Book Advent Calendar: How to Make One, With 24 Picture Books to Fill It

What is a book advent calendar?

A book advent calendar is a countdown to Christmas made of books: 24 of them, usually one wrapped for each day from December 1 through Christmas Eve, opened and read on the day. It takes the paper-door idea of an ordinary advent calendar and swaps the chocolate for a story. It is sometimes called 24 books of Christmas, or a Christmas book countdown, and it is the same thing under each name.

What makes it work is the ritual more than the books. The child gets something to unwrap, the evening gets a fixed point, and the reading becomes the event instead of the thing that comes before bed. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages parents to read aloud with young children, and the same guidance describes shared reading as building relationships, language and early literacy. A calendar is a way of making that happen on 24 evenings in a row.

What it is not: it does not have to be all Christmas books, it does not have to be new, and it does not have to be 24. We cover each of those below.

How do you make a DIY book advent calendar, step by step?

You make a DIY book advent calendar in six steps: decide the number of books, choose them, wrap each one, number them, find a place to display them, and decide a time of day to open one. The whole job takes an afternoon, and the only part that takes real thought is the choosing.

1. Count the days. Twenty-four covers December 1 to Christmas Eve. If you start late, wrap one book per remaining day and begin on whatever number matches the date.
2. Choose the books. Mix three sources (new, library, your own shelf), and put the books in rough order: calm ones for school nights, longer ones for weekends, the best for day 24. The next section covers the mix.
3. Wrap them plainly. Brown kraft paper and twine, or any paper you have, will do. A book is hard to disguise, so some families wrap it in two layers or add a small flat object to throw off the guessing. Do not worry about neat corners.
4. Number them. Write the day on a tag, a strip of masking tape or the corner of the paper. Pin or tape the number where a child can read it, since a calendar that cannot be followed is just a pile.
5. Display them. A basket, a shelf, a length of string with clothespins, the mantel or a bench by the tree. Keep unopened books in order so the child can find today's.
6. Pick the moment. Choose one time and keep it, most often just before bed or right after dinner. A fixed time is what turns 24 books into a habit.

If you want the opening to feel like more, add a small card to each day with one question, such as "Who is your favorite character so far?" A card takes a minute to write and gives a reluctant listener something to answer.

Where do the 24 books come from: new, library or already on your shelf?

The 24 books can come from three places: new books you buy, books borrowed from the library, and books you already own. Most families who make a calendar mix all three, and the mix is what keeps the cost under control. Here is who each source is best for:

• Best for the days you want to look forward to: new books. Buy a few, three to six, and keep them for the special days: the weekends, day 12 and the last week.
• Best for the big middle: library books. Borrowing is free, and the library often has several Christmas titles you cannot buy easily. Check the due dates, since a library book borrowed on November 20 often needs to be returned before December 24, and ask if you can renew it.
• Best for a child who loves repeats: books you already own. This is the most underrated source. Pull out last year's favorites, the books with the soft spines, and wrap them again. A 2011 University of Sussex study of three year olds found that children who heard the same story again and again remembered its new words better after a week than children who heard three different stories with the same words. It taught only two invented words in a short span, so take it as a nudge. The practical point is that an old favorite wrapped in paper is still a good gift.

A reasonable split for a first year is about 6 new, 10 from the library and 8 from your own shelf. Whatever the mix, hold back at least one book you know they will love for the last day, because the end of a calendar is where interest is highest.

If you would like a longer list to choose from before you start, the Christmas books guide sorts 26 books by age, and it has more to choose from for the youngest as well.

How much does a book advent calendar cost, and how do you do it on a budget?

A book advent calendar costs whatever you choose, from nothing to a real sum, because the cost is the number of books you buy new. A free version is possible: borrow 12 from the library and wrap 12 you already own. We do not quote prices here, since shop prices change week to week and you will see the current ones where you buy.

Two money-saving habits help. Choose paperbacks and board books for the weekday slots, and spend on the books you will want to keep. And a calendar can stand in for a pile of small presents: if relatives ask what to give, a book for a day on the calendar is an easy answer. Our guide to non toy gifts for kids covers how to ask for that without hurting anyone.

What ages is a book advent calendar for, from 2 to 10?

A book advent calendar works from about age 2 to age 10, but the books change a lot with the child. Younger children need short books and an easy daily ritual, while older children can take a longer story across several days. Here is a place to start:

• Best for ages 2 to 3. Board books and very short picture books that you can finish in five minutes. Wrap ones with flaps or repeating lines. It is fine to repeat a favorite on two days.
• Best for ages 4 to 6. The core audience for picture books. A story with a turn in the middle holds a four year old, and the unwrapping is half the fun. Best books for 3 and 4 year olds goes into what changes between them.
• Best for ages 7 to 10. Mix a few picture books with a chapter book. Wrap one chapter book and read one chapter a night, which takes up several of the 24 days. Or let the child read the day's book to a younger sibling.
• Best for two children of different ages. Choose books both enjoy for most days, and give each child one wrapped book to read to the other on weekends.

Do not worry if a book is below the child's reading level. Reading aloud lets them hear language they cannot yet read, and picture books reward a second reading by an older child more than most people expect. The ages printed by publishers are a guide, not a limit.

To see a child in the story rather than just reading about one, see them drawn from one photo before deciding anything. The preview is free and takes about half a minute.

How do you wrap and display the books so the countdown stays fun?

