e-artnow presents the Christmas Specials Series. We have selected the greatest Christmas novels, short stories and fairy tales for this joyful and charming holiday season, for all those who want to keep the spirit of Christmas alive with a heartwarming tale.
Children of the Tenements is a collection of stories and tales about orphans and poor children living in the slums of New York City. It provides an interesting insight into city life at the turn of the century and shows how the spirit of Christmas can make an impact even on the most unfortunate ones.

Jacob August Riis (1849-1914) was a Danish-American social reformer, "muckraking" journalist and social documentary photographer. While living in New York, Riis experienced poverty and started writing about the quality of life in the slums. He published his experiences in the book How the Other Half Lives. Children of the Poor was a sequel in which Riis wrote of particular children that he had encountered.