Chapter 1

The narrative begins with Landon describing Beaufort as a typical, small, southern town in which churches, especially the Baptist ones, play a significant role. The inhabitants were friendly and kind, deeply involved with whatever happened in the town.

The Southern Baptist, in collaboration with Beaufort High School, presents a Christmas play, which is the biggest event of the year. The Christmas Angel is written by the minister of Southern Baptist, Hegbert Sullivan. The play is mainly autobiographical, paralleling the life of the minister. The play is about a man whose wife dies in childbirth and he has to bring up his daughter all by himself. His daughter asks for a music box with an angel on it for Christmas, but he is unable to find the box anywhere. However, he is visited by an angel in town who asks him to be a better father, and then the box magically appears under their tree on Christmas morning. This play is very popular amongst the people of Beaufort.

Landon then goes on to describe his father, Worth Carter, who is a well-known US congressman. Sullivan does not think highly of Carter, and held him responsible for the spread of communism in the town. Landon complains that his father was rarely around when he was growing up; his missed having a male presence in the house.

Landon then moves on to talk about his grandfather, who was a bootlegger and banker. He charged such high rates of interest on loans that most people lost their homes and businesses to him being unable to pay him back. Like Sullivan, Landon, too, condemns his grandfather’s actions.

Sullivan used to work for Landon’s grandfather but soon quit his job to join the ministry. He married a woman twenty years younger than him. After six miscarriages, they had a daughter named Jamie. Unfortunately, Hegbert’s wife died in childbirth. The Christmas Angel, in part, was inspired by Hegbert’s life.

In 1958, the year in which Landon is narrating the story, Jamie is a senior in high school, and she is cast as the angel in the play. Landon is also part of the drama class. He describes Jamie as a plain and simple girl, who is kind, generous, and selfless. She is always concerned about the welfare of those less fortunate than her. She carries a Bible everywhere with her and even reads it during lunch. Finally, he mentions that he notices her newly developed breasts for the first time that morning in drama class.

This chapter introduces the characters and background of the novel. The reader is familiarized with the small town, where everyone knows each other, the church is supreme, and where natural beauty abounds. Although there aren’t many details about the characters, the reader gets an insight into their personality types. We are also introduced to Jamie in some detail, highlighting her qualities.