Dickens' Christmas: A VICTORIAN CELEBRATION.

UK,slim Qrto HB+dw/dj,1st edn.FINE++/FINE+.No owner inscrptn, and no price-clip (£16.99) to dw/dj.Bright,crisp,clean,glossy laminated,colour pictorial illustrated upper panel of dw/dj (scene from an 1833 Christmas card),a small,round stained glass portrait of Charles Dickens (set into a window of 48 Doughty Street, London,W.C.1,home to Dickens 1837 now Dickens House Museum) to rear panel of dw/dj,with white+yellow lettering; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.A small indentation/puncture to approx middle of spine/backstrip of dw/dj - board beneath appears unaffected.Top+fore-edges bright and clean; contents bright,tight,clean,solid and sound - virtually pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners - possibly unread? Bright,crisp,clean,sharp-cornered,publisher's original,plain brown cloth bds with bright,crisp,stamped gilt letters to spine/ backstrip and immaculate colour painting illustrated eps (Christmas fayre/ food on table).UK,slim Qrto HB+dw/dj,1st edn, 5-155pp [paginated] includes author intro,8 chapters (includes the complete text of 'A Christmas Carol'),profuse contemporary b/w+colour illustrations/paintings throughout the text and the book.Plus [unpaginated] colour vignette illustrated title page,b/w line part-illustrated contents list/table with Dickens colour portrait painting by Daniel Maclise (1806-70),a biblio and acknowledgements to rear. Want more DICKENS-related titles? For similar and other available titles use keywords q52_Charles Dickens - or please search my BIOGRAPHY,GENERAL and SIGNED catalogues. To Victorian England,Charles Dickens was Christmas.The publication of his hugely successful novel 'A Christmas Carol' in 1843,when he was already the country's most famous novelist, coincided with a decade which saw the invention of the Christmas cracker,the first Christmas card and Prince Albert's promotion of the Norwegian Christmas tree.And though Dickens' storytelling focused as sharply on the misery of the poor as on merrymaking,for his 19th-century readers the season of goodwill,under the benign influence of Queen Victoria,was fast becoming an opportunity for families to unite in a riot of celebration. Simon Callow,who has brought Dickens in triumph to audiences worldwide,now brings him to life on the page,lovingly re-creating the phenomenon of Christmas that fascinated the great novelist. Starting his pleasurable task in the ancient world of Christmas Past,Callow works his way through carols and Christmas trees, via waistcoat-popping dinners and plum pudding,to kissing under the mistletoe - not forgetting Christmas as a time for remembering those less fortunate.Christmastime for children - who became central to festivities the very moment Dickens invented Tiny Tim - is recalled in descriptions of dolls,drums and Santa Claus. Packed with evocative 19th-century illustrations, including some original scenes from Dickens novels,this literary Christmas cracker has,as its novelty filling,the complete text of 'A Christmas Carol'. Considered the most perfect work Dickens ever wrote,it was described in its time as a 'national benefit',with a cast including some of Dickens' most memorable characters; Ebenezer Scrooge,the Ghosts of Christmas Past,Present and Future,poor Bob Cratchit - and last but not least,Tiny Tim,whose toast; God bless us,every one!' will forever sum up the spirit of Christmas.
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