A Lot Like Christmas: Stories

“Miracle”
A very funny comparison between “Miracle on 34th Street” and “It’s a Wonderful Life” (Willis makes very clear which one she prefers in the introduction and in this story), which benefited by my having just watched the former this year and being very familiar with the latter. With a little help from a random spirit who shows up on her doorstep, Lauren finds out that what she really wants for Christmas may be right in front of her.

“All About Emily”
A twist on the AI story – is Emily really as appealing and non-threatening as she appears? One actress is about to find out. Lots of references to film and Broadway shows that went right over my head, but it was still entertaining.

“Inn”
A member of the choir has show more an encounter with apparently time-traveling homeless wanderers.

“All Seated on the Ground”
Hilarious take on what might happen if aliens came to earth around Christmastime. They look on disapprovingly until they respond to a Christmas carol – but did you know how violent some of them are? Can we communicate without instructing them to start mayhem?

“In Coppelius’s Toy Shop”
A creepy story in which a self-absorbed man gets exactly what he deserves.

“Adaptation”
A man working at a bookstore gets his own adaptation of “A Christmas Carol.” Funny and thought-provoking of how the clasic story might look in our own day and age.

“deck.halls@boughs/holly”
What might our crazy Christmas decorations look like if we allowed people with computer programs to do it all for us? Linny works as one of those folks and decorates your house to your specifications. Because it’s all online, she doesn’t get out much to meet folks, but when a Mrs. Shields hires her she starts seeing an awful lot of the nephew...

“Cat’s Paw”
Not exactly Christmas-y but a classic mystery story with a Christmas setting. Touffet and his chronicler Bridlings go to a manor house where Lady Charlotte has them meet her intelligent primates, when her father is murdered.

“Now Showing”
In a future where there are hundreds of movie options and going to the movies is a whole day affair complete with remakes, sequels, shops & restaurants based on movie themes, Lindsay finds that her ex Jack Weaver didn’t really leave her in the lurch but is doing significant work showing that some of the movies simply don’t exist. Hijinks (and possibly true love with a scoundrel) ensue, chockablock full with movie references both Christmas-y and not (of which I actually got several).

“Newsletter”
In a family where the holiday newsletters are practically a competition, Nan Johnson has nothing to say. But when aliens appear to be taking over family and friends – all of them wearing hats and behaving most unusually nice to each other – she might just have something to share after all.

“Epiphany”
A reverend goes on a road trip with a gut feeling that the Second Coming is actually here. By turns funny and thought-provoking, challenging you to think about the ways in which the story of a baby in a manger didn’t really fit what anyone was looking for based on prophecy either. Also had my favorite line of the bunch: “He was a Presbyterian, not a Pentecostal. He did not have visions.”

“Just Like the Ones We Used to Know”
My least favorite of the collection. A snowstorm starts and encompasses all of the U.S. and a lot of places that it really shouldn’t be a white Christmas. Did global warming cause a superstorm? Or is it something else entirely?

Verdict: Overall, I really enjoyed this short story collection but as I would only reread some of them, I give it four stars. show less

A Lot Like Christmas is an updated and expanded version of Connie Willis's Miracle, a collection of her Christmas-themed fantasy and SF stories. None of the stories are original to this collection, though five of them are new additions since the 2000 publication of Miracle.

The stories are all delightful, but you do notice some similarities when you read them all in one batch. Willis is fond in her holiday stories of throwing together a pair of co-workers or acquaintances who realize, after a lot of zippy screwball-esque banter, that they are meant to be together. (The words, "Why, Miss Jones, you're beautiful!" don't actually appear anywhere, but they might as well.)

Nearly half of these stories are of that type, but the story details show more are different enough to keep you going despite the repetition. "Newsletter" mixes Christmas with Invasion of the Body Snatchers; "deck.halls@boughs/holly" imagines the future of party planning; "Now Showing" turns a trip to the multiplex into a spy caper. Best of this bunch, and for me the best story in the book, is "All Seated on the Ground," a story about choral singing and xenolinguistics.

Willis's stories borrow elements from Sherlock Holmes ("Cat's Paw"), The Twilight Zone ("In Coppelius's Toyshop"), and All About Eve ("All About Emily"). We're warned that a white Christmas isn't always all it's cracked up to be ("Just Like the Ones We Used To Know") and paid a visit from a very un-Dickensian Spirit of Christmas Present ("Miracle").

These are lovely bagatelles, and only the Grinchiest reader could fail to be amused. show less

Connie Willis is really good at short stories, fascinated by Christmas, and clever at finding new ways of seeing that holiday and using it in fiction. I’ve read a number of these stories in other collections already, but I think I enjoyed those only slightly less for all that, and the newer pieces? Fun and thought-provoking. Some good social critique throughout too—a woman who smuggles Joseph and Mary into her church when the paster wants to call the homeless shelter, the aliens who make contact and then don’t respond to anything until they’re taken Christmas shopping, the madness of the holiday Christmas party, the girl who really wants to see the holiday heist film. I didn’t even have that Thing where every short story show more collection has a dud or two!

But … I’m also growing very aware that Willis has, like, one plot. The narrator always dithers or is confronted with mildly random, zany roadblocks that make them go almost in circles, there’s often a hyper-awareness of something like Christmas carols or classic Hollywood cinema, and everything turns out all right in the end almost despite itself. Don’t get me wrong, Willis is very good at that plot and equally good at making it different every time but … I wish she’d mix it up a little more, y’know?

