It may not quite be Christmas season yet, but it is Hallmark Christmas movie season. This year they have a whopping 41 movies across their flagship and mystery chanels, and watching their cheesey, nostalgia heavy movies is a bit of a love/hate exercise for some, a must-do tradition for others. To get you through this season, whether you love the movies or hate them, or even love to hate them… You need I’ll Be Home For Christmas Movies.

I’ll Be Home For Christmas Movies is a hilarious guide to over one hundred (approx) of these films, and is written by three friends, one of whom loves these films, one who likes them fine, and one who hates them. The book is hilariously funny, I was giggling to myself as I read it, and it’s pretty useful too. Want to know which ones are so bad they’re good? Want to know which film is going to hit you in the feels? Want to avoid the dumpster fire ones that are just a grind to watch? You need this book.

The authors of the book are three friends and they really know their Hallmark. They’re the guys from the Deck The Hallmark podcast, which covers all the Christmas content that Hallmark puts out each year (good luck this year, boys, with 41 movies!) and I really like that this book captures their warm tone, distinct voices and playful banter. I hadn’t listened to the podcast before reading this book, you don’t need to be a fan of the podcast to get this book. But after reading it, I’ve listened to a bunch of episodes and I highly recommend it. It’s so funny and warm hearted.

The book has a large central section with a selection of Hallmark movies from different years, and it shares a little about the movies, with pictures and sometimes quotes, it’s very pretty, and it also has their thoughts on the films. These fall under headings that they use on the podcast like the “wait… What?” or what gave them “all the feels”. It works really well. At the back, they have a really funny bingo card, you can play while you watch, and also they have recipes for snacks and hosting tips if you want to watch with friends and family. It’s genius.

• 

• 

I made the Save The Town brownies from the book, and damn. If they don’t save the small town farm/bakery/lodge and have me married off to my childhood sweetheart who I mysteriously lost touch with/new guy who has lost the spirit of Christmas/a crown prince of a very British but not actually British country by January, nothing will! Ha ha!

This book is great. It gets that balance of making fun of the batshit elements of these films while also being kind of loving towards them. Reading it, I felt a bit like I was hanging out with old friends, the kind who make you laugh really hard at dumb things and are just good people. I think this book would be such a great gift idea, either for yourself, (come on, you’ve had a tough year) or for that friend who you watch Hallmark with. But also for the person in your life who hates these movies, because this book will have them cracking up, it gets how bad these movies are.

Read It If: These guys get the Hallmark vibe, and it’s just right. Love it. Whether you’re a fan of the movies or hate them, this book will make you laugh and make you want to try out the bingo card and the recipes in the back.

Thank you to HBG Canada for the copy of this book for review.