Who it's for
Anyone who loves the old carols and wants both the print and the puzzles set well above a typical paperback's type size: for a church group, a quiet December evening, or a gift for a parent or grandparent who still goes to every carol service. No prior puzzle experience is needed; the first puzzles are the gentlest.
Inside the book
- 48 traditional carols, among them "Silent Night," "O Holy Night," "Joy to the World," "O Come, All Ye Faithful," "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing," "In the Bleak Midwinter" and "We Three Kings of Orient Are," printed in seasonal order from Advent to Epiphany.
- One carol, one two-page spread. The left-hand page carries two to four of the carol's traditional verses and a short, sourced story about where it came from; the facing page is a word search built only from that carol's own words.
- 21.5-point grid letters. Reading text, including every story and answer, is 16 point or larger throughout the book, both above the National Library Service's typical large-print range of 16 to 18 point.
- Traditional verses, honestly sourced. Every set of words is drawn from a hymnal or carol book printed before 1931, not from a modern hymnal's updated wording.
- A sourced story for every carol, with any traditional legend clearly marked as a legend rather than a fact.
- Three levels of puzzle. The first sixteen puzzles run words across, down and diagonally down; the middle puzzles add backward directions; the last puzzles add upward diagonals too.
- All 48 answers at the back, two to a page, plus a Notes and Sources page and a "My Favorite Carols" page to note the ones you want to sing again.
How to use it
- Read before you solve. Each spread's story is short enough to read in a minute or two, and it is worth reading before you turn to the puzzle, since a few of the puzzle's words come straight from the story.
- Start at the beginning if puzzles are new to you. The earliest puzzles use only the simplest word directions.
- Keep the Notes and Sources page handy if a story surprises you; it names where each fact came from.
- Use the My Favorite Carols page to mark the spreads you want to come back to next December.
New to large-print gift-giving? Our guide to gifts for seniors with low vision explains what "large print" actually means, with real published figures, and walks through this book's own numbers.
How it compares
Large Print Christmas Word Search: The Snowy Village Story is also a large-print Christmas word search book, but its puzzles' hidden messages tell one invented village story, Pine Hollow getting ready for Christmas. This book's puzzles are built from 48 real carols, and its left-hand pages carry true, sourced carol history rather than a story we wrote ourselves. If you want a gentle fictional story to follow, choose the Snowy Village; if you want the real stories behind the carols you already sing, this is the one.
Frequently asked questions
How large is the print, really?
The word search grid letters are 21.5 point. The reading text, including the carol stories and the answers at the back, is 16 point or larger throughout the book. Both are above the National Library Service's typical large-print range of 16 to 18 point, though individual reading needs still vary.
Are the carol words the familiar, modern ones?
They are the traditional words, taken from hymnals and carol books printed before 1931. In a few carols that differs slightly from the version sung in a modern church service; where it does, the difference is a matter of a word or a verse, not the carol itself.
Do I need to know the carols already to enjoy the book?
No. Each spread's story explains where the carol came from before you reach the puzzle, so it works just as well as a first introduction to a carol's history as it does for someone who already knows every verse.
Is it suitable for a group, such as a church or seniors' group?
Yes. The carols are printed in full with their stories, so the book also works as a short reading for a group, with the puzzle as something to do afterward.
How big is the book?
8.5 x 11 inches, 140 pages, printed in black ink on white paper.
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