In this special Christmas episode, historian Melissa Prinz from Maastricht University Special Collections, talks about a The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore. The 1931 edition of the book is illustrated by Arthur Rackham. Melissa highlights the timeless appeal of this poem, which has shaped our modern image of Christmas.

Moore, living in 1820s New York, combined European traditions and several religious traditions, creating the idea of St Nicholas as a holly, jolly, fat man who brings joy and presents to children on Christmas Eve.

Melissa reads passages from this historic edition, bringing to life Rackham’s intricate illustrations. She explains how this poem resonated with the rising middle classes of the 19th century, fostering enthusiasm for Christmas through children’s books, holiday traditions, and even the greeting card industry. Remarkably, it also helped new immigrant families in the U.S. adopt Christmas as a shared cultural celebration, blending secular and festive elements.

Watch the video:

Retrieve the book

Do you want to explore the book? Find the print version at the Inner City Library, or discover the book digitally.

The series

In the series Talking about books, enthusiastic readers and authors promote their favourite book. Watch the video’s in this series and discover books you did not yet know of. Every 6 to 8 weeks, a new video will be uploaded to the UM Library YouTube channel.

Are you a student, staff member, teacher or researcher at UM and do you want to talk about your favourite book in the UM Library collection? Or do you know someone from the UM community who would like to contribute to the series? Let us know!