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As the classic song suggests, Christmas is only the beginning of an increasingly impractical gift-giving extravaganza. If you (or your true love) want to honor the spirit of the song, we’ve found a seasonally appropriate story for every one of the Twelve Days of Christmas. Take a deep breath, and check back every day to see what we’re unwrapping. Up today? The piping of the pipers.

January 4: The Eleventh Day of Christmas
Eleven Pipers Piping

One of the great pleasures of memoir is the opportunity to inhabit a totally unfamiliar life, and explore one of the innumerable obsessive subcultures that flourish around the world. Scottish journalist (and piper) Fergus Muirhead, in A Piper’s Tale, allows readers to peep into the world of professional—and passionate amateur—bagpipe players. He delves into the mythology of the iconic Scottish instrument and encourages a wide variety of musicians to share their secrets, their love of the pipes, and the stories they’ve gathered over their careers playing this traditional—that is, equally loved and loathed—instrument around the world.

See all twelve days of Christmas here.