Christmas Oranges

by Linda Bethers, Ben Sowards

After being transfered to an orphanage where the director punishes children for disobeying rules they have never been told, Rose looks forward to Christmas, when she will taste her first orange.

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Holiday, Childrens, Fiction, Lds, Historical Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

"She was sure that angels ate oranges in heaven."

I watched the movie of the same title just before Christmas but had to wait until now to get my hands on the book. It was worth the wait! The illustrations are gorgeous, particularly those of people; they were so well-done that the appearance is that of a photo rather than hand-painted artwork. The story has a subdued melancholic tone at times, but there's also a spirit of resilience. It's heartwarming to see the children unite in shared kinship to celebrate small joys and show friendship and love to one another.

"What the children didn't realize until many years later was that the oranges were the best that day because they were sweetened with friendship, kindness, and love."

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heartwarming story! Many thanks to Goodreads member Tina for sharing the link to the YouTube reading of this wonderful Christmas story!

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christmas Oranges is a very short story, but a moving one. Little Rose only knew the orphanage as her only home. The caretaker, Mrs. Hartley, was very loving to all the children. But after an epidemic of the flu, Mrs. Hartley passed on. Now Rose was off to another orphanage that was not as welcoming as the one she had previously been in. She makes a few friends, but silence and daily chores were what welcomed her to this new home.

At Christmas, a generous neighbor donates a box of oranges for the children. But the headmaster, who dislikes noise and children, only lets the children have the oranges on Christmas morning. The oranges are hung on the Christmas tree. The other children had told Rose of this and she was so excited that she had to see for herself. The headmaster had seen what Rose did and did not let her have an orange. She had triple duty as punishment for getting up in the night to look at the tree with the oranges.

No orange for Rose on Christmas morning. The other children decided not to eat their oranges until supper time, only to each save a piece of their orange for Rose, who had never even tasted one.

What a wonderful gift for Rose.

[Shiloah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet story and spectacular illustrations. First read in 2013 when we bought it for the family.

Update 2016: it is one of our yearly favourites.

Update 2017: This book’s illustrations are amazing!! It became a Christmas tradition, we have been reading it every year. (Review by Bella age 10).

Update 2018; a heartwarming read that is a Christmas must!

Update: 2024 This year Courtney (10) was so excited for this book especially. Nicolette (8) was smelling the book. The girls pulled out clementines to eat while we read. Such treasured memories.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Rose is delivered on the steps of an orphanage, no one knows her name or where she came from. Raised under the care of the benevolent Mrs. Hartley, Rose thrives at the orphanage. But when the orphanage is struck with a flu of epidemic proportions, Mrs. Hartley dies and the local village is too poor to keep the orphanage going.

The next day, young Rose is sent to another orphanage out of state. And kind old Mrs. Hartley has been replaced by the mean Mr. Crampton. Yet, when a local rich gentleman donates oranges to the orphanage, Rose has never seen one in her life. Even more, Rose is excited to taste the mysterious citrus on Christmas morning. But Mr. Crampton May have other ideas…

A cute little Christmas story that the kids will love!

[Rebekah Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first looked at this book, the pictures captured my attention right away and I had to sit down and read the whole story. Oh, it was sweet. And yes, I wanted to cry! And I wanted to write a sequel to it. This is a book every story lover should have on their shelf to remind them that Christmas is not about getting, it's about giving.

[JaNeal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! The author is a gifted writer and a dear friend of mine, so some would say that I am biased. This book, however, speaks for itself... it has had one of the longest runs (and I'm sure the longest among Christmas books) with the publisher. It has been re-packaged numerous times and its sales are astounding!

Enough of a commercial endorsement...

The story behind this story is as equally wonderful as the book. I honestly wish everyone could hear it, but I imagine that it is a story that Linda saves for special and appropriate occasions. I just have to say, that the unwritten story is filled with an equal amount of generosity and heart. I honestly believe that this spirit is carried between the lines of the book.

Please read Christmas Oranges and share it with someone else. It is a story that is relevant and rich in meaning. It is a poignant reminder of the true gifts of Christmas--friendship, gifts of the heart, and sacrifice. Though it is not directly contained in the storyline (for obvious reasons), these gifts point to the one who is the center of Christmas... a Babe born in Bethlehem who loved and sacrificed all for His friends.

Well done, Linda!

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a limit to how many "orphan" stories I can handle at Christmastime--but this one is so beautifully illustrated and the ending so sweet that it almost got 5 stars. This one will be an annual read for us.

[Faithann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this story did a good job of trying to teach children that Chirstmas isn't about what you get, but what you give to others. I enjoyed the story, and thought the artwork by Ben Sowards was wonderful.

[Cheryal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me feel so much love for spirit of Christmas. It takes place in an orphanage. It reminds me that kindness and thoughtfulness are the best gifts to give at Christmas. It also taught me why there was always an orange at the bottom of my stocking.

[Amy Gray Rawlinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aubrey’s favorite Christmas book and a good excuse to buy a chocolate orange to eat as you read

[Savannah Stripling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great sweet little book about a girl named Rose. She started out living in an orphanage with the nicest most loving house mom, Mrs. Hartley. She loved all the children in the orphanage. But one day she came down with the flu and died. This left Rose in a position where she had to leave the orphanage and go to a different one. She made lots of new sweet friends at the new orphanage but the new house mom was cruel and wanted no fun, laughter, or noise.. only chores. Then when it came christmas time, one of their neighbors had donated a box of oranges to the children at the orphanage for Christmas. But The evil house mom wouldn't let them have the oranges until christmas day so the oranges were hung up on the tree the night before. Rose got so excited about seeing the oranges that she snuck in the night before christmas to see the tree... but she got caught. Since she got caught, she was no longer aloud to have her orange on Christmas morning. And on top of not getting the orange, the house mom gave her triple duties. Rose had never tasted an orange in her life. So the kids in the orphanage all decided to save a piece of their orange for dinner time so that Rose could have her own. She was so happy.

