National Network for Equitable Library Service

The Holly Wreath Man is a modern Christmas classic. Originally published as a serial in newspapers, this fantastic Christmas story is now collected in the book. Handmade Christmas wreaths used to be a cottage industry in the United States. City dwellers would order them every year to add a touch of the forest to their holiday decorating. Farmers living hand to mouth would make and sell the wreaths every December in order to afford a Christmas of their own. The trade disappeared in the 1970s due to the increasing popularity of imitation evergreen, minimum wage laws, and new fire codes. The Holly Wreath Man evokes this lost craft along with the lost true meaning of Christmas. The story centers on Jeff Henderson, a frenetic executive who is separated from his wife and  struggling to be a good father to his two children. When his children run away, he ends up back on the holly farm where he spent his childhood with his mother and grandfather. An injury and a subsequent dream transport him back to the days of helping his family and community make holly wreaths. A snowstorm, runaway children, and his past and present relationships—including a troubled one with his own son—all play a part in this moving tale of rediscovering what is truly important in life.