A Christmas Carol

• Genre: Fiction; novella; classic Victorian literature; ghost story
• Originally Published: 1843
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 900L; grades 6-12; college/adult
• Structure/Length: 5 chapters, referred to by the author as staves; approximately 104 pages; approximately 3 hours on audio
• Protagonist/Central Conflict: The story, set in Victorian-era London, focuses on Ebenezer Scrooge, a bitter and stingy old man who undergoes a profound experience of redemption over the course of a Christmas Eve night. After being visited by the ghost of his deceased business partner and three spirits of Christmas (Past, Present, and Yet to Come), Scrooge transforms into a kinder, more empathetic individual.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Ghostly apparitions; themes of death and poverty; depiction of socioeconomic inequality; dated and culturally insensitive language (The original text refers to Tiny Tim as “crippled,” which was accepted terminology at the time, but the term is now considered offensive.)

Charles Dickens, Author

• Bio: Born 1812; died 1870; influential British author and social critic; raised awareness about the plight of the poor and disadvantaged; extensive body of work across genres; considered one of the greatest novelists of the Victorian era; his works remain popular and widely studied; buried in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey
• Other Works: Oliver Twist (1837); David Copperfield (1850); Bleak House (1852); Hard Times (1854); Great Expectations (1860)