The Twelve Terrors of Christmas

Here’s one on my wish list: The Twelve Terrors of Christmas, written by John Updike and illustrated by Edward Gorey.

On Amazon: The Twelve Terrors of Christmas
Scans found in this Flickr set


11 responses to “The Twelve Terrors of Christmas”

  1. Have you ever heard of Grýla? She appears in Icelandic folk lore. She is said to come from the mountains at Christmas time in search of naughty children. Her 13 children, called the yule lads, come to town during the last 13 nights before Christmas, each staying for two weeks before departing. They are naughty as well. There’s pot-licker, who steals left overs from pots, and door slammer, who slams doors in the night. Very interesting story.
    I like this approach of getting your kids to behave instead of saying “Santa is watching”. This legend says “if you’re bad, Grýla will come down from the mountain and eat you up in a stew!”. Parenting win. I’m dying to get my hands on the figurines!!

  2. OMG I’m putting this book on my wish list too! Great find. I’d love to display it, spread open to one of the “terrors” (though it’d be hard to choose which!), as a holiday decoration…

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