Project Gutenberg 2007-01-27 Public domain in the USA. 125 Stretton, Hesba 1832 1911 Smith, Sarah Street, Kate, active 1880-1902 Street, K. (Kate) The Christmas Child Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Janet Blenkinship and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "The Christmas Child" by Hesba Stretton is a sentimental novel written in the early 20th century. The story is set against the backdrop of a small farmstead in the Welsh countryside during the time of Christmas, focusing on themes of family, love, and redemption. It tells the tale of a young girl named Joan, an orphan who becomes part of a family and experiences the joys and trials of life, highlighting the significance of kindness and forgiveness during the Christmas season. The narrative follows Joan, who is adopted by her great-aunt Miss Priscilla and befriends her cousin Rhoda. Priscilla, a strict and traditional woman, initially resists Joans's presence but eventually grows to care for her. When Rhoda, driven by her own mistakes and experiences, suddenly leaves, Joan becomes sad and lonely. As Christmas approaches, the young girl wishes to encounter the Christ child in a manger and indeed experiences a transformative moment when she finds a real baby in need of care. This moment brings the family back together, as aunt and niece reconcile to forgive each other, demonstrating the healing power of love and the importance of compassion during the festive season. Ultimately, the book encapsulates the festive spirit through the journey of loss, redemption, and joy. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 84.4 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Christmas stories PZ Text Christmas Category: Novels Category: British Literature 91710 2025-08-08T13:25:29.665409 text/html 87469 2007-01-27T04:44:10 text/html 247335 2025-08-08T13:25:31.849396 application/epub+zip 246852 2025-08-08T13:25:30.084398 application/epub+zip 66806 2025-08-08T13:25:29.857394 application/epub+zip 291293 2025-08-08T13:25:33.409372 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 273697 2025-08-08T13:25:31.610396 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 93926 2022-09-09T14:41:54.170839 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 74396 2025-08-08T13:25:29.462403 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 74291 2007-01-27T04:44:10 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 18787 2025-08-08T13:25:33.550370 application/rdf+xml 14129 2025-08-08T13:25:29.922404 image/jpeg 2635 2025-08-08T13:25:29.891386 image/jpeg 237954 2007-01-27T04:44:10 application/octet-stream application/zip 28254 2007-01-27T04:44:10 application/octet-stream application/zip 250148 2025-08-08T13:25:29.693407 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia