Join the St Mary's Christmas Reading Challenge and When A Child is Born
Read 11 St Mary's Christmas Jump Short Stories before Christmas Day
Who’s up for joining in the St Mary’s Christmas Reading Challenge?
You simply need to read all eleven St Mary’s Christmas short stories and comment as you finish them. All the stories can be found here
Most of the short stories are also available in anthologies and we’ll give you details of those too.
So let’s get festive and reading!
The first story in the challenge is When a Child is Born
We kick off the St Mary's Christmas Reading Challenge with When a Child is Born. This is also available in the anthology The Long and Short of It.
St Mary’s historians set out to observe a crucial moment in history: the coronation of William the Conqueror on Christmas Day, 1066. However, as is often the case with time travel, events take an unexpected turn. Instead of the grandeur of Westminster Abbey, Dr Madeleine “Max” Maxwell and her team find themselves in a humble peasant’s hut, assisting with the birth of a child under mysterious circumstances. As they navigate this unforeseen detour, Max begins to question the true intentions of History and the profound impact of seemingly small actions. This delightful tale weaves together humour, historical intrigue, and the timeless wonder of Christmas.
CLICK HERE to enjoy an extract from When A Child Is Born read by Jodi Taylor
Get ready for this year’s traditional St Mary’s Christmas Day jump…
The stories in the Christmas Reading Challenge are:
We hope you have enjoyed this St Mary’s Christmas story - please leave a comment to show you have read it and are participating in the challenge.
Don't eat the yellow snow -- always a good reminder when push comes to shove.
I'm reading through the Christmas stories (fir the 3rd time A Child is Born both moves me to tears, makes me laugh out loud and then question my understanding [such as it is] of what history I know.
While doing that, I had a hankering for a reread of St. Mary's 0.5, and just read the Promise made to Dr Barstow by the muse of history g it's all I've ever wanted out of life, I've only ever found some of it (and treasured what I've found) - so here it is:
‘You will surround yourself with bright and brilliant people. The building will echo to the sound of ideas, discussions, and the occasional small explosion. There will be triumph and disaster in equal measure. There will be outstanding bravery and heart-stopping betrayal. There will be love and loss. There will be devotion to duty and to each other. There will be treachery and defeat. There will be tragedy and death. You will lead and inspire and protect. And once they walk through these doors, no one in this unit will ever be alone again.’