A Christmas Carol

The words and emotions of this classic tale are brought to life with exceptionally detailed illustrations that re-create the look and atmosphere of 19th-century London, produced by the winner of the Hans Christian Andersen Medal. Full color.

Charles Dickens was born on February 17, 1812, in Edinburgh, Scotland. When he was twelve, his father was imprisoned for debt, and the family moved into London's Marshalsea Prison, except for Charles, who was sent to work in a shoe blacking factory. This experience marked him deeply, leaving him with a lifelong concern for the poor and abandoned, especially children. Following the publication of a book of essays, Sketches by Boz, Dickens had an immediate popular success with his first novel, The Pickwick Papers. Fifteen major novels followed, including Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, and Great Expectations. In 1843, in need of money, he wrote A Christmas Carol, the first in a series of Christmas Books. The book was successful, but he made very little from it, partly because he had deliberately kept the price low so that poor people could afford it. Dickens died on July 9, 1870, leaving his last novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood, unfinished