The birth of Christ and the Early years

The Gospel of John is the sparsest of the four. It starts with The Word becoming Flesh. He sort of requotes Genesis - the whole "Let There Be Light" bit, then jumps to John the Baptist as the next big significant event in world history.

JtB paves the way for JC, like a herald. He has to convince the people that he is not Christ, The Prophet or Elijah (though we now know he was the re-incarnation of Elijah).

Then JC turns up, gets baptised, and goes recruiting.

Mark is also pretty sparse. He also starts by quoting Isiah 40:3, as well as a bit from Malachi (3:1).

JC turns up to get baptised, then goes off to the desert for 40 days to get tempted by Satan. JtB goes to prison. JC ges out to do some recruiting and healing.

Matthew has a far more in depth beginning than even Luke. He starts with the geneology of JC, starting from Abraham, down to David, and down to Joseph.
This is supposed to prove that JC is a descendant of David, and somehow has royal blood. Yet, if Joseph isn't his bio dad, just his stepdad, it kind of misses the point.

Then Matt covers the angel speaking to Joseph, the birth of JC at Bethlehem. The star. A quote from Micah (5:2). The three magi, or wise men, or kings sent by Herod. The escape to Egypt. Herod kills the firstborn then has a stroke and dies. JC returns to Nazareth.

Then we have JtB preparing the way, JC's baptism, then the desert temptation.

Luke is equally concise. Like Acts, this book is written to his friend Theophilis, and is a first hand account (more or less).

There is a detailed account of the foretelling of both JtB and JC, so a lot of backstory. JtB's birth is covered in as much detail as JC's is.

This story has the account of the three shepherds, watching their flock by night and visited by an angel who sends them to the birth. So whether there were just 3 shepherds, just 3 kings, or both, depends on how you interpret the story.

We see JC presented at the temple and circumcised (ouch), then JC at the Temple as a boy.

JtB's preparing the way is very detailed in this one. We're told it all take place in the 15th year of Tiberius.

Isiah 40:3 gets quoted again, but JtB does a lot of preaching of his own.
JC turns up to get baptised.

The Geneology appears here, but in reverse, counting back from Joseph. It doesn't just stop at Abraham, but goes right back to Adam, "Son of God".

Then JC goes off into the desert to get tempted.
We even have a quote of the conversation.