The Christmas Coat

By: Kathleen Shoop

Narrated by: Steve Owens

Two days before Christmas, ornery Elliot Ebberts is tasked with school drop-off even though distracted by an important real estate transaction. In the holiday carpool chaos his extravagant, lucky coat goes missing. In a panic, he searches for it, tracing its path as it passes through the hands of good people in dire situations.

Meanwhile, his plan to wow his wife Libby with an ostentatious gift reveals Elliot’s shallowness to the world and mortifies his entire family. Is it too late for him to rediscover the meaning of Christmas, to remember who he is without all the trappings of the job that defines him? Can Libby and their children ever forgive him?"

©2019 Kathleen Shoop (P)2025 Kathleen Shoop

Short and sweet - a nice reflection on the Christmas Spirit.

This short and sweet story is a nice reflection on the Christmas spirit and how to never lose sight of the goodness in you. To remain humble and kind, and to never give up on being good. We may stray often, but we must remember to return back to who we are.

Fantastic Short Story for the Holidays!

At first, this audiobook rubbed me the wrong way. I found the narrator to be very “aggressive” in his tone with the way he read the book, but overtime, I got used to his voice and cadence. He seemed to fit the main character Elliott very well.

Elliott wasn’t very likable to be honest—he was so concerned about how others perceived his jacket (he was really hung up on the fact that it was “not a woman’s jacket”—that got a little old for me. I’m Not a fan of gendering clothes these days).

But as the story kept going, I found that Elliott was really learning the error of his ways, which is why I think this book is a great Holiday tale. It shows improvement within the main character and it gives a sense of holiday magic and cheer!