiday cheer level: "A Christmas Carol" meets "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" - with a dash of "A Christmas Story." A perfect gift for fans of Keillor's storytelling on "A Prairie Home Companion."

- Bob Minzesheimer

3. "The Gift"

By Cecelia Ahern

Harper, 320 pp., $19.99

Genre: Fiction

Setting: Christmas season in Dublin