This is a great Christmas book to have in classrooms because it shows the life of an orphan and what we take for granted. It also shows how friendship can go a really long way. This is such a sweet book about friendship and christmas spirit and love.

[Deborah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful story has left me unable to stop crying . My own precious mama always placed an orange in our stockings and it was treasured, just as the orphans treasured theirs. Just thinking about it , I can hear my mother's wild and infectious laughter! How lucky I was to have her, my grandmother and my grandfather! As I sit and ponder about this very touching story, I think about my own biological father. He, like Rose, was raised in an orphanage. An orphanage, unfortunately, that I know very little about, somewhere in Pennsylvania. Sadly, we are often unaware of the many ingredients that go into creating who we are, sometimes leaving us a tad bitter, too harsh or just needing a little bit more of this or that. Sometimes we can never measure up to what people want us to be. True joy comes from loving people for who they are , which Rose seemed to be able to do, no matter the circumstance. This book may very well be the impetus for my own journey.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The narrator of my tape, has a very nice sweet voice. She tells the story of a baby left outside at an orpahage. The baby was named Rose, and she was much loved by Mrs. Hartley. There were 30 children, who all loved each other as brother's and sister's. Mrs. Hartley died during an epidemic of flu, along with some of the children. The town could not support the children, and sent them to other orphanages. Rose was sent to one that was run by a mean hearted man. A man would give the orphange a box of oranges for Christmas, and a tree would be put up on Christmas Eve. Each of the children were given an orange on Christmas morning, and this was their only Christmas gift. It tells of the wonderful gift the children gave to Rose and to each other. This is a beautiful little book. I also have a copy with lovley illustrations.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book to add to our Christmas reading collection solely for the fact that the title was about Christmas oranges. There is an orange in each of our stockings each year and I hoped this story would give my boys something to think about when they pull out their oranges each Christmas. While it was a longer story, the illustrated version was a blessing as it gave my son something to look at while he was listening. I wasn't sure when we started reading how it was going to turn out, but I'm glad I kept going. I am hoping my son realizes how kids that live in an orphanage may not have many things, they do have each other. It was one that made me glad I read through to the end and can remind my kids that sharing with others is what the holiday season is all about.

[Sara Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christmas Oranges Retold by Linda Bethers


Rose was a little girl who was moved into a new orphanage. One filled with cruelty and anger. She quickly learns the rules. Everything seems bleak except for a promise of a Christmas Orange on Christmas morning. One little girl dream of receiving a Christmas orange changed every child’s heart that Christmas morning.

Linda Bethers did an amazing job retelling the beloved story of the Christmas Oranges.

Review by Sara Fitzgerald
Author of Saving Savanna
sarafitzgerald.com

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is about an orphan girl named Rose is sent to a crueler orphanage. She finds that every Christmas someone donates oranges for the girls at the orphanage. Rose looks forward to the orange and finds that there wasn't one for her on Christmas morning because she got into trouble the night before.

The other girls placed the oranges into their pockets instead of eating them and ended up sneaking upstairs to share pieces of the oranges with each other.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is a fabulouse christmas story that was writen for kids, but even i, a teen loves it. Its about a 8 year old orphan girl, who has a gets moved to this horrible orphanage. Well she makes some friends. And when christmas comes, things go more diffrently than she expected. But i love it. Pluse it has fabulous gourgouse beautiful paintings.

[Isabelle | Nine Tale Vixen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book when my first-grade teacher read it to us, and I was definitely really disappointed when I couldn't remember the title to find it again afterward (which is more than a little funny, looking back on it now, but it was mildly distressing at the time). A really wholesome story; would definitely recommend for kids.

[Tricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A touching story that really reminds us of the meaning of Christmas. Makes a great object lesson for family or church. I love the softness of the illustrations. I cry every time I read this, and usually when I talk about it.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked everything about this book. The illustrations were beautiful, the story was a heartbreaking, yet sweet one. My heart and mind are all the better for reading it. I love a book that is written for a child but transcends easily into an adult pyche.

[Mel Mather · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say other than this is a genuine Christmas classic and you should read it for yourselves? This is a top-notch read for Christians and non-Christians alike. The art is impeccable, too, and being an artist in the works myself, I don't say that lightly.

[Lisa Dodds · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the christmas stories we read with our children every year. 10 days leading up to christmas we read one Christmas story before bed and this is the first one to be read. My kids also request that we eat oranges while we read it. Very lovely christmas story.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This really does help bring out the Christmas spirit - it's the little things that matter most. The biggest gift the kids received that day was probably the feeling they got for helping someone else and seeing their joy. The illustrations are also beautiful.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my very FAVORITE Christmas books.

[Elaine Duree · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the very best stories ever told. Defently creates a tradition in my family forever.

[Dana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my very favorite Christmas stories. I cry every time I read it.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My children like this story. A gift from a friend.

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

An orphan girl tastes her first orange. It is through the giving of other orphans that this is possible.They are so excited to see her experience her first orange.The joy of giving is illustrated.

[Kathy Blose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is powerful and is based on a true story. The art and the storytelling are both awesome. I love this book and it is part of Bethany's library.

Kathy B in Las Vegas