Chris Tomlin Good News of Great Joy Book Releases Nov 10

Chris Tomlin's new children's picture book, Good News of Great Joy, arrives on November 10, 2026, four days after his Christmas album of the same name. The 32-page hardcover, written by Tomlin and illustrated by Scott Ligertwood, tells the story of the first Christmas through the eyes of a young shepherd named Shep and his dog Shadow, and it is aimed at children aged four to eight.

The book is the second half of a Christmas rollout built around one phrase from Luke's Gospel. His fourth full-length Christmas album, Good News of Great Joy (Christmas Songs of Worship), was released on November 6 across all digital service providers. A national tour under the same banner begins on November 30 in Birmingham, Alabama, where the first night has already sold out and a second night had to be added.

Chris Tomlin Christmas album 2026 Good News of Great Joy

The album is an 11-track collection, and its radio single is called It's Christmas Time Again. It also features two new songs, The Manger To The Cross, and a reimagined Joy To The World (Unspeakable Joy), alongside the Dove Award-nominated Holy Forever (Christmas). Tomlin has said the words Christmas Songs of Worship appear on every Christmas album he has ever made, because that is his heart for the record: that it creates a spirit of worship within the listener.

When I think about Christmas, I think about family, friends, and the church gathering together to sing, Tomlin said in the announcement. There's something about Christmas and singing that is just so beautiful together, maybe it's because Christmas started with a song, with the angels' announcement: I bring you good news of great joy. They began praising God, saying glory to God in the highest. We've been singing that song ever since.

Chris Tomlin children's book November 10 Shep and Shadow

The book follows Shep, a young shepherd spending his first night watching the sheep alone, accompanied by his faithful dog, Shadow. When the angels announce that Jesus has been born, Shep and Shadow make their way to Bethlehem. The story is simple on purpose, built for a read-aloud at bedtime, and the illustrations by Scott Ligertwood carry much of the wonder.

Tomlin's team has presented the album and the book as two parts of one idea rather than two seperate products. The album shares its title with the book, and both return to the same announcement from Luke 2: the angel's words to the shepherds, and the song the angels sang after them. A child who hears the book read aloud and then hears the album in church will meet the same story twice, in two different forms.

Good News of Great Joy tour November 30 Birmingham

The third part of the rollout is the road. The Christmas With Chris Tomlin: Good News of Great Joy Tour begins on November 30 at the Alabama Theatre in Birmingham, a date that was added after the scheduled first night on December 1 sold out. From there the tour moves through Daytona Beach, Charleston, Pensacola, Knoxville, Newport News, Jersey City, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, and Cincinnati, with several dates already sold out.

That simplicity is also what connects this release to the wider wave of new Christian music this autumn. Grace Graber released her second album on November 6, the same day as Tomlin's Christmas record, as reported in Grace Graber Releases Sophomore Year Album Nov 6. Kevin Downswell released his Joy Is Here album in late October, as covered in Kevin Downswell Releases Joy Is Here Album Oct 30. The Christmas season also brings the giving side of the story into view, as Operation Christmas Child aims for millions of shoebox gifts again this year, as reported in Operation Christmas Child 2026 Aims for 12.8 Million.

What to watch for as Christmas approaches

The book is out now, the album is streaming, and the tour opens in Birmingham on November 30. What remains to be seen is how the two halves of the project settle into the season. Will the book become a bedtime staple in the way Tomlin's songs have become a Sunday staple? Will the tour's new songs, especially It's Christmas Time Again and The Manger To The Cross, join the carols that congregations already know by heart?

Those questions will answer themselves over the next six weeks, as families read the book, churches sing the songs, and audiences fill the theatres. For now, the story is simple enough for a child to follow: a young shepherd, a faithful dog, a sky full of angels, and a song that has been sung ever since.

But the most surprising part of this story is yet to come — keep reading.