If you're already overwhelmed by Black Friday, CyberMonday and the other commercial manifestations of the Christmas spirit, you'll love "The Dreaded Feast," a compilation of holiday essays. You may have read some of them elsewhere -- they go back to comic genius S.J. Perelman, after all. But they're worth reading again. (Just remember how many times you've seen "A Christmas Story" or "Scrooged,"; my favorites.)

John Waters weighs in with "Why I Love Christmas ," a hilarious take on his personal love-hate relationship with the holiday. He sets you up from the very first words: "Being a traditionalist ..."

Here's an excerpt: "By December I'm deep in Xmas psychosis, and only then do I allow myself the luxury of daydreaming my favorite childhood memory: dashing through the snow, laughing all the way (ha-ha-ha) to Grandma's house to find the fully decorated tree has fallen over and pinned her underneath."

Ho, ho, ho!