The most popular of all ghost stories was first published on 17 December 1843, and by Christmas Eve 6, 000 copies had been sold at a published price of five shillings. The story of Scrooge, a miser who becomes a different man when he is presented with visions of past, present and future by Marley's ghost, was an immediate success and has remainded so ever since. It is a book to read on Christmas Eve beside a blazing fire - and the best introduction to Dickens for young readers not quite ready for his longer novels. Arthur Rackham, master of the fantastic, illustrated the story in 1915.
Charles Dickens was born in Hampshire on February 7, 1812. His father was a clerk in the navy pay office, who was well paid but often ended up in financial troubles. When Dickens was twelve years old he was send to work in a shoe polish factory because his family had been taken to the debtors' prison. His career as a writer of fiction started in 1833 when his short stories and essays began to appear in periodicals. The Pickwick Papers, his first commercial success, was published in 1836. The serialisation of Oliver Twist began in 1837. Many other novels followed and The Old Curiosity Shop brought Dickens international fame and he became a celebrity in America as well as Britain. Charles Dickens died on 9 June 1870. He is buried in Westminster Abbey. Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) was an English illustrator, recognised as a leading figure in the Golden Age of British book illustration. Specialising in pen and ink, as well as watercolour, some of his best-known works include his illustrations for Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm.
Title: A Christmas Carol (Everyman's Library children's classics)
Author: Charles Dickens
ISBN: 9781857159288
Binding:
Publisher: Everyman
Publication Date: 1994-10-06
Number of Pages: 160
Weight: 0.3584 kg
