A Christmas Carol is probably one of the best known works of Charles Dickens ... who among us hasn't seen a TV or film adaptation (obviously, The Muppet Christmas Carol being the best of the bunch)? But how many of us have actually read the original book? It's a short work, and is often included within other Christmas stories in print. Here we have the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, a miserly money-grabbing tyrant who thinks Christmas is humbug and doesn't understand why anybody would want to do anything on Christmas Day except work. With no friends to call on, he is a lonely, bitter man. One Christmas Eve, he is visited by three spirits who show him his past, his present and his future. In the past, we see the sad, slow demise of the good cheer and humanity that once rested within the young Ebenezer. In the present, he is taken to visit the home of his much put upon employee, Bob Cratchett. He is astounded at how happy this family is, who have almost nothing but each other. In the future ... suffice to say, it isn't exactly pretty! Will Ebenezer be inspired to change his ways and find a better future for himself? Well ... it is a Christmas story so I think we all know the answer to that. I did enjoy reading A Christmas Carol, the audio edition of which I can recommend as good fodder for a journey! Yes, it's predictable, but there are, as usual with Mr Dickens, some great passages of descriptive prose. However, it is very light weight and probably because I knew the story so well, it didn't grip me. It is still worth reading, for there is heart and warmth and humour to this tale of redemptive possibilities which reminds us that it's never to late to change your ways!
My STAR rating: THREE.
Length: 90 print pages.
Price I paid: FREE.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, ebook.
No comments:
Post a Comment