The classic short story of Ebenezer Scrooge, and his faithful, hardworking but incredibly poor clerk, Bob Cratchit. Scrooge is a penny-pinching skinflint who thinks Christmas is all so much 'humbug'. Cratchit worries over his lame son, Tiny Tim, as well as his other semi-destitute children. Scrooge is then visited by three ghosts while spending Christmas Eve alone: the Ghost of Christmas Past, that of Christmas Present, and finally, of Christmas to come. The Past reminds him of what a carefree, good-natured child he once was, while the Present shows him the dire plight of the Cratchits, as well as the good cheer felt by his nephew, even for him, who has shown him nothing but his bad temper. The Future then shows him a bleak grave, in which Tiny Tim lies buried. This is more than enough to melt the icicles around the old man's heart, and he changes his parsimonious ways, much to the relief of the Cratchits. Such good feeling from this metamorphosis that one feels spiritually warmed and enlightened, especially by Tim's final benediction: 'God bless us, everyone.' Buoyed by the overwhelming success of this novella, Dickens wrote a Christmas story every Yuletide season for several successive years, but none matched the delicate plotting and exquisitely fine characterizations he put to paper in this story. I've got around a dozen various movie versions: a real testament to its eternal popularity.

An annual read for me. Don't know how long I've been doing this, but, my daughter was a teenager when I started and is now a Mommy of 3.

My favorite Christmas story. Well, other than the nativity story. Scrooge has become like a part of my family. As well as Bob Cratchett and his family. Just a wonderful read.

Also, watch the movie with George C. Scott as Scrooge. He's my favorite Scrooge. To me, nobody else that I've seen even comes close.

Re-read December 2011.
Re-read December 2012.
Re-read December 2013.
Re-read December 2014
Re-read December 2019.
Re-read December 2022..
Re-read December 2023.
Re-read December 2024.

Quale periodo migliore per una rilettura di questa raccolta di racconti del periodo Natalizio? Su Canto di Natale non c’è più molto da dire, se non che sia un meraviglioso racconto classico senza tempo. Ho sempre trovato geniale l’idea della visita notturna degli spiriti e l’evoluzione del percorso di Scrooge, da uomo estremamente dedito al lavoro e al denaro, solitario e scontroso, alla sua redenzione e alla sua voglia di tornare a vivere. Dickens inserisce sempre una critica non troppo velata alla sua contemporanea società vittoriana, attraverso metafore o facendone “parlare” i personaggi, senza scadere nel polemico, anzi essendo anche molto originale. I racconti che seguono quello che da’ il titolo alla raccolta, non sono i tipici racconti di fantasmi e (a mio parere) sono così tanto ben riusciti, da superare autori che si sono dedicati molto di più alla scrittura di storie paranormali. I fantasmi di Dickens non vogliono terrorizzare il lettore, ma vogliono far comprendere che il loro scopo ultimo sulla terra è fare del bene e consolare i parenti amati in vita. Rigorosamente da leggere la sera, lo consiglio a tutti coloro che vogliono immergersi nelle cupe atmosfere vittoriane e che sono alla ricerca di storie originali.

"A Christmas Carol" is of course worthy of five stars, but as this is a review of the entire volume as a whole, I have settled on four stars instead.

You can't say "Christmas" without saying "Dickens". It is an undying rule and also a tribute to how great a writer Dickens truly was. How he managed to capture the perfect essence of the Christmas spirit in one small book and therefore creating an everlasting mark on our way to perceive this particular holiday. It is both an astonishing and remarkable accomplishment.

"There seems a magic in the very name of Christmas."

Besides the classic Christmas Carol, I also enjoyed the little essay "Christmas Festivities", which was delightful and heartwarming to read. Dickens managed to portray the most wonderful Christmas scene in six pages and as I read it I couldn't help but to smile.
I also loved the detailed description in "A Christmas Tree" where Dickens minutiously describes a Christmas tree and the thrilling fantasy flights it produces in the minds of children.
"The Seven Poor Travellers" was enjoyable as well, however I did struggle with "The Haunted Man" which is why the rating ended on four stars.

