Twelve Dinging Doorbells

By: Tameka Fryer Brown

Narrated by: January LaVoy

A cumulative all-holiday carol packed to the brim with family, food, love, and Black joy, especially perfect for Thanksgiving, Christmas, graduations, and all family celebrations.

Every holiday, aunties, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and neighbors come over to eat, sing, and celebrate life. But all our main character can think about is the sweet potato pie Granny makes just for her. As tables fill with baked macaroni and cheese, chitlins, and other sides a-steaming, she and Granny move the pie to keep it intact. The task becomes tricker as the room grows with dancing and card games and pie cravings. Just when all seems lost and there’s no more pie, Granny pulls out a sweet surprise.

Written to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” Twelve Dinging Doorbells is exuberant. Author Tameka Fryer Brown’s cumulative rhyme is impossible to resist, and will welcome listeners to this party again and again.

Critic reviews

Praise for Twelve Dinging Doorbells:

A Amazon Best Book of the Year 2022
A Children’s Book Council Favorite Picture Books
A Golden Kite nominee
A Fuse 8 2022 Transcendent Holiday Picture Books
A Children’s Book Council Children’s and Young Adult Favorites


★ "This vibrant celebration of African American families, fun, and culture will be a great addition to library collections."
—School Library Journal, starred review

★ "A new classic."
—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ "Revamping 'The 12 Days of Christmas' to sweetly bustling effect, Fryer Brown pens a lively refrain…It’s a lovingly chaotic portrayal with a pleasingly ample feel."
—Publishers Weekly, starred review