Customer Reviews

A Christmas Carol Special Edition: The Charles Dickens Classic with Christian Insights and Discussion Questions for Groups and Families by Stephen Skelton

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We all, at one point or another, have heard the story of A Christmas Carol, whether we read the book in school, watched a movie with the family, or saw the Muppets version on youtube (which, by the way, is my favorite. I heartily recommend it.). But there is so much more to the story that we don't grasp because of how our culture has changed. This is the way it is with every classic book. But A Christmas Carol is a story that needs to be understood in it's full impact because of the story it tells and the lessons it teaches. Stephen Skelton has made it possible.

The Special Edition of A Christmas Carol is a small book, perfect to fit in a small handbag (or a stocking!) with a beautiful cover. The book itself is printed with Dickens' story in the main section of the pages, and the notes, subtext, and annotations printed in the outer margins. After every "Chapter" (called a Stave in the text) there is a discussion section, perfect for any age group, either young children or mature Christians. The discussion features Bible verses and questions, and relates events, topics, and themes from A Christmas Carol to our everyday Christian walk with God. Extra verses and topics follow the end of every discussion section for those older individuals who wish to go further into studying the themes targeted in the book: Selfishness, Regret, Repentance, Salvation, and Rebirth. At the end of the book is a list of resources for further study.
The story of A Christmas Carol remains, to this day, a classic in literature because it is a wonderful story of sin and greed turned around to Christianity and charity through allegory and parable. It has proved itself a wonderful story to every reader, and will continue to do so forever. Hopefully, this will be the edition that becomes the standard.

Recommendation: All ages. Wonderful for family discussions or group Bible studies. Perfect Christmas gift or stocking stuffer!
**Thank you to FSB Associates for providing my review copy!**

Somehow, in my 27 years of life, I had NEVER read a Christmas Carol. I've seen about a bagazillion adaptations, so, for me at least, the not reading it thing is just weird. Now that I have finally read it, it far surpassed my expectations. As with most things, the book is just better than all of the adaptations. Dickens's writing is so pure and innocent; he makes you feel that, with a little push in the right direction, anyone can be good. This book is a classic for a reason, and all the hype surrounding it is well-deserved. I would have loved to see Dickens himself do a reading.
Reading it with Stephen Skelton's insight made the reading experience even more satisfying. Every time there was something I didn't understand (or I thought I understood but actually didn't), Skelton was there with an explanation. I felt like I was really able to get righ into Dickens's head and understand the true meaning of his words.
Each chapter was followed by a study guide separated into 4 sections filled with insightful questions. I really enjoyed thinking through some of my answers to these questions, as they helped me to feel truly connected to the story and understand how Dickens's message can apply to how we celebrate Christmas and to me in my daily life. The first two questions in each section, while applying to adults as well, were written so as to be applicable to and easily understood by children. Because of this, it was a great book for parents to read with their children or for a bible study group, as the questions could easily lead to lively conversation.
I'd also like to point out that, while spiritual, I am not a Christian, and yet I still found the study sections thought-provoking and enjoyable.
A superb read!

Stephen Skelton has done a great job of clarifying the Old English, as well as the subtleties of Dickens' imagery & spiritual/Christian intentions. This story is about so much more than just a "Christmas miracle"; it's an allegory with deep spiriutal implications, which this edition has put on the "bottom shelf" for much easier grasping by the contemporary audience.

Excellent book. I taught a 4-week series on The Christmas Carol -- portions of the tale were read by a professional actor (member of our congregation) and I phrased question for interactive discussion. The discussion questions were most helpful. The series was a success--well received. Amazon did not fail me on their promised shipment. I use there Prime no charge shipping too. Good experience!

I recommended this to our church and this year we had a Sunday School class use this book as a Bible study. I have always had plays and movies of A Christmas Carol and never bothered to read it. This was a wonderful experience for me and especially with the footnotes telling about the old English words. The best lights upon this work are the bits about Dickens life and beliefs that enhance the tale he has given us. I have bought many of these to give away. A good book to read and to share.

A Christmas Carol Special Edition by Charles Dickens with Stephen Skelton, an annotated version with the original 1843 text, is a treasure trove of information. Like many others I was very familiar with the story via the various movie adaptations, but I had never actually read this seasonal classic.

What a treat it was to not only read the original text, but to have a knowledgeable guide, Stephen Skelton, provide definitions, insights, and thought provoking discussion topics! As Skeleton explains:

Through the study of this work . . . we will discover the spiritual depth of Dickens and his writing and learn what lessons of Christ are woven in among the scenes of Christmas Splendor and the soul searching of a Scrooge. The notes also offer some help to twenty-first century readers in understanding some of the obscure words and phrases that appear in this presentation of the original 1843 text . . . .

A Christmas Carol Special Edition by Charles Dickens with Stephen Skelton will delight both old and new readers of this classic!


Publisher: Standard Publishing; Annotated ed. (September 1, 2009), 128 pages.
Advance Review Copy Provided Courtesy of FSB Associates.

I purchased this book as a guideline for a mini kids service we did during the Christmas season. I would recommend getting the accompanying study guide as well.

I am a fan of Christmas Carol in all shapes and form, but this book is very unique. I love the side notes regarding language of the time. Also, the notes also show how some of the writing by Dickens can be correlated to the Bible. I am reading it with my 12 year old son, and find it wonderful for discussion. Fun at Christmas but a great learning tool as well!

A Christmas Carol Special Edition by Charles Dickens edited by Stephen Skelton makes the timeless classic new again. Dicken's A Christmas Carol has been told hundreds of times over in many different formats with varying degrees of success. Skelton doesn't change one word of the original story, but provides footnotes that offer new understanding of the story giving it added depth and power. He explains the various references to spirits in the opening chapter of the story that would have told Victorian era readers that the story would have a spiritual element, something that today's readers wouldn't necessarily notice. He also offers definitions of words not commonly used anymore. It was neat finding out that a Glee means a group of people singing a song with at least two different parts in harmony. At the end of each chapter, Skelton includes several questions to encourage readers to think more deeply about the story and to bring the message home. The questions vary in difficulty from those for adults to questions perfect for children. I have read the classic book before, but this study made its message fresh and relevant for today's readers.

Every year, as a child, I would watch "A Christmas Carol" on television. I was entranced and even a little scared when the ghosts came to visit. As I grew older, I had no interest in reading the book, since I almost knew it by heart. What a terrible mistake I had made. The book is so much better than anything that I've seen on the screen. Dickens tells such a truly amazing story!

"The Christmas Carol Special Edition", though, made me thankful that I hadn't read it earlier. On each page, in the side margin, are wonderful notes that tell the reader wonderful tidbits about the time period, about Dickens himself and why he wrote certain things, where they came from, and how somethings were a reflection on Dickens life. Things that would have been passed by and things that didn't make sense, were pointed out and explained, and truly enhanced the story.

Stephen Skelton did a fantastic job with the explanations, however, I wasn't as impressed with the Christian views. It felt like he was really trying to make something out of things that weren't there, to match some Biblical views. One such reference that comes to mind was when the Spirit of Christmas Present was going to take Scrooge with him, Scrooge took hold of his robe to travel. According to Skelton, that action was to heal the spirit of Scrooge and likened it to the woman who touched Jesus' robe and was healed.

After each Stave (chapter), one will find a discussion section. This section is set up to use with a group, child through adult, or even self-study if one would like. This would make a nice addition to study groups, and especially nice for home schooling families.

Overall, this is a beautiful book that should be on everyone's shelf. If you have problems with some of the Christian references, they can easily be excluded. The information about Dickens and the times alone are worth the purchase of this book.