"Reflect upon your present blessings - of which everyman has many - not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some. Fill your glass again, with a merry face and a contended heart."

What struck me when reading this collection of Christmas writings was the nostalgic feeling Dickens associates with Christmas in general. In almost every story, Christmas is tightly connected with remembering the ones that has passed away and wishing them well wherever they might be. Nowhere is that as evident as in "What Christmas is, as We Grow Older", where Dickens seems to reflect upon the changes that each Christmas brings and the acceptance that is necessary in order to cope and move forward.
This gives the writings a deeper and more sincere angle and provides a beautiful morale for the stories.

Don’t read this. The other stories aren’t worth it, and if you wanna read A Christmas Carol, I suggest you find an adaptation. I was perpetually lost in Dickens’ dense text.

I have never read this book which I always thought to be a novel and in reality is more like a novella. I am not a Dickens fan for a number of reasons none of which is important at present. This story is a classic and I doubt there is any story by any author that is more fully known than this one. I think it would difficult to find any corner of this earth in which the residents were not familiar with the name of Ebenezer Scrooge. I cannot say for sure what has kept me from reading this story except that it is difficult to find a copy that hasn't been decorated and adorned with all sorts of embellishments common to the Christmas season. All I ever wanted was a simple copy of the book and then I found this one. I didn't realize it until I got home that it was more than A Christmas Carol and that it included other stories that I was not interested in and haven't read...as yet. It seems that Dickens wrote a number of other Christmas type stories some of which are included here. They all seem to be rather short so I think I'll save them to read throughout the season if I am so inclined.

As for the story itself I do not think a recitation of the plot is necessary because even if you haven't read the story, like me, you have at least seen more than one dramatic presentation of the story. What I can offer is that like all such dramatic presentations some liberties have been taken which I suspect was intended to update the story for contemporary understanding. Nevertheless, what is really engaging is to read Dickens' words. For me this is no small admission since one of my criticisms of Dickens' work is his wordiness, his long sentences, and his cumbersome plots full of unrealistic coincidences. None of this was present in this book. There were a few cultural references that would be obscure to a modern reader but my book footnoted and explained these references so they had no effect on the reader's pleasure. This story probably doesn't fit my normal definition of a 5 star book but I also think this book is an exception. The story is well over a century old and is universally known. It is timeless. There are no surprises contained in it as we all know exactly who all the characters are and what will happen and yet we continue to read it or watch it in order to share it with the new generation so that the real meaning of Christmas is preserved as Dickens and all the rest of us, each and everyone of us, would want. Enjoy and Happy Reading Holiday to all.

3.5 stars
4 stars for A Christmas Carol/2 or 3 for the others

I'm not sure how I've gotten to be the age I am without ever reading A Christmas Carol (I've never seen the movie either). I'm really glad that I decided to rectify that problem this year. I really enjoyed the well known tale of the ghosts of Christmas. The other stories were not bad but I didn't feel they had the same magic. This collection has some really interesting information in an appendix on Dickens's use of The Arabian Nights, a book which I really want to read.

I was struggling to get into the Christmas spirit this year, but I think old Mr Scrooge has done it.

A Christmas Carol is a story I'm sure most are familiar with; Scrooge is a tight-fisted, angry, bitter old man who hoards his wealth and treats everyone else like dirt. One Christmas Eve, he's visited by three spirits who show him the error of his ways, and the story ends wonderfully and happily.

I've seen countless film adaptations, all of which have that wonderful, Christmassy charm, but even so, none come close to this wonderful, charming novella. By the end, I had happy tears in my eyes and I felt that elusive Christmas spirit.

The other stories and writings in this book are ok, but none can match the magic of A Christmas Carol. I did enjoy the essay, A Christmas Tree and the short, but beautifullly happy, Christmas Festivities. But, the other writings fell quite flat in comparison to that perfect Christmas tale.

I'm glad I've finally read it, and I'm sure I'll read it each Christmas from now on.

