The Other Christmas Books

[poliphilo]

 My project for December- once I've cleared the decks of the things I'm currently reading- is to read Dickens's other Christmas Books. There was an article by Tim Smith-Laing in The Telegraph yesterday making a case for The Chimes as a story that has a lot to say to a divided and "broken" Britain-  but I don't think anyone has ever shown much enthusiasm for the other three. I read the Chimes and The Cricket on the Hearth as a kid and didn't understand either of them- then went on to read the first page of The Battle of Life- and its account of the afterlife of a Civil War battlefield and how the corn grew especially tall over the mass graves and people mowed round them, calling them "battle stooks"- has affected me as powerfully as anything Dickens ever wrote. Why didn't I read on? Probably because I was terrified. Something that begins that powerfully can't be a complete failure, can it? 

Well, we'll see. The Haunted Man and The Ghost's Bargain is a title that promises well....

And if I get through all four I reckon I'll finish off by re-reading A Christmas Carol....

Comments

[strange_complex]

Oh, I did this last December via a Wordsworth collection, and hugely enjoyed it. I'm afraid 'The Haunted Man and The Ghost's Bargain' was actually one of the stories I liked least, but that was only a relative judgement. It's still worth reading - once, that is, you have got past the single sentence which is almost two pages long early on! This year I've just started reading a collection of Elizabeth Gaskell's tales of mystery and the macabre instead. Looking forward to hearing what you make of the Dickens. :-)

[poliphilo]

Two pages long! These days that would be considered radical and experimental!

Gaskell and Dickens were friends, I think- or colleagues, anyway. The only thing I've read of hers is Cranford- and found it far too syrupy for my taste. Perhaps I should try something else.

[shewhomust]

Mrs Gaskell is never exactly dark, but Cranford is at the extreme. I liked North and South much better.