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Summary: "God Bless Us Everyone for trying to read this..."
Review: Although Bayard's attempt to imitate Dickensian language and style, he falls short by having a complex, canonized character reduced to a two dimensional shadow of his former self. Initially, Mr. Timothy Cratchit is believable as he strolls thorugh dark, dreary London in pursuit of his dead father's ghost and rememberings of the past. In the end, he resembles something more akin to the protagonist of a Grisham novel with a bit of Anne Rice twist thrown in. When the book and it's characters fall into post-modern literature, we lose any real flavor of the original inspiration for this piece, A Christmas Carol. This book is about as hollow and faded as the year round decorations in "Uncle N's" house...Worth reading if only for Bayard's attempts to extend the life and story of the Cratchit family we all grew to love as children. But ends unsatisfyingly as a ghost of what could have been...
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Summary: One Dickens of a Tale!
Review: As readers or, like myself, avowed non-readers of the various novels that purport to be sequels to the great novels (think "Scarlett") can attest, it is usually a fool's errand to attempt such a thing. But, once in a great while, o.k., probably never before, someone pulls off the trick. That someone is Louis Bayard. Mr. Timothy is, as we realize early on, none other than Tiny Tim Cratchitt, all grown up under the, probably less than we expected, tutelage of his "Uncle" N (for "neezer). He is, at 23 trying to find himself after a life less than splendid, by taking up living quarters in a brothel in the seedier section of London (No, don't bother re-reading that. You read it correctly the first time.) Into his life comes, among other things, a child thief not unlike a certain "dodger", a frightened (and with good reason) 10 year old Italian girl, several corrupt policemen, a one-handed body retriever, a "Columbo"-lik detective, and some of the most horrendous villains ever written. All of this is recounted in almost magical prose, with a period feel that few other modern authors even approach. "Mr. Timothy" may not be anyone's original idea of how "A Christmas Carol" might continue, but it is absolutely true to the realities of the time and place in which it occured. Indeed, its portrait of London and its people are nothing short of Dickensian. Read this, savor it, and then... readit again!
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Summary: Brilliant reinvention
Review: Bayard is a startlingly fine writer who has made a number of smart decisions with this novel. It's not a sequel to A Christmas Carol, as some readers assume. It's a great thriller that makes just the right use of its source material, slyly dropping in details that are a delight if you know your Dickens, but in no way detract if you're just reading it as a tightly contructed historical thriller.Remarkable. Definitely a writer to watch.
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Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: Bayard is not Dickens, but his characters and plot propelled me around Victorian London. As a character, Mr. Timothy is drawn with a complexity that defies prediction of his actions. The two children he partners with feel true, with the charm and courage that Dickens gave the children he wrote about. One cares what happens to all of them, and I assure you, much does happen. I found myself savoring the last few chapters, dreading that time when I would reach the back cover and part company with this fascinating group.
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Summary: God Bless Us... Everyone.
Review: Being a big fan of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, I was eager to pick this book up and see where Bayard was going to take Tiny Tim as an emerging adult. I didn't expect what this story had to offer, but as Bayard was loyal to Dickens, he shows us another dark facet of England. The collection and sale (in effect) of very young girls to the upper crust of society. And Mr. Timothy Cratchit as its unlikely hero. The language of the book remained true throughout - and the combination of characters fit all the roles I would have expected in a Dickens tale. And while the story itself sometimes stuttered with strange asides tossed in to create time for other things to happen or to show which character was on which side - it wasn't the story itself I found myself taken by. I particularly enjoyed the italicized letters that Tim wrote to his deceased father. The language and ideas of a life overlooked, of the love one might feel for one's parent not realized until it was too late. Of Tim as an adult trying to realize who he is going to be and not having his father to help him through this hardest of times. And realizing how much irritation and anger and impatience he spent on his father when alive as he is haunted by his father's ghost out of the corner of his eye. All of this as Bayard takes Tim on a journey to seek his own family, his own home. Tim's letters to his father were the icing on the cake that made me truly enjoy this book and this one line in particular cemented Tim's missed feelings - "You had spent months, apparently, determining this configuration -- poring over maps, consulting with omnibus drivers, timing every leg of every day's journey. Had I been older, I would have realised: here is a man who wants to come home."
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Summary: avid reader
Review: BORING. this book should have been a short story. i am shocked that people liked it so much.
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Summary: Mr. Timothy: Tiny Tim's New Found Voice
Review: Charles Dickens, English literature's unmatched character creator, managed to conjure up the most romantic, sweetly sick, maudlin personality ever to poke his tiny head into our Christmas celebrations. The Cratchit dinner party with Tiny Tim's banal "What a goose, Mother!" is more than enough to turn the cranberry sour on us. I imagine a much older Timothy Cratchit would cringe hearing the tiresome family stories of his infant self, as we all do when our parents, in a flush of narrative nostalgia show our naked-bottom photos to their friends.
Louis Bayard assists Tim Cratchit in finding his own voice and getting some dignity, as well as revenge, in the recent thriller Mr. Timothy. Fed up with being a product of someone else's pity, idealization or philanthropy Tim, upon the death of his father Bob, found his way to the gritty side of Victorian life. Living in a whorehouse, paying his rent through reading tutorials with the resident Madam, Tim acquired an autonomous start, out from the velvet grip of the Cratchits and Scrooge.
Robinson Crusoe the book he and the Madam are studying foreshadows many of the themes found in Mr. Timothy: rebellion, autonomy, tortured conscience, and dangerous adventure. Growing up is neither a neat nor tidy process; it requires genuine struggle, true integration of values, and the accepting responsibility. Tim's grown-up life is lived in vital contact with others but not under their shadow. He holds his own among the girls of the trade, those who manage them and those who exploit them.