Wrap the books so the child can tell which is today's but cannot guess the title, and display them where they can see the countdown. The easiest design is a row on a shelf or mantel in order, with a number on each. A few small choices make a large difference.

• Hide the shape. A book is hard to disguise. Wrap in two layers, wrap it around a second flat item, or use a paper bag tied with string. Use the same paper for all of them so no one book looks special by accident.
• Number clearly. Write numbers big enough to read from across the room. A child can then fetch the right one without asking.
• Keep a spare. Hold one wrapped book aside for the evening you are late or the child is sick, so the countdown does not fall behind. When you are away, bring the week's books along.
• Let the child open it. Unwrapping is half the pleasure. If you have a very small child, let them tear the paper off at the end, not the beginning.
• Add their name. A tag with the child's name on each parcel makes the whole row theirs. If you want to inscribe the book for day 24, see what to write in a book for a child.

Book advent calendar ideas, week 1 (Dec 1 to 6): quiet winter, nothing about Christmas yet

For the first six days, choose quiet winter books that set the mood without being about Christmas: snow, night, animals and the cold outside. They are calm enough for a school night, and they keep the Christmas books for later in the month so that the countdown builds. The years and authors below were checked on publisher, library catalog or Kirkus Reviews pages in November 2026.

Book advent calendar ideas, week 2 (Dec 7 to 12): funny and lively

In week two, move to funny, lively books, the ones that get a laugh or something to hold. This is when a child starts to look forward to the evening, and the Christmas theme starts to arrive. Save the ones with pieces to take out or a longer story for a night when there is time.

Book advent calendar ideas, week 3 (Dec 13 to 18): getting ready for the day

Week three is about getting ready, and the books can match what is happening in your house: the tree, the cookies, the first big snow. This is also a good week for a true story and one about a snow day. A cozy book here can calm a child who is overexcited. If you want one of them to star your own child, see how a personalized book looks with the free preview.

Notice that only some of these are Christmas books. A calendar can include winter books all month, and doing so makes it easier to fill if you do not celebrate Christmas.

Book advent calendar ideas, week 4 (Dec 19 to 24): other celebrations and Christmas Eve

The last week is for the books that carry the most weight: stories about other traditions, a story with a part to play, and a quiet one for Christmas Eve. If your family celebrates only one holiday, keep the others as books about friends. If you do not celebrate Christmas, replace day 24 with the book you most want to read that night.

Day 24 is the one to keep for the book you most want them to remember. If the Nativity story is not yours, put in a book from our Christmas Eve book ideas or the special book described in the section on day 24 below.

What are the variations: 12 days, one book a week, or a Christmas Eve book?

You can shrink a book advent calendar to 12 books, one book a week, or a single book on Christmas Eve, and each variation keeps the idea that the reading is the event. Pick the one that fits the year you are having. Here is who each is for:

The Christmas Eve book has a famous cousin. Jólabókaflóð means the Christmas book flood, and it is a publishing season in Iceland: the wave of new books released before Christmas. In 2012 the head of the Icelandic Publishers Association told NPR that people spend Christmas Eve reading, and the editor of Iceland Review told Smithsonian Magazine in 2022 that the image of everyone reading in bed all night has a grain of truth but is more complicated than that. For the full story and how to borrow it with small children, see our Christmas Eve traditions guide.

How do you make day 24 special, with a book where the child is drawn in?

The simplest way to make day 24 special is to wrap a book that was made for your child: one where they are drawn into the story from a photo, with their name in the words and a dedication you write. Dreamtale Cartoons, a small studio that has drawn about ten thousand families since 2020, makes The Last Present, a personalized Christmas book for ages 3 to 10. It is one idea among many for the last day, and it suits some children better than others.

What it is: the story is ours and the same for every family who picks that title. On Christmas Eve a hedgehog in mittens taps at the window, because one present on the sleigh has no name on it. Your child searches the sleeping town and finds that it belongs to whoever stayed up wrapping everyone else's. The child writes the name on the label themselves, and the book stops there. It is written in rhyme across thirteen spreads, and what is personal is your child's face on every spread, their name in the words, and the dedication.

Timing is the honest limit. A book that is made for your child is printed after you order it, and the book page and the cart show the real delivery dates before you pay. For Christmas in the United States, the shipping page says to order by December 1, so it only makes sense for a calendar if you decide in the next few weeks. After that date, a library book on day 24 is the better plan.

It does not suit a child under about three, where a photo book of the people they know does the job better, or a child who dislikes being the center of attention. If it fits, start with the free preview: it takes about half a minute, with no card and no account, and you can decide after you see it. Our guide to personalized books for kids explains how this kind of book differs from a name printed into a generic story.

What if you miss a day, or the child wants to read two?

If you miss a day, read two the next evening, or use the spare book you kept back, and carry on. A book advent calendar is a tradition, not a test, and the aim is for the evenings to feel easy.

• The child wants two books tonight. Say yes sometimes, and say "tomorrow's is waiting" other nights. A child who asks for more is the best sign the calendar works.
• The child is sick or away. Take the next few books along, or skip the unwrapping and read from the pile.
• The child does not like a book. Read it anyway, once, and let them pick the next. You can swap a book out the night before without telling them.
• A late night. Read a single page, or the title and the last page, and keep the rest for the weekend.

When the calendar is over, keep the wrapped paper for next year, and write the year inside each book you bought. The books you own become next year's cheapest source. For what to do on the morning itself, our Christmas morning traditions guide picks up where the calendar leaves off.