Wishin' and Hopin': A Christmas Story - Softcover

Lamb, Wally

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0061950262 ISBN 13: 9780061950261

Publisher: Harper Large Print, 2009

Synopsis

Wally Lamb, the beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hour I First Believed, I Know This Much Is True, and She's Come Undone, delivers a holiday treat with Wishin' and Hopin'--an unforgettable novella that captures the warmth and joy of the holiday season. Poignant and hilarious, in a vein similar to Jean Shepherd's A Christmas Story and David Sedaris's The Santaland Diaries, Lamb's Christmas tale focuses on a feisty parochial school fifth grader named Felix Funicello--a distant cousin of the iconic Annette!

About this title

Review:

"Charming.. Full of pop-culture references of the day.this will have broad appeal." -- Library Journal

"Humorous and heartwarming.clever and well-written.A fun trip down memory lane from a skilled writer. The stocking stuffer might just become a cherished possession." -- Columbus Dispatch

Both heartwarming and laugh-out-loud funny.a cast of characters that are both uproarious and unforgettable.a poignant reminder that family and friends are the greatest gift of all." -- Hartford Books Examiner

"Lamb...proves he can be short, sweet and funny" -- USA Today

"Warmly, sweetly retro" -- Kansas City Star

Warmly, sweetly retro --Kansas City Star

"Lamb...proves he can be short, sweet and funny"--USA Today

"Humorous and heartwarming...clever and well-written...A fun trip down memory lane from a skilled writer. The stocking stuffer might just become a cherished possession."--Columbus Dispatch

"Lamb gets Felix's voice just right, and he does a spot-on job of evoking the special joys and trials of parochial school in the '60's"--St. Petersburg Times

"Warmly, sweetly retro"--Kansas City Star

From the Back Cover:

It's 1964 and ten-year-old Felix is sure of a few things: the birds and the bees are puzzling, television is magical, and this is one Christmas he'll never forget.

LBJ and Lady Bird are in the White House, Meet the Beatles is on everyone's turntable, and Felix Funicello (distant cousin of the iconic Annette!) is doing his best to navigate fifth grade--easier said than done when scary movies still give you nightmares and you bear a striking resemblance to a certain adorable cartoon boy.

Back in his beloved fictional town of Three Rivers, Connecticut, with a new cast of endearing characters, Wally Lamb takes his readers straight into the halls of St. Aloysius Gonzaga Parochial School--where Mother Filomina's word is law and goody-two-shoes Rosalie Twerski is sure to be minding everyone's business. But grammar and arithmetic move to the back burner this holiday season with the sudden arrivals of substitute teacher Madame Frechette, straight from Quebec, and feisty Russian student Zhenya Kabakova. While Felix learns the meaning of French kissing, cultural misunderstanding, and tableaux vivants, Wishin' and Hopin' barrels toward one outrageous Christmas.

From the Funicello family's bus-station lunch counter to the elementary school playground (with an uproarious stop at the Pillsbury Bake-Off), Wishin' and Hopin' is a vivid slice of 1960s life, a wise and witty holiday tale that celebrates where we've been--and how far we've come.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Large Print
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0061950262
• ISBN 13: 9780061950261
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224