Skipping Christmas audiobook vs book: which should you choose?
Luther Krank adds up what Christmas cost last year and decides to skip it for a Caribbean cruise. It is the novel that the film Christmas with the Kranks is based on.
Short answer: for the Skipping Christmas audiobook vs book choice, we say listen on Audible (65% confidence, leaning). Dennis Boutsikaris reads the unabridged recording in 3 hours 42 minutes. The story follows the Kranks through one countdown to Christmas, one narrator reads all of it, and nothing confirmed points to print. Only one criterion could be confirmed, so confidence is held at 65%. The Arrow paperback is 208 pages.
Listen on Audible
One storyteller and one narrator on a short comic novel, with nothing confirmed pointing to print.
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Confidence 65%, which puts it in the leaning band. Bands run from close call at 50 to 64, through leaning at 65 to 79 and clear at 80 to 94, up to clear cut at 95 and above.
The audiobook at a glance
| Recording | UK edition, our verdict (Penguin Audio) |
|---|---|
| Narrator | Dennis Boutsikaris |
| Length | 3 hours 42 minutes (3h 42m), per Audible UK |
| At 1.5x | about 2h 28m |
| At 2x | about 1h 51m |
| Abridged or unabridged | Unabridged |
| Audio publisher and year | Penguin Audio, (P) 2005 |
| Listener rating | 4.1 from 156 ratings on Audible UK (23 October 2026) |
| Print length | 208 pages (Arrow paperback, 1 September 2022, RRP £9.99) |
| Price (snapshot) | £7.76 on Audible UK (23 October 2026) |
On Audible UK the recording is listed under the film title, Christmas with the Kranks, dated 15 November 2005. Audible UK also carries a second listing for the book, and Audible US lists Boutsikaris too; we have not confirmed that these are the same recording.
Lengths checked 23 October 2026. Speed times are calculated.
Skipping Christmas
John Grisham
- Genre
- Comic fiction; Christmas
- First published
- 2001
- Length
- 208 pages (Arrow paperback)
- On audio
- 3 hrs 42 mins, Dennis Boutsikaris
- On screen
- Christmas with the Kranks (2004)
On this page
Why we reached this verdict
Every book on this site is checked against the same thirteen questions. They are based on research into what most people find easier to follow in each format, not on whether the book is any good.
Listening: single point of view and narrator (7), 7 points. Reading: nothing confirmed, 0 points. 100% of the confirmed points favour listening, so the verdict is listen on Audible at 65% confidence (leaning). Only 7 points could be confirmed, so confidence is held at 65% until more evidence is found.
The recording in detail
- Scored
- Dennis Boutsikaris, Penguin Audio, 2005, 3h 42m, unabridged
- Critic review
- None found
- Alternatives
- None found
- What you miss
- Nothing confirmed
What this book actually is
Skipping Christmas is John Grisham’s short comic novel, a long way from his legal thrillers. With their daughter Blair away for a year in the Peace Corps, Luther Krank totals up what the family spent on Christmas the year before and talks his wife Nora into skipping it altogether for a Caribbean cruise. Their neighbours and their street take it badly.
The 2004 film Christmas with the Kranks, with Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, is based on it, and Audible UK lists the audiobook under the film’s title.
The case for reading it
There is little structural reason to prefer print. The Arrow paperback is 208 pages and moves quickly. One Entertainment Weekly reviewer noted the book was written in 177 “minipages”, short sections that suit reading in short bursts, but no source says the layout changes how the story works.
The case for listening to it
The story stays with the Kranks through a single countdown to 25 December, and one narrator reads all of it. That kind of structure usually works best on audio.
At 3 hours 42 minutes, it is about 2 hours 28 minutes at 1.5x, short enough for one evening of wrapping presents.
The audiobook in detail
Penguin Audio publishes the unabridged recording, read by Dennis Boutsikaris, at 3 hours 42 minutes on Audible UK ((P) 2005). It had 4.1 stars from 156 ratings when we checked on 23 October 2026.
Search Audible UK for “Christmas with the Kranks” if “Skipping Christmas” does not bring it up first.
Who should ignore this verdict
Lean towards print if you like to read in short sittings: the book comes in brief sections and 208 pages.
If you came for Grisham’s courtroom thrillers, this is not one, in either format.
Audiobook
- Read by Dennis Boutsikaris
- 3h 42m, or about 2h 28m at 1.5x
- Unabridged; listed as Christmas with the Kranks on Audible UK
Read differently from most people? The app, coming soon, will let you switch off any of the thirteen checks. Get notified →
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A Man Called Ove
One viewpoint, one narrator and an Earphones Award reading favour audio, along with Swedish names that listeners say audio helps with. Flashbacks woven between present-day chapters favour reading.
The Christmas Bookshop
No criterion could be confirmed on either side, so neither format is favoured.
Start hereHow we decide
The thirteen questions behind every verdict on this site.
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Questions people ask
Who narrates the Skipping Christmas audiobook?
Dennis Boutsikaris, on the Penguin Audio recording sold on Audible UK.
How long is the Skipping Christmas audiobook?
3 hours 42 minutes on Audible UK; at 1.5x about 2 hours 28 minutes and at 2x 1 hour 51 minutes (calculated).
Is Christmas with the Kranks based on a book?
Yes. The 2004 film is based on John Grisham’s novel Skipping Christmas, first published in 2001. Audible UK lists the audiobook under the film’s title.
Should I read or listen to Skipping Christmas?
Listen on our checks (65% confidence, leaning). The story follows the Kranks through one countdown and one narrator reads all of it, with nothing confirmed pointing to print.
How long is the book?
208 pages in the Arrow paperback published on 1 September 2022.
Do you agree with this verdict?
We said listen on Audible. One tap, no sign-up.
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How this verdict was reached
Every book on this site is checked against the same thirteen questions, set in advance and applied identically to every title. They are based on research into what readers and listeners generally find easier to follow in each format, not on personal preference, and they are published in full so you can check the reasoning yourself. Verdicts are never paid for, sponsored or influenced by affiliate partners.
- The criteria: read the thirteen questions in full.
- What we checked for this book: Audible UK and US, the Arrow paperback listing, and the Wikipedia article on the novel.
- Verdict last reviewed: 23 October 2026. Editions and narrators change, so verdicts are rechecked annually.
- Prefer different criteria? The app, coming soon, will let you change which of the thirteen questions matter to you.
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