Lucinda Dickens Hawksley (yes, that Dickens: Lucinda is a descendant of Charles Dickens) reveals the fascinating tale of Christmas traditions during Queen Victoria’s reign. In 1843, while Dickens was writing A Christmas Carol and inventing the Christmas ghost story, a London civil servant commissioned the first Christmas card and Windsor Castle displayed artificial Christmas trees and served turkeys for Christmas dinner. During the next five years, the first recipe for Christmas pudding appeared, Christmas crackers debuted, and a London newspaper showcased Christmas trees to the world.

Hawksley explores these customs and more so you can experience the season authentically to period. Feast on Roast Goose with Sage and Onion Stuffing, Brussels Sprouts on Buttered Toast, and Christmas Cake while sipping a Cratchit Christmas Twist or Smoking Bishop Punch. Learn how to make Golden Walnuts, Kissing Bunches, and Pomanders. Play Victorian games (board games like Balderdash and Pachisi or parlor games like Charades and Snapdragon), then take a Victorian Christmas swim, and sing "Christmastide" by Christina Rossetti. You'll find excerpts from classic Christmas texts, too, by Louisa Alcott, George Eliot, Elizabeth Gaskell, Thomas Hardy, Anthony Trollope, Mark Twain, and others.

Meticulously researched and beautifully presented, this festive collection will make your yuletide merry. Charles Dickens would be proud.

Hardcover, 184 pages. 2024.