Much of the book contains stories or anecdotes that have already been used in some of the author’s other books, somewhat embellished, and few of them were memorable enough for me to have remembered them. The only one that felt familiar was the opening story about a hapless Vicar trying to tell the nativity story to a class of small and enthusiastic children. The punch-line is unfortunately foreshadowed in the title of the book, but it was still a pleasant read.

Other stories, each one only a few pages long, detail events in the Christmas period, or describe classroom nativity plays, where mistakes, misunderstandings and general cuteness feature prominently. I was mildly amused, and appreciated the glimpses into environments which are mostly unfamiliar to me.

It's a quick read; at less than 150 pages I completed it in about an hour, and it fulfilled my requirement of being light and entertaining.

Recommended in a low-key way if you can pick it up inexpensively, and like reading anecdotes about small children at Christmas. ( )

A quick and easy read with some sweet anecdotes. Perfect for our Christmas book, I read it in one evening. ( )