Timothy's maturation is not limited to self-development but extends to genuine care for others less fortunate. Two Victorian waifs Philomela an Italian orphan and Colin a neglected songster and thief are younger protégés of the maturing Tim who "fathers' them without placing them in his shadow or making them extensions of his own story. While children in their relationship with Tim they nonetheless retain their dignity as individuals.
Getting out from beneath someone else's narrative is hard enough but a more difficult feat is doing so while still maintaining respect and understanding for those who have wrongfully treated you. Interspersed in the action are Tim's ghost letters to his father. They acknowledge Bob's flaws and the strange life of the Cratchits, as well as, the deep regret and gratitude that Tim develops for his father and step-uncle Ebenezer. Being a surrogate father puts his own childhood in a more nuanced perspective.
Fathers, origins, the maltreatment of children and the creation of broader more humane definition of family are the Dickensian themes that weave their way through the perambulations of Mr. Timothy's dark plot of smuggling, exploitation and murder. Bayard's redrafting of Dickens's Tim Cratchit is more than a self indulgent, postmodern exercise in outfoxing the classics, it is a legitimate help to any reader hoping to deepen and make contextually significant a time-honored modern myth.
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Summary: Mr. Timothy
Review: Dickens' Tiny Tim returns in a dark, well-told historical thriller.
Timothy narrates this beautifully written book, which is not only a 19th-century thriller that will please readers who liked books such as FIEND IN HUMAN and THE ALIENIST, but is also a meditation on personality, maturation and loss. Timothy sees the ghost of his father wherever he goes, and must eventually come to terms with not only his father's death but his own adolescent behavior and the stresses that Scrooge's generosity put on his family. (Scrooge, though appearing, is never named in the text.) At times the narration slips into sentimentality, particularly when dealing with the father theme. Counteracting this, though, are moments of sensuality and some sensational action, especially a fight on the roof of a racing hansom cab.
One thing Bayard does particularly well here is to evoke a vivid, sympathetic character in first person. Timothy's personality clearly has aspects beyond what this text chooses to explore, and though this isn't the kind of book that normally has a sequel, I'd be glad to read one.
The language does occasionally slip into anachronism, but I found the errors trivial.
Definitely recommended.
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Summary: touching and thrilling
Review: Following the route of Gregory Maguire, Louis Bayard has taken a fairly minor yet memorable literary character and revisits him at another point in time. Entirely successful with a fun "DaVinci Code"-type caper (pacing not the puzzle), Mr. Timothy shines most with Bayard's Bob Cratchit ghost device/letters and depiction of filthy London. Ending is extremely touching and beautifully written a la Dickens; also loved clues of Tim's true sexual orientation: point did not dominate but made perfect sense. This one deserves the Masterpiece Theatre treatment--not the usual American-produced lard.
A wonderful, multi-tiered read.
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Summary: Now You Know.....The Rest of the Story
Review: I always remember as a kid watching the Disney version of A Christmas Carol and feeling so sorry for the crippled Tiny Tim. That is why Mr. Timothy is such a strange book to those who know the children's story so well. Gone is little Tim with the crutch, the hopeful smile and eyes and the heart breaking cliches. Mr. Timothy is a pseudo-sequel, bringing the cast of characters into the real world of dark and grimy Victorian England. No more kingly ghosts or warm memories, as the existence of the Cratchits and their benefactor Mr. Scrooge has taken a decided turn for the worse. No where is this more evident than in the personage of Tim, whose unshakeable childhood optimism has given way to depression and melancholy. The little boy we knew so well is now reduced to living in a bordello, where he teaches the headmistress how to read. On his off hours, he scours the Thames river with a retired sea captain for dead bodies, who often hold some bauble of questionable value. He does his best to ignore his scattered family and the man who helps him pay the bills, Uncle Scrooge, who is a distant but ardent supporter. Tim feels ashamed of his position as a leech, and rarely meets with "Uncle N". The young Londoner is also haunted by visions of his deceased father, whose spiritfollows him still. It is a dark life, but Tim struggles on. His existence is radically altered when he discovers the body of a young girl with a disturbing brand on her skin, a brand which brings back long forgotten memories. Tim then comes in contact with a mysterious Italian immigrant girl, whose horror stories are only hidden by her bad English and her traumatized nature. It becomes clear to Tim early on that something monstrous is afoot. There is a dark force on the prowl of old Londontown, and it will come after Tim and his friends with a vengeance. Tim has quite the colorful cast of characters aiding him in his quest to keep safe the young Italian orphan, among them the street urchin turned professional aide de camp, Colin the Melodious. The two make an awkward team as they dodge vicious murders, fallen women, and corrupt Scotland Yard officials. With the financial help of his eccentric uncle and his police contacts, Tim begins to stumble on a nefarious conspiracy of power, hidden behind the walls of society. The revelation is horrific, as are the lengths the shadowy figures are willing to go to shade themselves from the light of public spectacle. With a story like that, I was surprised I did not enjoy the book more. Louis Bayard is an excellent writer, I thoroughly enjoyed his antique dialogue and his imaginative take on the world constructed by Dickens. However, I found the story itself sorely lacking. In short, it was simply worn and done before numerous times. I don't think you can even count how many times the "dark conspiracy in Victorian London", has been done, so there is no real surprise to the ending or even the plot. Also, I found Tim's mental lapses and visions of his father to be somewhat distracting and superfluous. It is readable, and the writing can be very soothing and humorous, but I simply felt a lack of hurry to finish it. Noble effort by Mr. Bayard.
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