A Christmas Carol in Prose

By Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is a timeless classic that tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a wealthy and miserly businessman who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve. Through their visits, Scrooge is forced to confront his past, present, and future, and ultimately learns the true meaning of Christmas.


One of the key themes in A Christmas Carol is redemption. Scrooge is a character who has been consumed by his greed and selfishness, and has lost touch with the people around him. However, through his interactions with the ghosts, he is given a second chance to change his ways and make amends for his past mistakes. This theme of redemption is a powerful message that resonates with readers of all ages.


Another important theme in A Christmas Carol is the importance of family and community. Scrooge is a lonely character who has pushed away those closest to him, but through his experiences with the ghosts, he realizes the value of human connection and the joy that comes from being part of a community. This theme is particularly relevant during the holiday season, when people come together to celebrate and share in each other's company.


In addition to its themes, A Christmas Carol is also notable for its vivid characters and rich descriptions. From the ghostly apparitions to the bustling streets of Victorian London, Dickens paints a vivid picture of a world that is both familiar and fantastical. His use of language and imagery creates a sense of magic and wonder that captures the spirit of the holiday season.


A Christmas Carol is a timeless classic that continues to resonate with readers today. Its themes of redemption, family, and community are as relevant now as they were when the book was first published in 1843. Through its vivid characters and rich descriptions, it transports readers to a world of magic and wonder, reminding us of the true meaning of Christmas.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Aegitas
• Release date: Jun 25, 2023
• ISBN: 9780369409331

Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens was born in 1812 and grew up in poverty. This experience influenced ‘Oliver Twist’, the second of his fourteen major novels, which first appeared in 1837. When he died in 1870, he was buried in Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey as an indication of his huge popularity as a novelist, which endures to this day.

Book preview

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

by Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is a timeless classic that tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a wealthy and miserly businessman who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve. Through their visits, Scrooge is forced to confront his past, present, and future, and ultimately learns the true meaning of Christmas.

One of the key themes in A Christmas Carol is redemption. Scrooge is a character who has been consumed by his greed and selfishness, and has lost touch with the people around him. However, through his interactions with the ghosts, he is given a second chance to change his ways and make amends for his past mistakes. This theme of redemption is a powerful message that resonates with readers of all ages.

Another important theme in A Christmas Carol is the importance of family and community. Scrooge is a lonely character who has pushed away those closest to him, but through his experiences with the ghosts, he realizes the value of human connection and the joy that comes from being part of a community. This theme is particularly relevant during the holiday season, when people come together to celebrate and share in each other's company.

In addition to its themes, A Christmas Carol is also notable for its vivid characters and rich descriptions. From the ghostly apparitions to the bustling streets of Victorian London, Dickens paints a vivid picture of a world that is both familiar and fantastical. His use of language and imagery creates a sense of magic and wonder that captures the spirit of the holiday season.

A Christmas Carol is a timeless classic that continues to resonate with readers today. Its themes of redemption, family, and community are as relevant now as they were when the book was first published in 1843. Through its vivid characters and rich descriptions, it transports readers to a world of magic and wonder, reminding us of the true meaning of Christmas.

A Christmas Carol

by Charles Dickens

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

This edition was created and published by Aegitas

2023

Get more books at aegitas.com

Reader Reactions

From Adrian

I have no idea how many years it is since I read this book (or even a Dickens book), it has to be over 45 years (I thought it was 35 then realised I was getting old, aghh!)

That said i remembered some of it well, maybe that's seeing so many TV/Film versions (Alastair Sim and Patrick Stewart being my favourite Scrooges (And Rowan Atkinson)).

I'm sure everyone knows the story of A Christmas Carol, so I won't go into the story, just to say Dickens story telling ability is up there amongst the best. His descriptive powers are wonderful and you feel like you are there in Victorian London. Ok I know London, I am a Londoner, but its great to hear what it was like in Victorian time. Also his handling of human interactions and emotions is just so enjoyable to read.

A fantastic short (ish) story that makes me want to read more Dickens, which is a real problem as I want to read more of everything.

From Annet

Having seen many movie versions of this famous book , I thought it was finally time to read the book this (time of) year and I did!

How talented Dickens was… to invent this story and write it in beautiful language. Maybe I'll reread it again by Christmas time next year, so much detail there, deserves great attention, and my good intention will be to read more Dickens in the time to come. A delightful book, a very talented writer, so long ago… A magical story, famous for its moral and 'advice in life', capturing the hearts of people young and old…and through times it will always stay that way.

And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless Us, Every One!

From Tim

2022 has been a rough year for me personally, but one highlight is that it has been the year I finally got into the works of Charles Dickens. Dickens has been one of those authors who I’ve felt like I needed to read for quite some time (I majored in English and not a professor assigned him all those years ago). I started with A Tale of Two Cities and moved on directly after it to Oliver Twist. Now we’re at my third Dickens work and what better book to read at this time of the year than A Christmas Carol?

I won’t go into the plot. You all know it. We’ve seen hundreds of adaptations, they follow the same storyline, they all have practically the same dialogue. In fact, if you can think of a notable scene that you don’t see in EVERY adaptation, it’s likely because it was not in the original. It actually was remarkably interesting reading this and practically knowing every response in dialogue as I’d seen so many of the adaptations every year since childhood.

So is the book worth a read? You already know it is. It’s a classic for good reason. It’s a wonderful story and it is one of Dicken’s shortest works, but it packs more of an impact in its short page count than many a longer book could ever hope to. It receives a full 5/5 stars from me…

But no, I will never do the Tiny Tim line, as I’m sure most other Tims would refuse to do as well.

From Phrynne

Whether we have read the book or not I think we all know the story of Ebenezer Scrooge and his overnight conversion from miser to philanthropist. The most amazing thing is that a novella written so long ago still has such an effect on us each year at Christmas time.

I love Dickens and always have ever since I was introduced to him at school by way of David Copperfield and Great Expectations. A Christmas Carol is one of his easier reads but it is still full of his wonderful way with language. No one writes descriptions quite like him!

This was a reread for me and I am very glad I did it. Maybe I will find time to reread some more of his major works this coming year:)

From Sara

Every year or so I re-read this lovely Dickens' classic, and I appreciate it the same every time. It is one of the few stories that is so well written that even Hollywood dares not tamper with it. I have seen (as no doubt you have) multiple versions of this story and no one ever tries to add or subtract from the events. That is a statement in itself.

When we think Christmas, much of what comes to mind comes directly from the pages of this book. I hope we can all find a moment to include the three spirits in our lives this year. And, as Tiny Tim would say, God Bless us, every one.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

IN PROSE

BEING

A Ghost Story of Christmas

by

CHARLES DICKENS

PREFACE

I have endeavoured in this Ghostly little book, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall not put my readers out of humour with themselves, with each other, with the season, or with me. May it haunt their houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it.

Their faithful Friend and Servant,

C.D.

December, 1843.

STAVE ONE.

MARLEY'S GHOST.

Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it: and Scrooge's name was good upon 'Change, for anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail.

Mind! I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might have been inclined, myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in the trade. But the wisdom of our ancestors is in the simile; and my unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the Country's done for. You will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a door-nail.

Scrooge knew he was dead? Of course he did. How could it be otherwise? Scrooge and he were partners for I don't know how many years. Scrooge was his sole executor, his sole administrator, his sole assign, his sole residuary legatee, his sole friend, and sole mourner. And even Scrooge was not so dreadfully cut up by the sad event, but that he was an excellent man of business on the very day of the funeral, and solemnised it with an undoubted bargain.

The mention of Marley's funeral brings me back to the point I started from. There is