REVIEW: A Christmas Carol 2

A Christmas Carol 2
Author: Robert J. Elisburg

Ebenezer Scrooge has been dead for 5 years. There must be no doubt whatever about that, or the tale Robert Elisburg relates will have no purpose. Scrooge was dead as a doornail. And, in that time, the abundant benevolence of Bob Cratchit has nearly bankrupt the exchange house, Scrooge and Marley, which he inherited upon the death of his long-time employer. The business is nearly bankrupt, and the situation appears dire. What's the answer? Scrooge returns, and sends 3 spirits to confront Cratchit with his poor business habits, hoping to reform him to more prudent outpourings of love to his fellow men.

Once again, readers are taken on a whirlwind tour of Christmas past, present and future, with an over abundance of character name dropping from other works by Charles Dickens. This book is a continuance of the tale, told with cheeky humor and a leaning towards ascerbic wit and sarcasm. Cratchit means well, but he is bungling and doesn't understand that his easy way with the company's assets might be doing more harm than good. And his lack of understanding sometimes makes him the mark for people who are less than honest in their dealings with him.

The ghosts have but a short time to set him back on the right path and teach him the ways of prudent business and finance.

This book was ok. It was well-written and witty. I did get a bit tired of the constant references to characters from other works by Dickens. Everyone had at least a bit-part in this melodrama -- characters ranging from Fagin to Little Dorrit made their appearances to help Cratchit learn the error of his ways. I understand that this piece was meant to be dark humor, and it managed that very well. For me, it missed the mark. Only because it wasn't what I would have chosen to read. A Christmas Carol is my favorite book, and has been for 40 years. I don't want it reduced to a farce of dim-witted, ill managment....what I wanted was a real continuation of Dickens work. That disappointment stems from my expectations, and not the actual quality of the work.

I liked it. It was ok. Just not my cup of tea. Others who enjoy quick wit and don't mind the re-working of the tale in this manner, might love this book.

Give it a whirl. Made me re-think some of my spending habits. And I did enjoy reading the footnotes about the various Dickens characters. (For those who haven't read a lot of Dickens, the character references are labeled with footnotes, where you can read the background. So don't worry....the references won't pass you by unnoticed.)

My rating: 6/10
Ages: 16+, just because of all the references that children might not understand or care about.