Rating: 
Summary: Frugal Christmas Classic
Review: What impresses me about this edition is that it is affordable without being trashy. It is one of the "Dover Thrift Editions," which reprints classics for between $1.00-$1.50, so we have no excuse for not being literate and culture. This book, however, has the feel of a pricier classic. The cover is tasteful and evocative of yuletide. The typesetting and printing is high quality. I have never seen any faint ink, or skipped words, or typos in any of Dover's publications.But any book is about the story, and not the format. This story of human redemption is deservedly a classic. People can change, and anyone can improve, and that is the message of the season. Dickens' genius is not only his vivid description, but also his thought compression. It is only 68 pages long, so it can be read in one setting. I try to do thins, since the story has greater force if it is swallowed whole, without any commercial breaks. It is the pinnacle of Christian Fantasy.
Rating:
Summary: Christmas wouldn't be the same
Review: I had some reservations about listening to this on tape, but they didn't last long:) It has now become as much of a part of my Christmas ritual as the Christmas Tree itself. Patrick Stewart seems to have been born to read this classic tale. He does it all the justice it deserves and then some. For once, don't fear a book on tape, embrace it!
Rating:
Summary: I N S P I R I N G ! !
Review: I read this because I've seen all the media versions of it since I was born. I wanted to see what the "original" said. I wasn't disappointed. This is BETTER than all the movies (as good as they are). This book demonstrates the kindness, empathy and forgiveness that Christ taught us. Certainly Christmas-worthy if you ask me. --George Stancliffe
Rating:
Summary: D E L I G H T F U L !!!
Review: A few days back, I read in an article on Leo Tolstoy's "What is art?" that he quoted, as examples of the highest works of art, Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" along with other works such as Friedrich Schiller's "The Robbers" , Victor Hugo's "Les Miserables" and Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities". Since I've read these three - and since all of them are my favorites, I decided to hunt out all the books recommended by Tolstoy, "A Christmas Carol" being the first of those recommended, which I hadn't read before. Believe me this short novel didn't let me down. I wouldn't call it as great as "Les Miserables" or "The Robbers", but it perfectly fits into Tolstoy's main criteria of a great work of art - that which :
1.Flows from man's love for God and for man.
2.Unites people in the common, universal feelings of mankind and in such a manner as to lead to the betterment of human society. Tolstoy stressed on the moral content of a work of art - and on the emotional impact it makes on the reader - on its relevance and effectiveness in leading to a better world.
Considering these points, "A Christmas carol" is certainly an excellent novel. The theme of this novel, I'd put as: "A man's discovery of the joy in giving." Dickens', it seems, meant the novel to have a "social conscience" - exhorting the rich and amply endowed to look after the poor and wretched - to fight ignorance and want.
But he achieves much more than this -
1. This is a novel about the regeneration and rebirth of a man's soul - a man's return to innocence.
2. This novel clearly shows that man is never beyond redemption -that it is never too late to make atonements for one's past misdeeds. As long as there is a will and a future - man can always strive for the achievement of higher values.
3. Above all, this is (almost)the ONLY novel which radiates a sense of joy, benevolence and goodwill towards mankind which would endear it to any reader. The way Dickens has poked fun at the wrong and the erroneous, blending this critical attitude with a cheerful, benign humor is an exceptional achievement in itself, for it avoids bitterness & unhealthy sarcasm - and, while the seriousness of the subject is maintained, makes the reader smile all the way from the begining to the end of the story. The way in which he has captured the SPIRIT of Christmas is wonderful - I never knew that Dickens could write like this. Moreover, Dickens is not concerned with religious dogma or the scriptures or Christmas day as such - but has gone straight to the essence of the Christian philosophy and has attempted to show its beneficent consequences on men's lives. He has used this day as a medium for understanding and appreciating all that it stands for ; the wider moral and social principles are his concern - as should be, for any writer of stature. I'd conclude this review by saying that it is my heartiest and most earnest wish and request to not just the readers of this review but to every person in this world - be a child, be full of benevolence, mutual respect and compassion that you may be joyful and radiate joy and laughter too, to all of you out there - make EVERY day of yours a merry Christmas - and may your life be full of the bliss and goodwill this day brings to men - as has been so beautifully brought out by this delightful novel. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Rating:
Summary: Classic!
Review: The story A Christmas Carol written by Charles Dickens was a great story to read. My favorite part was at the end when the ghost of Christmas yet to come scared Scrooge. That ghost was also my favorite character. It took place in England. In the beginning of the story, Scrooge was being mean to all the people at his job. He went home and was having a bowl of soup when he heard chains rattling. He looked at the door and it flung open and Marly's ghost came through the door. The ghost explained he was going to be visited by three spirits. In the middle of the night the first ghost came the ghost of Christmas past. He showed him all the things he did wrong to other people. All of a sudden he awoke in bed and thought it was all a dream until the second ghost came. It was the ghost of Christmas present he showed Scrooge how poor all the other families were because of him and all of a sudden he woke up in bed again. The clock struck and another ghost appeared. He was the ghost that Scrooge was scared of the most. He showed Scrooge all the horrible things that happen and he shows Scrooge's employee. He goes to Cratchit's house and has a party. To conclude the story A Christmas Carol was an exciting story to read and you should read this book.
Rating:
Summary: A Fine Audio Edition
Review: Here we have Paul Scofield and Sir Ralph Richardson with a supporting cast doing justice to this Dickens Masterpiece. Yes it is abridged, but the story does not suffer from this. I think this is much better than Patrick Stewart's recording, which attempts to tell the story with Mr. Stewart doing all the characters by himself. Which is a good effort, but this recording
is a little bit more like an old radio play, and I think tells the story more effectively.
