Call number
Collection
Publication
Revell (2006), 176 pages
Description
The people of Christmas Valley always celebrate Christmas to the fullest extent. The mayor plays Santa, every business is holiday themed, and there's a nativity for the kids each Christmas Eve. This town knows Christmas. But this year nothing goes according to plan. Shepherd's Inn is full of strangers, Mad Myrtle is causing problems, and a young couple with a baby due any minute rolls in to the middle of town in their Partridge Family-style bus. It's hardly the holiday Christmas Valley wanted--but it may be just what they need. This charming novella is sure to become a new Christmas tradition for readers who love a great holiday story.
User reviews
LibraryThing member bookaddict85
This is my first holiday read this year, and I must say I did enjoy it. “The Christmas Bus” is a quick, uplifting, predictable read with really enjoyable characters. Edith Ryan lives in a quaint little town called Christmas Valley. Edith, the pastor’s wife is saddened and disappointed that
Myrtle Pinkerton soon arrives, a woman who irritates almost everyone in town and has Edith constantly worrying about what sort of trouble she will get herself into next. Myrtle will keep readers guessing. Edith’s guests are all very diverse. There is Leslie, a divorcee and her young daughter named Meagan. Albert Benson, an elderly widower who seems content to stay in his room. Lauren and Michael Thomas who’s issues are unbeatable and Jim and Carmen Fields who are constantly bickering. Myrtle takes it upon herself to try and help the guests and townspeople on what she deems issues, even though they do not necessarily want her to intervene.
Collin and Amy, are a young couple who arrive in a broken down, brightly painted bus with no money. It is clear the birth of their child is fast approaching and Edith cannot turn them away, even though her B&B is fully booked. A town that prides themselves as having the Christmas spirit 365 days a year, has a few lessons to learn when Edith decides she will not turn them away because their bus is simply an eyesore. Myrtle may have irritated the locals however, she does redeem herself and leaves readers pondering the true hidden blessing of Christmas.
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her children will not be coming home for the holidays this year. Inspired by her husband’s sermon, Edith decides to keep their bed and breakfast open during the holidays for those who need a place to stay and people to spend the holiday with. The inn is soon booked to capacity, and Edith’s patience is tested.Myrtle Pinkerton soon arrives, a woman who irritates almost everyone in town and has Edith constantly worrying about what sort of trouble she will get herself into next. Myrtle will keep readers guessing. Edith’s guests are all very diverse. There is Leslie, a divorcee and her young daughter named Meagan. Albert Benson, an elderly widower who seems content to stay in his room. Lauren and Michael Thomas who’s issues are unbeatable and Jim and Carmen Fields who are constantly bickering. Myrtle takes it upon herself to try and help the guests and townspeople on what she deems issues, even though they do not necessarily want her to intervene.
Collin and Amy, are a young couple who arrive in a broken down, brightly painted bus with no money. It is clear the birth of their child is fast approaching and Edith cannot turn them away, even though her B&B is fully booked. A town that prides themselves as having the Christmas spirit 365 days a year, has a few lessons to learn when Edith decides she will not turn them away because their bus is simply an eyesore. Myrtle may have irritated the locals however, she does redeem herself and leaves readers pondering the true hidden blessing of Christmas.
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LibraryThing member mjmbecky
I understand that Melody Carlson, author of The Christmas Bus, has actually written many Christmas themed novels. This was my first, however, and it was cute. While this second novel played a bit more obviously on Christmas story themes, such as the Mary & Joseph story with a young expecting couple
In a faintly obvious mixing of tales, The Christmas Bus is a story about sharing Christmas with everyone, including those who might not be quite so lovable or even likable! There are the lonely, the homeless, the expecting, and the scrooges in this story, all interacting with one another to make one memorable Christmas. I did enjoy this short little novel, even with its faint predictability. As a quick Christmas read, it was fun to revel in the spirit a little longer.
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that have rolled into town in an old rickety bus, it was still a fun read. In Christmas Valley, the little town there plays on every bit of Christmas that they can to draw tourism. For the owners of The Shepherd's Inn, this would be an interesting holiday, as their own children would be unable to come for Christmas. In exchange, they have opened up their inn for any wayward travelers who needed a place to stay for the holidays.In a faintly obvious mixing of tales, The Christmas Bus is a story about sharing Christmas with everyone, including those who might not be quite so lovable or even likable! There are the lonely, the homeless, the expecting, and the scrooges in this story, all interacting with one another to make one memorable Christmas. I did enjoy this short little novel, even with its faint predictability. As a quick Christmas read, it was fun to revel in the spirit a little longer.
