In the 1960s, Random House published a series of pop-up books that were particularly enchanting for those of us just learning to read. My grandparents gave me a copy of Pop Up The Night Before Christmas in 1968, and it remains a beloved tradition in my family that I read it each Christmas Eve, followed by my brother and parents reading their own cherished Christmas stories. It is still a delight for me to read The Night Before Christmas aloud, to pause after “and laying a finger aside of his nose and giving a nod,” then pull the tab that springs Santa up the chimney.

Sourcebooks, Friday Reads, and Shelf Unbound indie book review magazine have launched Books Change Lives (www.sourcebooks.com/readers/books-change-lives.html), which asks readers and authors to name the books that changed their lives. We would love to know what book changed yours, so check out the site and post your entry. Da Capo Press, whose book Bound to Last: 30 Writers On Their Most Cherished Book is featured in the current issue of Shelf Unbound (preview here: www.zinio.com/pages/ShelfUnbound/Dec-10/416146768/pg-58), has kindly agreed to give away five copies of Bound to Last to randomly selected Books Change Lives participants.

Books Change Lives. For me, my Night Before Christmas book continues to make glad the heart of childhood.