Essential Books, Movies, and Shows for the Winter Season

The most wonderful time of the year has arrived. While Miami might not get snow, the chilly weather and hot chocolate add to the Christmas appeal. Whether your family has a Christmas tradition already or not, holiday classics include consuming all winter entertainment. Watch and read the classics for nostalgia, or the new. The joy of this month can be absorbed in many media, regardless of preference. However, December isn’t just about Christmas. It is associated with snow and the cozy cold. Good recommendations to kickstart that jolly and seasonal mood are:

Films:

The Polar Express (2004)

A classic that many students remember from elementary school. This movie is about a young boy who doubts Santa’s existence and is taken on an adventure on Christmas Eve on a train called the Polar Express. In this wild journey, he makes new friends and discovers an important lesson about the Christmas spirit.

A Christmas Carol (1843)

Another classic that has been adapted many times, even by the Muppets. While London folks are celebrating the upcoming Christmas, Scrooge berates his nephew and clerk for their joyful display. Later, he meets the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future who show him each to change his bitter hate into welcoming glee.

Rise of the Guardians (2012)

Steering away from classics, this movie is quite underrated but a great watch, despite being a family movie mostly seen by kids. This movie follows the “guardians” of childhood tales. Santa, the easter bunny, the tooth fairy, and the sandman. With the help of Jack Frost, they fight to defeat the boogeyman and restore the hope and imagination of the kids all over the world.

Series:

Gilmore Girls (2000-2007)

A coming-of-age story centered on the girls of the Gilmore family, a single mother and her smart daughter. It follows the conflicts and messy relationships they both endure in a small town. This show touches upon many topics such as class differences, generational gaps, career aspirations, struggles with relationships, and personal growth.

Fargo (2014-2024)

Each season is unconnected from the last and follows a new true crime story. It has a new cast of characters in different midwestern settings. Here, regular people get tangled up in criminal situations that seem like unrelated crimes but end up connecting in shocking ways.

Books:

A Deal of a Lifetime (2017)

This story is about a rich, selfish father finally meeting his estranged son on Christmas Eve. He tells his son his life story and must make a life-changing choice that could be his last. To save a dying little girl by sacrificing his own life. This forces him to confront his egocentric past and the true meaning of legacy and love.

The Bear and the Nightingale (2017)

This book is set in medieval Russia, in a historical fantasy setting. It follows Vasilisa, a fierce girl who can communicate with spirits. At the arrival of a devout priest, he convinces villagers to abandon their pagan traditions to follow orthodox Christianity. With fewer believers, the spirits weaken, which leads to a powerful bear demon rising. Vasilisa gathers help from other spirits to defeat the bear demon.

The Snow Child (2012)

Following a childless couple named Jack and Mable, we see how they struggle with loneliness and past sorrow, all while leading a self-sufficient life in 1920s Alaska. One night, they built a girl from snow that came to life as a wild girl named Faina. This book explores themes of magic, love, and heartbreak through the couple’s journey.

The range of stories, only three of which contain shows, brings the diversity of emotions December brings. These 9 options for books, shows, and movies are only the beginning of the countless stories waiting to be viewed. From true crime to fantasy, any genre can fit in winter depending on the plot built upon it. Let’s not wait to begin getting cozy while reading or watching these amazing stories.