Ah, the absolute joy of even these short stories (and they are very short!) from Kate Atkinson. I love her writing, her quirks, her unique take on the world and the characters within it, and could happily have read a dozen more tales like these. The three festive tales in this slim volume can be read in an hour, so if you find yourself needing a pick-me-up after a bad day at work, dive in and enjoy. They will keep me going until her next novel is released...

This is a lovely funny teeny little book with three short stories. I am going to cheat by just quoting the bit on the inside leaf: ‘Lucy would have challenged anyone not to cry at the sight of their child in a Nativity play. Even a sheepish Maude, even a scowling Beatrice – currently attempting a Chinese burn on an adjacent angel. A shepherd shouted something incomprehensible to Joseph. One of the Wise Men wet himself. Beatrice waved enthusiastically – a little too enthusiastically – at Lucy from the angelic choir. It was better than any religion, Lucy thought.’

I just couldn't resist buying this book yesterday, small cute hardback by the brilliant Kate Atkinson. A delightful read - 3 quirky short stories - perfect for any commute or lunch break! Donation from each sale also goes to sight savers,

I have been reading a short story each day. It says it has 80 pages when in fact it’s 68. The rest are taken up advertising her other books. Lots love Kate Atkinson's books. I thought I’d try with her small festive collection. I can see why her books are loved by many. Her writing in well presented and flows really well for us readers. The first story. ᒪᑌᑕY’ᔕ ᗪᗩY This was a great little story about Lucy and her “motherhood”. Food for thought. I loved a quote from Lucy in this story. Lucy had met her husband Stephen and fell for him right away. “He would have made a good politician-he had good teeth, and hair, and lied easily” I loved that about Lucy. Her observations, beliefs and honesty. 2* Story 2 ᖴEᔕTIᐯE ᔕᑭIᖇIT I liked this one much better. It’s a bit of a longer tale with a funny quirk at the end. 3.75* Story 3 ᔕᗰᗩᒪᒪ ᗰEᖇᑕIEᔕ I liked this one much better. It was short but held my attention much better. A man and his dog, and his Mother! All these are obviously based around some sort of festive theme. A good introduction to this authors work and (I imagine) her quirky sense of humour.