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LibraryThing member ark76
No room at the inn. Literally. This is a modern version of the Christmas story. It took me awhile to pick up on the parable because it was done so subtly in novel form. I really enjoyed this adaptation of the traditional story because it was so much more complicated. A minister and his wife run a
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bed and breakfast and decide to open it for the first time at Christmas as they are now empty nesters. The wife's desire to open it to those without family to spend Christmas with is realized and a group of lonely misfits gather together and join together to assist a young couple about to have their first child. Show Less
LibraryThing member loubigfish
Nice rainy day short story with colorful characters and a cute story. Undertone of the story has a Christian twist and plays out very well. Garbs you and really get involved in the story and what the characters are all about. Would recommend.
LibraryThing member jboehret
I will say this outright and get it on the table - I'm agnostic. I'm not sure what to believe, be it God or Allah or Buddha. So when reading this Christian Fiction novel, I kept my bias out of my thoughts and opinions. My religious beliefs (or disbelief) play no part in my opinions here.
I did not
A pet peeve of mine is when an author discovers a word, typically a good one, and then overuses it a million times in a short span like it's going out of style. Cantankerous. This word appears to have jumped at Melody Carlson from her thesaurus search and she loved it so much that it popped up several times shortly thereafter. 'Angels unaware' was another one. Heck, both of these showed up in the synopsis alone!
The storyline was predictable. I knew the end long before it happened. Perhaps not every little detail, but enough that getting through it wasn't totally necessary.
After all that negativity, how did I come to rating it two stars as opposed to nothing? Well, it wasn't all bad...
Truthfully, I liked the characters for the most part. I could equate Edith to my grandmother - always willing to help those in need when she could, leads a simple life and strives to be a good person, above all else. And in a lot of ways, Edith even responded/thought the way I imagine my grandmother would.
Other than Edith, the other characters seemed like real people that you'd meet on any sort of occasion. They were versatile and different and came from many different situations, as one would expect for an inn of this kind. I found them to be somewhat interesting, even given their predictability.
The other thing I appreciated is that it lived up to exactly what it was meant to - a light-hearted, happy ending, 'tis-the-season sort of read. It didn't play pretend to anything loftier or deeper than that. I read the book in a span of two hours, snuggled up in blankets and had my first "Oh, wow, it's Christmas-time!" feeling for the year. I guess that's pretty cheerful and positive.
So I wouldn't necessarily recommend this one outright to anybody. I suppose readers of Christian Fiction would appreciate it. And maybe this could serve as a pretty decent bed-time story for older kids.
I did not
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like this book. I think that's assumed given my low rating, but I like to reiterate. I did not like this book. I felt somewhat patronized and I detest that feeling, especially when it comes from a book claiming to be adult fiction. Not only that, but this was written in a style similar to that of a young person: "First she did this. Then she did that. And while she did that, she thought this." It was monotonous and forced me to keep checking the label to see that I hadn't gone batty and misread the 'adult' portion.A pet peeve of mine is when an author discovers a word, typically a good one, and then overuses it a million times in a short span like it's going out of style. Cantankerous. This word appears to have jumped at Melody Carlson from her thesaurus search and she loved it so much that it popped up several times shortly thereafter. 'Angels unaware' was another one. Heck, both of these showed up in the synopsis alone!
The storyline was predictable. I knew the end long before it happened. Perhaps not every little detail, but enough that getting through it wasn't totally necessary.
After all that negativity, how did I come to rating it two stars as opposed to nothing? Well, it wasn't all bad...
Truthfully, I liked the characters for the most part. I could equate Edith to my grandmother - always willing to help those in need when she could, leads a simple life and strives to be a good person, above all else. And in a lot of ways, Edith even responded/thought the way I imagine my grandmother would.
Other than Edith, the other characters seemed like real people that you'd meet on any sort of occasion. They were versatile and different and came from many different situations, as one would expect for an inn of this kind. I found them to be somewhat interesting, even given their predictability.
The other thing I appreciated is that it lived up to exactly what it was meant to - a light-hearted, happy ending, 'tis-the-season sort of read. It didn't play pretend to anything loftier or deeper than that. I read the book in a span of two hours, snuggled up in blankets and had my first "Oh, wow, it's Christmas-time!" feeling for the year. I guess that's pretty cheerful and positive.
So I wouldn't necessarily recommend this one outright to anybody. I suppose readers of Christian Fiction would appreciate it. And maybe this could serve as a pretty decent bed-time story for older kids.
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LibraryThing member HarryMacDonald
Predictable, primitively written, crudely edited -- yet perfectly agreeable, even charming. Say what one will about "feel good" faction, who can be 100% opposed to feeling good?
LibraryThing member Bettyb30
This story was a true inspiration o others about the meaning of kindness and that every person you are cruel to could be one that will make your after life choices for you. The old saying is if you have nothing nice to say, then say nothing at all.
