Charles Dickens

While ideas of family are changing, from Charles Dickens to Harry Potter, absent parents endure in children’s literature

While the Victorian author didn’t actually invent Christmas, he did renew – and redefine – its generous spirit

Christmas songs and films are ripe with a festive nostalgia. In this edited extract of her book, Analyzing Christmas in Film: Santa to the Supernatural, Dr Lauren Rosewarne looks at some of the reasons for our hankering for yesteryear, real or