title: The Night Before Christmas (Penguin Christmas Classics)
author: Nikolai Gogol
description: &#8220;For lit nerds and loved ones who are notoriously hard to shop for, you can&#8217;t go wrong with these festively bound classics. . . . Their size makes them perfectly stocking-stuffable.&#8221; &#8212;<b><i>Entertainment Weekly, </i>&#8220;The Must List&#8221;</b><br>&#160;<br>&#8220;Leave it to the folks at Penguin&#8212;who gave us Gothed-out editions of horror classics for Halloween&#8212;to package these . . . slim Yuletide-themed volumes.&#8221; &#8212;<b><i>Newsday, </i>&#8220;Best Books to Give as Holiday Gifts&#8221;</b><br>&#160;<br>&#8220;Remember how Christmas was celebrated before Black Friday with these 19th-century authors, in small uniform volumes wrapped in pretty jackets.&#8221; &#8212;<b><i>USA Today, </i>&#8220;Holiday Gift Books So Pretty, No Need to Wrap&#8221;</b><br>&#160;<br>&#8220;Beautifully designed.&#8221; &#8212;<b><i>The Washington Post</i></b>
zlib_text: 
  
  
  
  
  
  ![Cover for The Night Before Christmas](image/cover.jpg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  #
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![AD.jpg](image/AD_fmt.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  # THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS
  
  
  
  
  
  ![birdOnBranch.tif](image/birdOnBranch_fmt.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  Written in 1831 by the father of Russian literature, this uproarious tale
  tells of the blacksmith Vakula’s battle with the devil, who has stolen the
  moon and hidden it in his pocket, allowing him to wreak havoc on the village
  of Dikanka. Both the devil and Vakula are in love with Oksana, the most
  beautiful girl in Dikanka. Vakula is determined to win her over; the devil,
  equally determined, unleashes a snowstorm to thwart Vakula’s efforts. Zany and
  mischievous, and drawing inspiration from the folktales of Gogol’s far-flung
  village in Ukraine, _The Night Before Christmas_ is the basis for many movie
  and opera adaptations, and is still read aloud to children on Christmas Eve in
  Ukraine and Russia.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  PENGUIN ![41399.jpg](image/41399.jpg) CLASSICS
  
  
  #