"A Christmas Carol"

"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens is a book.... that I should have reviewed before Christmas. I know, I apologize. I'm still working on the whole "catching up" thing.  I didn't know how long it would take me, though! But you don't want to hear me make lame excuses, do you? No, I better just continue with the review. Take two!

"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens is the 1843 Christmas classic about Ebenezer Scrooge - a man who could use some Christmas cheer. Mean, rude, and selfish, he needs to learn a lesson. And what better way than to have three ghosts visit him? And that's how it all begins. I loved this book, and can definitely see why it's a classic. One problem I faced, which had nothing to do with the book, was that because of watching a couple movies about it, and knowing the general story, it felt predictable. I knew the general idea of the story, and the outline seemed, well: boring? But I really wanted to read it, despite this fear. And so, I read it. And while I partly knew the story, there were many details not included in the films and short stories. I give this book 4 1/2 stars (I'm really trying to reserve five stars for my absolute favorites), because it is well written, touching, and has a great storyline. Now, I'm sure most of you know the story, but shall we review? Here is a synopsis:

• Scrooge is mean. I think we all know that.
• The ghost of his deceased business partner, Jacob Marley, visits him on a winter night, warning him that three ghosts will visit him to teach him a lesson.
• The Ghost of Christmas Past comes to visit Scrooge, showing him glimpses of his past.
• The Ghost of Christmas Present comes, showing Scrooge what life his like for his employees. This is when we start to see a change in Scrooge...
• The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come visits, showing him (obviously) the Christmas to come.

This book is definitely worth reading. I know that I will be returning to it many times. For the youngest readers, I would recommend the Puffin Classics version. In the back, they have "A Dickensian Glossary", as well as an Author File, and characters. It is 125 pages, and has 5 chapters.