Well, it’s official. On Tuesday, we will have exactly six months until Christmas. Depending on your point of view, this is cause for celebration, panic or complete indifference. I bring this up not because I am one of those organized people who start planning my holiday festivities months in advance. No, no, and once again, no. The reason I’m announcing the six-month race to holiday bliss and/or depression is that I recently learned June 25 is National Leon Day. I assumed that people named Leon were given a special day (which I have to admit didn’t seem fair since I was unable to find National Jan Day), but I was wrong. National Leon Day is all about Christmas; and if you haven’t figured it out yet, Leon is Noel spelled backward.
Now, I can just imagine someone out there saying, “But Jan, I noticed that there are baseball titles in your reading list. What gives?” OK, putting Christmas and baseball books together might look like I’m throwing readers a tinseled curve ball, but bear with me. I’m a librarian, so of course I had to google “National Leon Day” to learn more about it. Among the results were several references to baseball. It turns out there was a professional baseball player named Leon Day who spent most of his career pitching for the Negro leagues. He lived from 1916-1995 and was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame just six days before his death. I love learning new things! So, despite the apparent incongruities between pinch hitters and candy canes, an argument can be made that Christmas and baseball are connected — sorta.
Get ready to score a home run with these holiday and sports books!
“Ballpark: Baseball in the American City,” by Paul Goldberger.
“Christmas at Home: Holiday Decorating, Crafts, Recipes,” edited by Valerie Rains.
“Have Yourself a Very Vintage Christmas: Crafts, Decorating Tips, and Recipes, 1920s-1960s,” by Susan Waggoner.
“How to Make Your Own Ugly Christmas Sweaters: 20 Fun & Easy Holiday Projects to Craft and Create,” by Nicolette Lafonseca.
