Twas the Stories That Made Christmas
Taught by David Goodwin
David J. Goodwin is a freelance writer and public speaker and a past Frederick Lewis Allen Room scholar at the New York Public Library. He is the author of Midnight Rambles: H. P. Lovecraft in Gotham, a biography of the horror writer’s New York years. His first book, Left Bank of the Hudson: Jersey City and the Artists of 111 1st Street, received the J. Owen Grundy History Award in 2018. He has written for Gotham: A Blog for Scholars of New York City History, The Metropole, The Providence Journal, Strand Magazine, and Urban Archive.
Location: Prospect Heights Brainery (190 Underhill Ave in Prospect Heights, BK)
The secular customs and traditions of Christmas–beautiful decorations, touching music, bountiful meals, exchanging gifts–provide comfort and cheer on cold winter days. How did literature shape today’s celebrations of the holiday season? How did New York authors contribute to America’s understanding of Christmas?
This conversation will look at writers such as Washington Irving, O. Henry, Christina Rossetti, and (of course!) Charles Dickens and how their stories, novels, and poems continue to enrich our shared Yuletide spirit.