Whenever I start a book like this, I expect for it to put me in the Christmas mood, and so it did! From the very first page, I could feel the crispness of the snow under my feet and the chill of the weather, and I didn't mind at all that we were in a graveyard!
Most of these Christmas stories contain pure magic - I especially loved the Sexton one and the legendary A Christmas Carol. Other stories didn't intrigue me that much but they still put me in the mood for Christmas. So all in all, I would say that this book was a success that needs to be repeated every Christmas in the many years to come.

I'm giving the whole of this collection a 3 star rating average, although the actual rating may be closer to 3.5. Let's just say that there's a reason that this is called "...Other Christmas *Writings*", not "Stories", because several pieces of this are not stories, for better or worse.

Christmas Festivites; A Christmas Tree; What Christmas Is, As We Grow Older; & The Seven Poor Travellers are all rather mixed, because they draw the line between story and writing so vaguely that I had a hard time truly understanding what it was I was reading, let alone what I was supposed to get out of them, depending on which writing it was.

A Christmas Episode from Master Humphrey's Clock was just a chapter from one of Dickens' other novels, so the impact the story had was not high; in fact, I actually complete forgot about the story's existence in the collection up until 5 seconds ago.

So the sum total rating of all the previously mentioned stories is low, like 2-3 stars maybe. Was not particularly enjoying myself with any of them, NOR was I getting anything out of them (since not all writings are meant to be "enjoyed").

However, the remaining 3 stories are great:

The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton was delightful in its brevity, and in its dismal storyline that still felt light and charming in a weird, somewhat twisted kind of way, and was nearly the fastest reading story of anything in the collection. (easy 5 star)

A Christmas Carol is obviously super iconic and well known, and it definitely lives up to it, especially thematically. I wasn't expecting to be thinking so much about the content while reading this as I did because of my familiarity with the story. It is right on the verge of 5 stars, and has a FANTASTIC final chapter, but I grew up with a fantastic adaptation (the 1970 "Scrooge" musical film starring Albert Finney as the titular character), that expanded especially on the final spirit's stave that holds this thing back SLIGHTLY. (about 4.5 star)

The Haunted Man and The Ghost's Bargain is a special one. Chapters 2 and 3 weren't quite as amazing as Chapter 1 was, but the whole story culminated in something unexpected and very thought provoking, especially Chapter 1, which is likely my single favorite part of this entire collection. (4 star overall, but Chapter 1 is probably like 6/5 star lmao)

I definitely recommend A Christmas Carol, The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton, and The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain; everything else? Eh. Not worth it.

n  "Christmas time! That man must be a misanthrope indeed in whose breast something like a jovial feeling is not roused—in whose mind some pleasant associations are not awakened—by the recurrence of Christmas."n

God, have I read a lot of Dickens in my time, and I can tell you right now that if all his books were more like this collection of short fiction—moralizing ghost stories and tales of festive cheeriness that revel in the nostalgia and overall phenomenon of Christmas—we'd have gotten along a lot better over the years.

I think Dickens's writing really shines in these shorter pieces in a way it simply doesn't in the long-winded, complex plots of his novels. When he's forced to stick to the point, rather than rambling for the sake of pennies, I actually found myself enjoying and appreciating his writing like I never have before. And you really do have to appreciate A Christmas Carol for the cultural phenomenon it has become, how its story has become so familiar to us, so captivating that it's been retold again and again in so many different ways (a few Disney Channel/Nikolodeon retellings from my childhood stick out in my mind).

I haven't picked up any Dickens in a while, but honestly, reading this collection has given me a renewed appreciation for his work, as well as, of course, a good dose of Christmas cheer to boot.

Reading Dickens is hard work. These stories may be famous and sweet and Christmassy; they may be interesting because of the socio-economic milieu and the elements of magical realism that bring about insight and growth and improvement. They don't change the fact that (in our day and age) it is hard work to read Dickens.

Om Dickens te lees is harde werk. Al is dié stories beroemd, al is hulle interessant weens die sosio-ekonomiese milieu en die magies-realistiese elemente wat insig teweeg bring, vir 'n hedendaagse leser is dit harde werk om Dickens te lees.