A Christmas Carol

Being a Ghost Story of Christmas

Charles Dickens 1843

This short ghost story follows Ebenezer Scrooge, a miser visited by spirits on Christmas Eve. The Ghost of Christmas Past takes him back to a joyful party hosted by his former employer, Fezziwig.

106 pages 2h 4m reading time

The most famous Christmas story in the English language, read and retold every holiday season for nearly two centuries.
Argues that it is never too late to change, showing a cold, selfish man who becomes kind and generous in a single night.
Insists that the rich have a duty to care for the poor, using the sick child Tiny Tim and the struggling Cratchit family to show the human cost of greed.
Gave English the word "Scrooge" for a stingy person, along with the scornful phrase "Bah! Humbug!"
Helped shape the modern idea of Christmas as a time for family, feasting, and charity, and has inspired countless plays, films, and adaptations.

Written in six weeks

Dickens wrote the whole story in about six weeks in late 1843, finishing just before Christmas.
Paid for it himself

After a quarrel with his publishers, Dickens paid to print the book and insisted on a fancy binding and color pictures.
Sold out by Christmas Eve

The first 6,000 copies, released on December 19, were all sold within five days.
Little money for Dickens

The high printing costs and a low price meant his first earnings were far less than he had hoped.