I always need to slow down to read this, to savor every perfect sentence and visualize the beauty of its atmosphere, and cadence of its sounds. I especially love the way Dickens describes the feeling of winter during the times in London. The feeling of walking in England, the feeling of cold. With each reading, I get something more: there is just so much Light in this story. ( )

People don’t realize the chain of events that inspire change in someone’s life from one good deed blooms many it may be a fear of change which can be implied as death that becomes catalyst for a form of illumination ( )

Read for Popsugar's 2018 Reading Challenge #1: A book made into a movie you've already seen

As good as expected! ( )

a surprisingly great read.I didn't realize the most recent remake of this novel (the jim carey one) was so much closer to the story than many of the others I've seen. It's spookier and a little darker than I would have thought, but has always had a timeless lesson. ( )

Every child should have this book read to them before ever seeing a movie of it! This picture he paints are so stirring!

“And how did little Tim behave?” asked Mrs Cratchit, when she had rallied Bob on his credulity and Bob had hugged his daughter to his heart’s content.

“As good as gold,” said Bob, “and better. Somehow he gets thoughtful, sitting by himself so much, and thinks the strangest things you ever heard. He told me, coming home, that he hoped the people saw him in the church, because he was a cripple, and it might be pleasant to them to remember upon Christmas Day, who made lame beggars walk, and blind men see.” ( )

Always a five-star read. More to discover to love about the story and the telling of it every time I read it. Blake's illustrations add another dimension that will delight many families. ( )

This read I noticed that Scrooge had experienced love and happiness as a child and youth, and therefore his apparently facile reformation was actually more a restoration.

My bookdarts:

"Darkness is cheap, and Scrooge liked it."

"Scrooge had often heard it said that Marley had no bowels, but he had never believed it until now."

One reason for the continued relevance of the story is from Marley's explanation to Scrooge for the ghosts' wandering hauntings: "It is required of every man that the spirit within him shall walk abroad among his fellow men, and travel far and wide; and if that spirit does not go forth in life it is condemned to do so after death."

Even though the edition I read is marketed to young children, it's not abridged. I won't look up all the unfamiliar references, but I do want to know what Norfolk biffins are. ( )

Five stars because everyone should read this at least once in their lives. I'd like to give it a bonus star for Hyman's art because I do love her work... unfortunately, she didn't make enough pictures for this book and they, frustratingly, almost served more as distractions than enhancements... though of course they were lovely, as usual.

I do wonder about Scrooge's ready conversion during the trip to his past, though. I guess he needed the second two visits to ensure the lesson would stick. Dickens was, after all, a master psychologist, and probably knew all about the fragility of good intentions. ( )

How do I review such a widely-beloved classic? What more is there to say?

This story never gets old. Its ideas are still relevant today, its characters still charming, its ghosts still impressive. Its portrait of Christmas celebrations still delights readers and shapes their own festivities. This is a tale of magic—of regret, redemption, hope, and love. It is heartwarming and uplifting and life-affirming. I like that Scrooge’s change doesn’t happen all at once: he is already wishing that he had been kinder while he’s with the ghost of Christmas Past. I also like that Scrooge, by some standards, was always doing some things right. He mourned for his friend Jacob when no one else did, he always strove to be straightforward in his business dealings, and he never lied or cheated. He was always honest, even to the point of rudeness. It is implied (though not stated) that he would have tried to help Tiny Tim earlier if he’d only known of his condition. The whole point is that it wasn’t enough for Scrooge not to hurt anyone: he needed to actively help others. His wake-up call transformed his life. Finally, I like the idea that it’s never too late to change. And when Scrooge’s adventure is over, Dickens creates the perfect euphoric atmosphere. What a glorious tale! ( )

Book 51 - Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol

Just realised I have created a problem for next Christmas if I keep reading a book a week...have read three brilliant Christmas stories this year... hmmm...will have to think on that...

Anyway back to the Christmas of the present...a timeless classic...told over and over across such a range of genres - from ‘The Muppet Christmas Carol’ to Doctor Who’s ‘A Christmas Carol’; from Jim Carrey’s now 11 years old version to Sir Patrick Stewart’s one man show - there is always something fresh to learn from this incredible story and questions left unanswered...

What did Scrooge’s nephew make of this change of heart ?
The debts that Scrooge used to make money from, how did that change people’s lives ?

I know that as I finish up one of the strangest years I have ever lived through...next year...2021...will be better...and to all our families and friends who have struggled this year...with so many hard days...with illnesses and those we have lost...

Remember this...we are who we are today and tomorrow because of all our yesterdays...

And to all those Christmases yet to come...we face them together...we face them with friendships strengthened...we face them with that one voice...God bless us, everyone ! ( )

I'm embarrassed to admit I had never read this book, and I don't believe I've ever seen a complete version of any of the traditional movies made of this book.... My family and I watch "Scrooged" every year, which is a very modernized (well, late 80s, so it WAS modernized, ha! ha!) version of the story...

I recently saw the Audible version has Tim Curry doing the narration, and it was a lock for me!

