The Hidden Stories Behind Our Festive Traditions

The Book of Christmas

In The Book of Christmas,&#160;best-selling author and acclaimed historian, Christopher Winn, casts a&#160;revealing eye over the stories, myths and legends of the most celebrated festival of the year: Christmas. 
 
 In this lovingly written collection of festive myths, legends and (quite often) bizarre traditions, discover the fascinating truth behind some of our most cherished Christmas rituals and customs. 
 
 Along with&#160;a detailed Christmas timeline outlining significant moments and stories throughout history as well as the evolution behind many of the more&#160;mainstream customs, Christopher Winn&#160;unearths all sorts of unusual and symbolic traditions from around the world; from the Druidical origins of the parasitic plant mistletoe and why we now associate it with kissing, to Japan&#39;s predilection for a Kentucky Fried Chicken Christmas dinner, to&#160;why we send cards, hang decorations, sing carols, eat turkey and much, much more &ndash; discover&#160;the fascinating&#160;truth (and oddities) behind this very special holiday.&#160; 
 
 Beautifully produced and charmingly illustrated, The&#160;Book of Christmas is a treasure trove of all things Christmas to delight the whole family.

Christopher Winn is a freelance writer and historian, and has been a collector of trivia for over 25 years, during which time he has written and set quiz questions for the Daily Mail,Daily Telegraph, Guardian, Spectator, Daily Express and The Field and has worked on television with Terry Wogan, Jonathan Ross, David Frost&#160; and many others. Winn&#39;s first bestselling I Never Knew That series has sold over 1 million copies.

Christopher Winn

The Weird and Wonderful Stories Behind Our Favourite Streets, from Acacia Avenue to Albert Square

Bestselling author Christopher Winn takes a closer look at our Roads, Avenues, Groves, Gardens, Hills and Lanes.There are around 800,000 streets in the UK and the name of each one tells a tale. We take them for granted but the choice of name can reveal facts about Britain&#39;s history, geography, topography and nature, even its politics and culture.From the most common names, to the rarest, the funniest to the most notorious, among the many fascinating facts, find out why the City of London has no "Roads", and where the UK&#39;s shortest street name (Rye) is located, as well as its longest (Bolderwood Arboretum Ornamental Drive). And why Station Road is in the top five most popular street names, alongside the multitude of Victoria Streets and Albert Roads. Devon even boasts The Street with No Name, which of course has its own story...Perfect for fans of trivia and local history, Great British Street Names will prompt you to think a little&#160;differently about the street where you live.

Christopher Winn

Books by Christopher Winn

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter