Publisher's Synopsis
In late October 1843, Dickens sat down and began to write furiously. He had decided to take a risk and write a heartwarming holiday tale inspired by his own struggles to rise out of a poverty-stricken childhood. No publisher would agreed to take on the project so Dickens used what little money had to design the book, find an illustrator, print and bind it, and market and distribute the final product himself--all in time for Christmas. The book was not an obvious success. In fact, Dickens worried it might be the end of his career as a novelist. At the time of its publication, the Christmas holiday was on the decline in England and the United States.* Gift-giving was out of the question for the families of working men, and even if the money were available, the lingering influence of Puritanism in both countries branded any such extravagance in the name of Christ as pure blasphemy. ???? But Dickens did not have to wait long to see if he'd guessed right. The book immediately caused a sensation. The first printing--all 6,000 copies--sold out by the 22nd of December and the book went quickly into second and third (and ultimately untold) editions. The effects were not confined to the bottom line in Dickens' ledger sheet. A Christmas Carol, with its emphasis on charity and transcendence and the power of familial love, rekindled an interest in dimly remembered Christmas traditions that had faded with the onslaught of the Industrial Revolution -- cooking a feast, spending time with family, and spreading warmth and cheer. One merchant who heard the author read his tale at a public performance stood up to announce an immediate reduction in the hours of his workers, then hurried out of the hall to buy them each a Christmas goose.
