CHRISTMAS’S MOST WANTED: THE TOP 10 BOOK OF KRIS KRINGLES, MERRY JINGLES AND HOLIDAY CHEER, by Kevin Cuddihy and Phillip Metcalfe. Potomac Books, Inc (Washington, DC, 2005). 289 pp.

Ever wonder when the first Christmas card was sent, why the holiday shopping season begins so early or what figgy pudding is?

There is an explanation for everything, and Kevin Cuddihy, a member of St. Timothy Parish in Chantilly, and Phillip Metcalfe of Sterling have written a book comprised of more than 40 "top 10" lists of Christmas.

Each chapter of Christmas’s Most Wanted features 10 facts about a holiday theme — from Christmas trees, to the identities of Santa around the world, Christmas firsts, television specials and music. If there were a Jeopardy category on Christmas the answer could probably be found in this book.

Explaining both the pop-culture aspects of modern traditions and the history behind age-old traditions, Christmas’s Most Wanted is the perfect gift for that uncle who enjoys sitting at the dinner table on Christmas day quizzing all the children on why the family decorates a Christmas tree or when kissing under the mistletoe became a custom.

By the way, according to Christmas’s Most Wanted, the first Christmas card was created on Dec. 9, 1842, in England, but "there’s no word on whether that first card included a mass-produced ‘Here’s what our entire family did in the past year’ newsletter update inside with detailed reviews of Aunt Sally’s scurvy and Cousin Jim’s graduation from blacksmith school." Santa Claus’ zip code is 47579 — Santa Claus, Indiana, that is. And the Christmas shopping season starts in late October or November because of World War II. With thousands of Americans serving overseas, merchants reminded the public to shop early in order to ship their gifts in time to reach their loved ones by Christmas.

For more trivia and tidbits on Christmas and its traditions, turn to Christmas’s Most Wanted, now available in bookstores and online book sellers.