I'm so glad I listened to this. I found myself, a number of times, feeling like I would still struggle reading it in print on my own--the language is so very Old English, and without someone (Curry) saying things in just the right tone, I might not have understood the meaning. But with Tim Curry reading it in his crisp, delightful British accent, knowing exactly how things are meant to sound, and with a delightful dramatic flair, the story was so enchanting and beautiful! I hung on every word and savored this story!!! I highly recommend it to anyone who has never read it and to those who have loved it for years!!! ( )

this is a super quick and heartwarming classic. a bit different than the animation we've probably all seen. The scrooge here was too quick to accept criticism. The acceptance is gradual in the animation which I think is the most important part of the story. Regardless, just about anyone should be able to pick this up and find something to love. ( )

It's hard to believe that I have spent a quarter of my life reading this book every Christmas Eve! I was almost going to choose a different Christmas novella to read but thankfully decided to continue the tradition. So often, we forget the true meaning of Christmas, not to mention, the true meaning of life. A Christmas Carol is about love, it's about friendships and family. Living in Florida for the last six months and coming home for Christmas has made me realize how important being with people I love is.

I don't think a book like this will ever be written again. This is a book about morality, about love, about life; it's all built together without being watered down by religion or politics; this is truly a book written for everyone and about everyone. When Scrooge sees his childhood self neglected by his friends, he sees his family, his employer, and the ending of his past love affair, he realizes how much of his life he has forgotten to remember. I love this book with all of my heart, it reminds me of what life is truly about. I hope to be able to share this story with my family every Christmastime. ( )

It's A Christmas Carol. It's one of the best novellas ever written, and probably the best Christmas story. Nothing else needs to be said there.

Specifically reviewing ISBN 9781435170087, the 2019 Fall River Press flexi-bound leather pocket edition (for Barnes & Noble's pocket leatherbound series): it's excellent quality, feels good and sturdy, looks very nice, and fits in your pocket. I've never had a physical copy of this book and it's a little surprising to see how short it actually is. This is the sort of book you re-read again once a year, it won't take very long. ( )

Die Geschichte ist bekannt, trotzdem lohnt sich dieses Buch. Ich empfehle, es auf einem bunten Bildschirm zu lesen, die atmosphärischen Bilder werten das Buch noch einmal deutlich auf. Wirklich schön gemacht! ( )

Glad I finally read this book. Our judgement is so much clouded because of all the movies made about this book, but after reading it by yourself, it finds itself in a completely different spotlight. Here you recognize right away the talent of an author, who gives us such a deep inside view into human relations, human emotions, and at the same time is also able to make us part of the atmosphere of wintertime, Christmas, family events. It is as if we are part of a timetravelling event, and the further we go from page to page, the more we can sympathize with Scrooge. One of those books that has become a classic, that has absolutely no flaws. ( )

My copy of A Christmas Carol also includes The Chimes, The Cricket on the Hearth, The Battle of Life, and The Haunted Man. The preface by the author, which is just a couple of sentences, intends that these are all stories for "the season" or Christmas. Three of the other stories include visits by ghostly spirits who help people discover the importance of altruism, home, and family, in a similar vein to A Christmas Carol. And the one story that does not include a spirit, has similar themes. It is a repetitive short story collection- I believe there is a reason that A Christmas Carol is the only one that we've ever heard of before, nevertheless it is a charming collection of vaguely gothic Christmas stories for those who enjoy Charlies Dicken's writing. ( )

Cute as frick, thanks for letting me watch you Scrooge ( )

Listened to this as a podcast by The Cultured Bumpkin. He read the story in a Southern drawl. It worked quite nicely. A classic, surprisingly never read it before. ( )

Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.

The idea of actually reading a story as omnipresent as A Christmas Carol always seemed a bit redundant to me. The story and its characters have infused Western Culture to such an extent that they’ve become archetypes, and the plot a formula. But this year I picked up a Penguin Classics edition of Dickens Christmas stories at a thrift store and so it found its way onto my shelf. I’ve been meaning to get around to reading some Dickens for a few years now; like this story, I sort of assumed that there was nothing for me to learn from an author that already seemed to have sublimated into the culture. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned that classics are classics for a reason, and are often much stranger and more interesting than their offshoots would lead you to believe.
The most striking thing about this story is how scary it is. The ghosts are described in an almost psychedelic, hallucinatory way, and at the introduction of each subsequent phantom I was amazed at the vividness of Dickens’ . It speaks to the paucity of the modern imagination that is seems incredible he could fashion such imagery with only words, and without having seen the fruits of art and technology that have made the kind of thing he is describing cheap and common with the advent of film and computer generated imagery.
I’m also struck by the presence of Death stalking all of these pages. Adaptations focus on Scrooge’s redemption arc, but they often leave out what is the most disturbing revelation he has on his journey, and which Dickens is reminding us all of: we will all die. Scrooge’s greed and stinginess is merely a symptom of a denial of death, a hoarding of worldly good at the expense of what is truly precious in life.

One of my all-time favorites... I re-read this every year at Christmas time! ( )

Same old story, but with new illustrations, and signed by the illustrator. ( )

3,5 pela tradução que não me agradou ( )

This is my second time reading this, and I read it with r/ClassicBookClub. While I did not write a review/my thoughts the first time, I think I liked it more this time. I'm more and more like both Scrooge ("what is there to be happy about?") and Bob Crachit (underpaid and early to work the morning after Christmas). It felt weird reading this and then spending Christmas basically alone because of COVID, though I did text a Merry Christmas to a couple of friends, which I wouldn't normally bother to do, in honor of the book's message.

This is one of those books that everyone knows the story so well that it's always going to be a little boring since we know the outcome, but there is good humor in the first chapter especially, a spirit who spits Scrooge's words back at him, and and well-written story in general. ( )