The Christmas List of Richard Lindsay

Based on a true story of a boy who helps bring Christmas to his family despite the hard times of the early 1930s.

Young Richard wonders if Christmas will come this year. Money was tight for most families during the Great Depression, and the Lindsay family was well-acquainted with hardship. When Richard asks his widowed mother about Christmas, she reassures him that their family has everything they need. Without a Christmas turkey, they will have the fat red rooster from the chicken coop.

“What about the rest of Christmas?” Richard asks. “Where will that come from?”

His resourceful mother invites him to write down the names of people he loves, and asks, “How could you share Christmas with them?”

Richard has an idea. He has exactly one dollar in coins that he’d saved from neighborhood jobs. He will buy everyone on his list a five- or ten-cent present from the corner store.

With his Christmas list in hand, he chooses a handkerchief for Grandma Emma, a tin of marshmallows for his brother, hair clips for his big sisters, and crayons for little Grace. He finds bookmarks for his teachers and his uncles. He even picks out a red jawbreaker for his best friend, Heber. But what should he buy his mother? On Christmas morning, Richard is excited to see the joy on the face of each person on his list, especially his mother’s.

The beautifully illustrated picture book by award-winning illustrator Dan Burr brings to life this meaningful story about the joy of giving and bringing happiness to the people you love at Christmastime.