At Chanticleer, we love celebrating the holidays!

We love the sparkle, the singing, the presents—and we especially love celebrating the books!

Jolabokaflod, the “Bookish” Holiday

The small Nordic island, with a population of only 329,000 people, is extraordinarily literary. They love to read and write. According to Rosie Goldsmith of the BBC, “The country has more writers, more books published and more books read, per head, than anywhere else in the world.”

Many Icelanders give books as Christmas gifts to celebrate Jolabokaflod, and from Christmas Eve until the New Year there is an unspoken reading frenzy.

Iceland’s National Treasures and High Literacy Rate

• One in ten Icelanders writes a published book (BBC News Magazine)
• Fifty percent of Icelanders read more than eight books a year; 93% read more than one book a year (The Reykjavik Grapevine)
• Reykjavík City Library, the largest public library in Iceland, welcomed 700,000 visitors in 2009 in a city of 200,000 people. Book loans totalled 1.2. million in the same year (Reykjavik UNESCO City of Literature)

— Jolabokaflod.org

And, of course, a book and a hot chocolate is a beloved holiday tradition for people around the world!

Jolabokaflod: A Christmas Tradition 

Jolabokaflod or Yule Book Flood happens once a year on Christmas Eve in Iceland. The flood begins with the release of a catalog of new publications from the Icelandic Publishers Association. And it is distributed FREE to each and every Icelandic home. The majority of books sold in Iceland are sold from September to early November, and of course, these books are in print. E-pubs are not given. This tradition of Jolabokaflod started in 1944 during WWII when many items and food were rationed to preserve the giving tradition of the holidays.

The Icelanders even have a popular TV show, Kiljan, that is entirely devoted to books. Authors appear on prime TV shows. Book readings and author events are treated like rock star events. 

“In Iceland book lives matter in every sense of that phrase: The shelf-life of the book, the lives in the book, the life of the writer and the life of the reader. God bless the Jolabokaflod.” ~Hallgrimur Helgason

How can you make Jolabokaflod a Christmas Eve tradition?

Christmas is such a busy time, and you may think, “I don’t have time for one more tradition!” Don’t worry—You’ve got an extra 12 days!

Design your Jolabokaflod tradition to fit your schedule. You can choose a different night to celebrate with a new book and hot chocolate! We like to crack open the spine of a new book during the 12 days of Christmas that follow Christmas day, giving us a reason to keep that holiday spirit alive until well into the New Year!

A Book You Love is The Perfect Gift for Jolabokaflod!

The Twelve Days of Christmas & Other Traditions From Around the World

Every year Jolabokaflod heralds the 12 Days of Christmas for us here at Chanticleer, where we love to celebrate for an extra twelve days after December 25th! Here’s what you might need to know:

• The twelve days of Christmas run from December 26th until January 6th (Three Kings Day).
• Some say the Twelve Days tradition is wishing good luck and cheer for each of the following months in the new year.
• Others say the first six of the days are to pay homage to the previous year and six of the days that are in the new year bringing hope and glad tidings for coming times.
• The Twelve Days of Christmas would be a welcome break for those who worked the land.

New traditions are beginning this year!

In Portugal, Kiffer and Andy’s new home, the 12 Days of Christmas is a tradition that starts on the 26th until Epiphany. Small groups of people go door to door in their neighborhoods singing songs, usually accompanied by instruments. Sometimes they are in traditional dress, sometimes not. They typically open with a song to ask the resident for food and/or drink, then continue singing about the birth of Jesus and sending good wishes for a happy new year. If a resident doesn’t treat the singers well or refuses to open his door, they may sing songs jokingly mocking them. If the singers are treated well, they will sing about how handsome and beautiful the hosts are and how generous and nice they are. (A great way to start the New Year!)

The Portuguese troubadouring does not take place until after Christmas Day and continues on to Three Kings Day also known as Epiphany.

We’d love to hear about your Yuletide Traditions! 

Le Réveillon is our family’s (Kiffer & Argus) Christmas Tradition where we stay up on Christmas Eve way past midnight for the arrival of Père Noël” (Santa Claus) with a Christmas Eve Dinner that consists of a pretty table and multi-course, fancy meal that we share with friends and family. It’s always a good time with many precious moments to always remember throughout the years.

The true gift of the holiday season!

As always, there is much to do, but I have given myself permission not to worry about the cookies that need to be made, the presents that must be wrapped, and calling on friends and family dear to my heart to wish them Happy Holidays. These are all traditions I treasure, and Jolabokaflod is one more tradition I’m happy to add to that mix! – Kiffer

Leave a comment! We would love to hear about your holiday traditions! 

Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays and Yuletide Greetings from the team at
Chanticleer Book Reviews!

From Kiffer, Andy, David, Dena, Scott, Anya

We will start posting our Twelve Days of Christmas articles starting on December 26th.