{"product_id":"christmas-in-a-jugular-vein-paperback","title":"Christmas in a Jugular Vein - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eDavid Benjamin\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAuthor David Benjamin has always been fascinated by Christmas--and by Christmas stories, starting with the Book of Luke. But the holiday tale that tickled Benjamin's literary fancy was Charles Dickens' \"A Christmas Carol,\" a story which, Benjamin believes, opened the door to countless variations on holiday themes, from Scrooge to Kris Kringle to the Grinch and beyond.\u003c\/p\u003e\"Beyond\" is where Benjamin began to venture with his first Christmas story, \"The Little Red Dot,\" written when he was sixteen and published (in a slightly censored form) in his high-school newspaper's holiday edition. Since then, said Benjamin, \"I've tried to compose a new Christmas story every year. During my tenure as editor of the \u003ci\u003eMansfield \u003c\/i\u003e(Mass.) \u003ci\u003eNews, \u003c\/i\u003e I contrived to fill our fat holiday issue with Christmas stories written by kids in every grade of the Mansfield schools. The results were a joy to the world.\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChristmas in a Jugular Vein\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e compiles 38 of Benjamin's wildly variant and slightly transgressive holiday tales and poems. Among the contents of this sometimes startling, often humorous and occasionally poignant anthology: \u003cbr\u003e- Eight dramas set in Bethlehem on or around 25 December 0000 AD, with all the familiar players and a few surprises, including a fat old man in a red suit, the \"Fourth King\" and the \"Fourth Ghost,\" a Roman centurion named Marcus Suspicius, a skeptical shepherd and a pushy but prescient yuletide impresario named Izzy Glick- An email from the Parkers, who've been imprisoned through Christmas in their \"smart home\" and its electronic system, the Acme \"Total Home Interactive Networking Grid\" (THING)- Parodies and take-offs after the style of Dickens (of course), Clement Moore, Lewis Carroll (\"Santawocky\") and Robert Service- The further adventures of Murray Lefkowitz, the drunk Santa kicked out of the Macy's Thanksgiving parade by Maureen O'Hara in \u003ci\u003eMiracle on 34th Street\u003c\/i\u003e- The holiday depredations of George the cat- Several of Benjamin's personal essays about the joys and miseries of Christmas- And hey, what's Christmas without a zombie or two--or lots of 'em?\u003cbr\u003eNick Chiarkas, author of the award-winning novel \u003ci\u003eNunzio's Way\u003c\/i\u003e, said, \"This is a captivating, often irreverent, peek into the heart and creative mind of a master storyteller. Benjamin had me hooked with the first story, 'The Little Red Dot.' I continued turning pages to the end of the collection, chuckling at times and gasping occasionally.\"A chuckle, a gasp, but always entertained. The author's clever insights are woven throughout the collection. You will not want to stop reading \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChristmas in a Jugular Vein \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003euntil the very end, and then, you will return to it from time to time.\"--David Benjamin\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 218\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.61 x 8 x 5.08 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e December 10, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52616546189594,"sku":"9798991716901","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1005\/5604\/6618\/files\/7iLbspLEBL9798991716901.webp?v=1785461188","url":"https:\/\/j-s-five-and-dime.myshopify.com\/products\/christmas-in-a-jugular-vein-paperback","provider":"J \u0026 S Five and Dime","version":"1.0","type":"link"}