LibraryThing member AliceAnna
Very cute little Christmas tale. A nice morality tale without being preachy. Characters are fairly well-developed for such a short work. I really enjoyed it.
LibraryThing member BrendaKlaassen
This is a book that I have wanted to read for awhile. I have read some of this author's previous work. She writes a "feel good" story. The variety of characters were a joy. The book did allow me to slow down and think about angels. I did like that Amy and Collin were not driven out of town. I might
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try and read this author again in 2016. Show Less
LibraryThing member HGButchWalker
Simple, heart-warming tale of the small town of Christmas village and the odd young couple that visits.
LibraryThing member Greymowser
Cute story. Had couple of great characters but story idea was figured out before the end. Wanted more of the story.
LibraryThing member mjkutan
Awesome book! I read it in one sitting because I couldn't put it down!
LibraryThing member anacskie
Perfect Christmas Story
Love this book. And love the fact that it emphasized that Jesus is definitely the reason for this season. I love Christmas stories and this definitely warms my heart.
Love this book. And love the fact that it emphasized that Jesus is definitely the reason for this season. I love Christmas stories and this definitely warms my heart.
LibraryThing member anacskie
Perfect Christmas Story
Love this book. And love the fact that it emphasized that Jesus is definitely the reason for this season. I love Christmas stories and this definitely warms my heart.
Love this book. And love the fact that it emphasized that Jesus is definitely the reason for this season. I love Christmas stories and this definitely warms my heart.
LibraryThing member Carlathelibrarian
A wonderful Christmas story to really get you thinking about the true meaning of Christmas.
The people of Christmas Valley always celebrate Christmas to the fullest extent. The mayor plays Santa, every business is holiday themed, and there's a Christmas Pageant for the kids on Christmas Eve. The
I agree that this charming novella is sure to become a new Christmas tradition for readers who love a great holiday story.
The people of Christmas Valley always celebrate Christmas to the fullest extent. The mayor plays Santa, every business is holiday themed, and there's a Christmas Pageant for the kids on Christmas Eve. The
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town capitalizes on its name, but most of the young people move away for jobs. That is why Charles and Edith, the pastor and owner of the Shepherd's Inn Bed and Breakfast find themselves along for Christmas for the first time ever. They decide to open the Inn to visitors to enjoy the town's Christmas festivities. The guests are very different including a nosy, opinionated Myrtle, a recently divorced mother and daughter, a recent widower and two couples, one with a dying husband and the other that do not get along and argue constantly. along comes a young couple expecting a baby, broke, driving a "Hippie Bus" that is broken down. What happens next brings the town together and makes them appreciate the real Christmas Spirit. I agree that this charming novella is sure to become a new Christmas tradition for readers who love a great holiday story.
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LibraryThing member Novelreaction
I recently read The Christmas Bus by Melody Carlson. I have to admit that I love Christmas stories. This book wasn’t so much a romance novel as a cute Christmas story. The author’s style reminded me a lot of the Mitford Series, if you are familiar with those books.
The main character of the
This story was a feel-good Christmas story. Some of the plot was pretty predictable but sometimes I need to be reminded of the real reasons for Christmas and what the Christmas spirit really is. I love reading Christmas stories before Christmas but I have learned, the hard way, that I have to double check copyright dates of Christmas stories because publishers have a tendency to re-release the same stories every year with new covers.
The main character of the
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novel is the preacher’s wife in a small town of Christmas Valley that was built around a logging mill. When the mill shut down the town leaders decided to make the town a Christmas destination as a way to draw tourists to the town to keep it economically alive. After several years of everything focused on Christmas the members of the town have become a bit disenchanted with the entire Christmas season and solely focused on the consumerism side. Edith, the pastor’s wife and operator of a bed-and-breakfast, is facing her first Christmas without children present and decides to open up the Inn to guests for the first time. Edith imagines a perfect Christmas with perfect guests and ends up instead with a crazy old lady named Myrtle, a fighting couple, a single mother with daughter and a reclusive old man as guests. To top it all off, a tack 1970’s bus pulls up and the couple who live in it ask if they can park the bus in front of her Inn. Taking one look at the extremely pregnant wife, Edith agrees to let them park there until they can get the bus fixed. Pretty soon Edith is regretting all her Christmas decisions; the mayor doesn’t like the bus being parked where tourists can see it, Myrtle causes problems with everyone in the town, and Edith’s favorite Christmas angel figurine goes missing.This story was a feel-good Christmas story. Some of the plot was pretty predictable but sometimes I need to be reminded of the real reasons for Christmas and what the Christmas spirit really is. I love reading Christmas stories before Christmas but I have learned, the hard way, that I have to double check copyright dates of Christmas stories because publishers have a tendency to re-release the same stories every year with new covers.
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