Christmas books

"The Christmas Books" (1843) contains five short stories, the most famous of which, "A Christmas Carol" portrays a pantomime victory of good will over evil, guided by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future, and presents such eternally infamous characters as Ebeneezer Scrooge and Jacob Marley.

The stories were written to question the myths of childhood, the legends of Christmas and the dire social conditions in which much of Victorian youth grew up.

Dickens saw Christmas as a time for remembrance and charity and his vision has influenced our view of Christmas ever since.

Included in this selection are "The Chimes", "The Battle of Life", "The Cricket on the Hearth" and "The Haunted"...Based on the world-famous "Nonesuch Press" edition of 1937, the text is taken from the 1867 "Chapman and Hall" edition, which became known as the "Charles Dickens" edition, and was the last edition to be corrected by the author himself. "The Nonesuch" edition contains illustrations selected by Dickens himself, by artists including Hablot Knight Browne ('Phiz'), George Cruikshank, John Leech, Robert Seymour and George Cattermole. The new "Nonesuch Dickens" reproduces the original elegance of these beautiful editions.

Books are printed on natural cream shade high quality stock, are quarter bound in bonded leather with cloth sides, include a ribbon marker and feature special printed endpapers.

Each book is wrapped in a protective, clear acetate jacket.