Of Christmas as long, long ago is my new book arriving for the 2025 Christmas season.

Find out what Christmas was like centuries ago.

Sneak preview, it was weird, and spooky, and rowdy.

Kind of gross sometimes.

Find it wherever books are sold in hardcover from Lions Press and audiobook from recorded books. It's Christmas as you've never

seen it before, and it makes a great gift. Hey, it's Brian, back with another pre-season episode

for those of us getting an early start on Christmas of 2025. Although, at this point, is it really even all that early?

Yes, Thanksgiving is still about two weeks away, if you're listening in real time.

And I hope whatever plans you have for that are coming along, including, I hope,

making time for our annual main season kickoff episode on Thanksgiving Day.

But early or not is in the eye of the beholder. And besides,

we are here now, you and me, and our guest today. Thomas Ruiz Smith is a professor of American

literature and culture at the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom. He's also a frequent

guest here on Christmas past and the author of several books on Christmas

history and literature.

His latest is Searching for Santa Claus, an anthology of the poems, stories, and illustrations

that shaped a global icon.

It's here in time for the 2025 Christmas season.

Now, the story behind Santa Claus has its beginnings in the fourth century with the historical

St. Nicholas, but it's a story that we're not finished telling just yet.

With every new year, through books, movies, artwork, and other media, we continue to evolve

this iconic figure.

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