Rating: 
Summary: The ways of Scrooge
Review: A Christmas Carol is a story of social conscious, where wrongs are righted and kindness prevails. Set in a time much like today: where poverty is widespread, being of the middle class is popular and a small population holds a large potion of the wealth. Social class dictates life, most lifetimes are spent in a single class and there is seldom movement within the classes. The characters of Dickens novel live, and for the most part, thrive in this environment. They trust in the Lord and their fellowman; during this Christmas season they are charitable and kind, with the exception of Ebenezer Scrooge. He is a cold, heartless man with no compassion or sentiment. He hates Christmas and refuses to give any portion of his wealth to the needy and less fortunate. Scrooge is a cheap man, who doesn't trust banks, so he heats both his home and office with one small fire, keeps his money in a safe and counts it regularly. It is the only pleasure he allows himself. He is also a lonely man; his business partner, the closest thing he had to a friend, died seven years ago and he has disowned his one remaining relative.
The life of his office clerk, Bob Cratchit, is entirely different. Bob works from dawn until dusk for a poor fifteen shillings a week, and is only begrudgingly given Christmas Day off. Despite this, Bob is a happy man. He has a loving wife, six beautiful children and a warm, cozy home. The Cratchits where not happy with their situation, 'but they were happy, grateful, pleased with one another and contented with the time.'
The lives of Scrooge and the Cratchits are permanently interlocked after the three ghosts pay Scrooge a visit. His journeys with them and the realizations he comes to, leave him a redeemed man. He changes his behavior, vows to amend the wrongs he has done, but he is not a totally new man. Although Scrooge donates his money to the less fortunate and spends his time with the Cratchits, his actions are purely to appease his conscience. His motivation is to make himself to feel better and to prove that he has not lost all the decent qualities he has when he was younger.
Charles Dickens wrote this novel, his shortest, for the sole purpose of making money to support his family. He had several wives and many children; he spent most of his life living like Bob Cratchit, barley making bills and struggling to get his work noticed. A Christmas Carol was Dickens best selling novel, his intention was for his story to be popular, which it was, but he also added elements that would dig at the emotions of his peers. His depiction of a poor family at Christmas has become a tradition for years, and every Christmas someone reads his story and gives something of themselves to help make Christmas a better holiday for others.
Rating: 
Summary: Redemption Victorian style
Review: This slim volume is an example of Victorian literature at its finest. Dickens' literary voice croons with the tempo of the story, dark and foreboding as the ghosts escort Scrooge on his journey and upbeat and merry as he reforms his ways. It is a story of hope in the human spirit, urging you not to give up on people, not to count them out because they may surprise you. Although I doubt that many a moral eyesore can be transformed so easily and heartily as Scrooge, Dickens artfully exploited the marshmallowy feeling many experience during the Christmas season, which makes this a believable and much loved story.
Dickens immersed Victorian themes in many ways and with great skill. The worship of children as innocent creatures was apparent in the way that Tiny Tim was glorified. His pitiful image and heart of gold appeal to our senses as well as it did to the Victorians.
A thirst for the supernatural was quenched through the use of the three spirits. They are not exactly Christian in nature, yet they seek to do good. This secular flirtation could indicate that Victorians' faith was being shaken and in its place a value system based on choosing favorable Christian principles and disregarding the rest. As is human tendency, we do not usually care about anything until it is almost gone (such as endangered species), and when Christian faith was questioned, interest began to percolate in the Victorians. I believe we still like basic Christian ideals, but going to church is asking for a lot. We continue to have more of an interest in phantoms than angels.
Also integrated was the belief that the middle class is more virtuous because they work for their money. Bob Cratchit did not need moral instruction; Scrooge, an old miser, did. It teaches that sacrifices made for money will be costly. Scrooge lost a woman who loved him by being greedy. She dismissed him regretfully; "You fear the world too much. All your other hopes have merged into the hope of being beyond its sordid reproach. I have seen your nobler aspirations fall off one by one, until the master-passion, Gain, engrosses you" (Dickens 37). This theme is timeless as a recent movie, Family Man, heavily drew upon it as a successful businessman who had discarded the fancies of a wife and children, woke up one morning to having both and realized he had been in error. The Victorians and many contemporary Americans ache to believe that the pursuit of wealth is not as fulfilling as two hands with wedding bands clasped and changing dirty diapers. Whether or not this is accurate I cannot say because I have neither.
Dickens was a Victorian mastermind and he knew what Christmas was all about. It is about looking for the best in people and the world. It is one time that it is okay to be cheesy, okay to be touched by stories of hope and love. So next Christmas, when the snow falls like sugar and the sentimental tears fall like rain, pick up A Christmas Carol and watch the Victorians come out of the woodwork. They look a lot like us and this is why Dickens' novel has survived.
Rating:
Summary: Charming illustration and design warrant the extra cost
Review: Though this edition of Dickens' great "A Christmas Carol" is not a reprint of the original book form of the work (or indeed, even from the nineteenth century), it feels as if it is. The text is well presented in a old-ffashioned manner, and the illustrations represent various scenes from the book in appropriately good-humored fashion. If you don't mind paying a little more for a finer product, this edition of "A Christmas Carol" is worth further investigation.
Rating:
Summary: Moving & Beautiful
Review: Ebenezer Scrooge is just that. A scrooge. But when he is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, Christmas present, and Christmas future, he changes for the better. Seeing that no one will be coming to his funeral, and that his employee's son Tiny Tim is dying helps him to see that life does matter. This is a must-read book at anytime during the year, but truly touches your heart at Christmastime.
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