Still, if you want funny, mildly science fictional stories appropriate to the season, you won’t go wrong with these at all.

Warnings: … nope? But it’s pretty White and straight.

7/10 show less

I've always been a big fan of Connie Willis and so I couldn't really find any fault in reading an actual Christmas story (or stories) EVEN on XMAS if it was coming from her. Sometimes you've simply got to pick your battles, and Connie Willis is like the John Mclaine of Xmas Stories.

I'm not saying she strangles Xmas with a chain or uses wildly inappropriate western sayings. I mean, she could, I'm sure, but that isn't what happens here. She might get a bit angry at It's a Wonderful Life, however, so all these lines do blur.

:)

I suppose the one thing I love most about these is how Connie Willis's storytelling skill is nearly perfect no matter the sub-genre she twists it. I mean, these Xmas stories are all genuinely uplifting while avoiding show more sentimentality, very critical and humorous in equal amounts, and a great number of them are filled with the dead or futuristic worlds or even a murder mystery involving apes.

Yes, apes. Merry Xmas!

Above all, every one of these stories is easy as hell to read, are down-to-earth, full of fantastic human consequences, and is full to the brim with humor. I won't say that any of them are knock-down brilliant... but in terms of reading a master storyteller who knows her craft and has well-researched probably EVERYTHING about Xmas from stories to movies to poetry from a lifelong obsession, she can't be beat. She covers all the angles, from dark revenge stories to romantic comedies to murder mysteries to time and space traveling Aramaic-speakers to aliens in a hunt for JUST THE RIGHT GREETING to a VERY white Xmas.

And I have to agree with her. It's a Wonderful Life is FLAWED as hell. :)

I never read the other collection of Xmas stories, which might be a blessing in disguise. Even so, there are five new ones in this book. Either way, it doesn't really matter. I can read her stuff all day long. :)

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC! show less

I don’t make a habit of reading Christmas stuff around Christmas, but there was so much of it in my feed during December that I started to have second thoughts. And then I happened to see this Connie Willis collection… (Also, there was a spaceship ornament on the Christmas tree on the cover. It was the last straw ;) ).

Which one is the best Christmas story? In the introduction, Connie Willis tells you that it is the very first one ;) I liked that.

“Miracle”
All the deities help us, it’s time for the office Christmas party! Luckily, Christmas spirits intervene and everything works out in the end. I was delighted. 4.3 stars.

“All About Emily”
Broadway, All About Eve and androids. What a mess this one is – a cool, humane, and show more very touching one. 4.2 stars.

“Inn”
Strange things begin to happen during a Christmas pageant rehearsal. Awww. I felt that the author could have done more with the idea, maybe? Still, it’s awww. 4.0 stars.

“All Seated on the Ground”
Three stories down, and I was getting worried. Where were my sci-fi Christmas stories? Phew, there were the aliens, there was First Contact. There were Christmas songs, lots of them. And rules of civilised behaviour. And men not listening to women done very well. Meg and Colin are adorable! 4.5 stars.

“In Coppelius’ Toyshop”
Oh, a horror Christmas story about getting stuck in a toy store! Cool. The MC had it coming, too. 4.0 stars.

“Adaptation”
Inspired by A Christmas Carol. What a lovely ending! 4.5 stars.

“deck.halls@boughs/holly”
Let a professional do your Christmas! Sweet and very silly. 4.8 stars.

“Cat’s Paw”
The author has fun with classic mystery novels and country house Christmas. Nothing special, 3.6 stars.

“Now Showing”
Do you hate multiplexes? I hate multiplexes. This is a fever dream story of trying to see a movie. I liked the twist! 4.4 stars.

“Newsletter”
It’s almost Christmas! Everyone is so nice, considerate, and reasonable… suspiciously so. Something’s up! Fun, fun, fun! 4.2 stars.

“Epiphany”
“You stole a Gideon Bible?” Mel said.
“They put them there for people who need them. And I’d say we qualify.”
There is a Second Coming. Maybe. This one just warmed my heart. 4.6 stars.
“Just Like the Ones We Used to Know”
Epic snowstorm! You might want to careful when you wish for a White Christmas… Too many stories in this story, imo, it feels very long. I liked the ones about the wedding and the goose. 3.9 stars. show less

Connie Willis's Christmas stories are little symphonies of dialogue, disorganization, and conflict with the modern world in which optimism triumphs and romance succeeds. Her sadder writing is often incredibly powerful because she knows how to grab your heart and squeeze, but I prefer her comic work for the same reason. This is a delightful anthology with many original ideas, and the one that sticks with me best is the one about the visiting aliens who disapprove.

This collection of festive short stories is, by and large, a pleasure to read. While I enjoyed some stories more than others, as one does with nearly any short story collection, all in all I was amused and occasionally touched by the tales Willis spins here. I enjoyed "Epiphany" least, but it's harder to choose a favorite -- "Just Like the Ones We Used to Know" or "All Seated on the Ground" or "deck.halls@boughs/holly" are all contenders. If you're looking for some pleasant reads, not too schmaltzy, not too grim, to boost that holiday spirit, pick up this book.