Main Street News
Deluxe edition of The Woodcutter’s Christmas published from new independent publisher, Galpón Press
Just in time for the holiday season, new independent imprint Galpón Press has published a new deluxe edition of The Woodcutter’s Christmas, by Brad Kessler and Dona Ann McAdams.
Set between the serene beauty of winter in Vermont and the streets of Manhattan’s Lower East Side, The Woodcutter’s Christmas explores the contrast between the slow rhythm of nature and the high-energy culture of society. The book was originally published 25 years ago and has long been unavailable, but has still become a modern, holiday classic that is cherished by those who own a copy. The original book now features a new selection of Dona Ann McAdams’ original photographs, as well as updated text by Kessler.
The Woodcutter’s Christmas was an early collaboration between Kessler and McAdams, who are also husband and wife. Kessler was inspired by a series of photographs that McAdams had taken of dead Christmas trees lying on the streets of New York City, and he wrote a story to match the imagery.
McAdams had originally photographed the dead Christmas trees in response to the large number of friends that she lost to the AIDS crisis during the early nineties. She said the discarded trees reminded her of “all the friends abandoned by their families during the crisis.”
Over two decades after The Woodcutter’s Christmas was first written and two decades after he started dairy farming, Kessler now drives around in his pickup after Christmas and collects trees left out on lawns and driveways in the neighboring towns. After bringing the trees back home to the farm, he feeds them to his herd as fresh winter greens.
“Somehow, the Woodcutter’s story feels as if it’s come full circle. With me much older now, hauling dead Christmas trees into the back of the truck and bringing them home to the farm,” he explains. “Not to compost or make soil, but to feed them to our girls. The goats love the branches and green needles, especially in deep winter when there’s nothing but snow on the ground. And when I’m driving around and picking up Christmas trees, I feel in some ways that I’ve become the woodcutter himself.”
About Galpón Press
Galpón Press, the publisher of The Woodcutter’s Christmas, is a newly launched independent publishing venture from Michael Jacobs and Sheridan Hay. Based out of a shed (a galpón in Spanish) in Washington County in New York, Galpón is a part of the newly formed Filmore Projects, which will offer extensive publishing and editorial services to writers and authors, including editorial development, marketing, and sales strategies for book publishers and content producers.
“Having had successful and long careers in book publishing and literary endeavors, we’re excited to bring our years of experience to clients and colleagues, new and old. We believe that the time is ripe for individual publishers who can scout out and focus on the local and regional talent here in the Hudson Valley, as well as around the United States and the world,” said Michael Jacobs, co-founder of Galpón Press. “There is evidence that the indie book publishing market is growing as more and more authors seek more influence in the publishing process.”
About the author and photographer
Brad Kessler is the winner of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, a Rome Prize, and a Whiting Award, is the author of North (2021), Goat Song (2009), Birds in Fall (2006), Lick Creek (2001), and is the editor and co-creator of Deep North: Stories of Somali Resettlement in Vermont (2023).
Kessler is a graduate of the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma and his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times Magazine, The Kenyon Review, The New Yorker, and Literary Hub. Kessler currently teaches in the MFA program at Antioch University in Los Angeles.
Dona Ann McAdams, whose career retrospective exhibition opened at Pratt Manhattan this past spring, is the author of the photographic memoir, Black Box (2024). A storied photographer and activist, she has exhibited her work at the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and is the winner of the Vermont Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts in 2025. McAdams and Kessler live on a goat farm in Vermont.
Find a copy of The Woodcutter’s Christmas on Galpón Press’ website here.
