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Rating: 
Summary: Great story!
Review: Great little moral tale about life, death, Christmas, love and war. The author spins a masterful web around history in giving us a warm sequel to Dickens timeless tale. Long overdue. I loved it.
Rating:
Summary: A most intriguing story
Review: I bought this book after hearing Dale Powell speak in Richmond, Va. Powell is a master storyteller and this book is a glowing example of his ability to weave history with fiction for a gripping affect.
I look forward to more from this talented storyteller.
Rating: 
Summary: Not bad, but could have been better.
Review: Like Dickens' Christmas Carol, this tale is short, one that could be read on a winter's evening, perhaps right around the Holiday Season.Perhaps because I read it last night, during the middle of August, I found myself dissapointed. There was no snow on the ground, no tree in my living room. No holiday music in the air. Then again, I don't think it would have mattered that much. I had heard about this book some time ago, and over time, have kept promising myself to order it. I finally did - and sadly the anticipaton did not match the delivery. As the other reviewers have stated, this was written by a Middle School teacher who has an affinity towards Dickens. While I cannot claim to have read everything Dickens wrote, like many people, I have a strong love for "A Christmas Carol." Whether you're Catholic, Jewish, etc -- the Carol is a wonderful story that transcends religious beliefs (depsite its Christian overtones) and tells us to hold love in our hearts -- for ourselves and one another. And I truly believe that is exactly what the author of this sequel was thinking when he wrote this. Another reviewer said this book was written with children in mind-- if that's the case then I can understand the writing. But at times, I found some of the dialogue weak, even by young adult standards. Also, I'm not the greatest when it comes to grammar, but I spotted more than a few glaring grammatical errors in the course of the tale. And yes, (as another reviewer said) the political correctness was a bit over the top, as was the author's continued driving of the point regarding Ebeneze Scrooge's redemption. Perhaps I'm in a minority, but I've never forgotten the fact that Scrooge was redeemed at the end of "Carol." As for the PC-ness of the book -- there was nothing wrong with the message(s) that Dale Powell was trying to convey. It just felt like he was trying way too hard to convey it. There are several other "Christmas Carol" sequels out there -- none of which I have read, but are available here on Amazon, and appear to have rather good reviews. I'm inclined to check some of them out, including "Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol" and "The Trial of Ebenezer Scrooge" I guess ultimately, I'm not saying "Do not read this book," but perhaps explore other options before reading it. Don't expect an absolutely amazing story, but do expect to read something that an individual put a great deal of time, effort and heart into. And for that, I applaud Mr. Powell.
Rating:
Summary: I liked this book
Review: There have been a couple of bad reviews on Amazon about this book, but I think the reviewers have not thoroughly read the book. I also feel that they may be gunning for the author because he had a brilliant idea.
The author (Dale Powell) is a middle school teacher, and this book is written for kids- it is full of history that is craftily woven into the tale. That is part of its brilliance.
Also Powell acknowledges in the preface that he is in no way a Dickens and fully acknowledges his "shortcomings to the master" as he puts it.
I am also a teacher and the author has nothing for which to apologize. He created a great moral tale that my students and I thoroughly enjoyed. Some of my students thought it was better than the original, which is NOT timeless, but laced with antiquity.
Rating:
Summary: This is a very moral story for kids
Review: There have been a couple of bad reviews on Amazon about this book, but I think the reviewers have not thoroughly read the book. I also feel that they may be gunning for the author because he had a brilliant idea.
The author (Dale Powell) is a middle school teacher, and this book is written for kids- it is full of history that is craftily woven into the tale. That is part of its brilliance.
Also Powell acknowledges in the preface that he is in no way a Dickens and fully acknowledges his "shortcomings to the master" as he puts it.
I am also a teacher and the author has nothing for which to apologize. He created a great moral tale that my students and I thoroughly enjoyed. Some of my students thought it was better than the original, which is NOT timeless, but laced with antiquity.
Rating:
Summary: Great story!
Review: This is a must read for Christmas. It challenges the reader to something that so few books do any more. And that is........
THINK!
At times it is a tear jerker, but happy in the end. Even though the author claims he does not- he DOES do justice to the original.
Rating:
Summary: Grat tale for Christmas
Review: This is nothing like the original, but a powerful story. Dickens would be proud!
Rating:
Summary: I was pleased to find this
Review: This little story is a gem. It's writing is more in the mode of storytelling than novel-writing--but it is layered with richness of parallels.
I do not know who the author is other than what it says in the book and I cannot find out anything about him. Is he a ghost writer himself?
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