Dickens and Christmas is an exploration of the 19th-century phenomenon
that became the Christmas we know and love today - and of the writer who
changed, forever, the ways in which it is celebrated. Charles Dickens
was born in an age of great social change. He survived childhood poverty
to become the most adored and influential man of his time. Throughout
his life, he campaigned tirelessly for better social conditions,
including by his most famous work, A Christmas Carol. He wrote this
novella specifically to "strike a sledgehammer blow on behalf of the
poor man's child", and it began the Victorians' obsession with
Christmas.
This new book, written by one of his direct descendants, explores not
only Dickens's most famous work, but also his all-too-often overlooked
other Christmas novellas. It takes the readers through the seasonal
short stories he wrote, for both adults and children, includes
much-loved festive excerpts from his novels, uses contemporary newspaper
clippings, and looks at Christmas writings by Dickens' contemporaries.
To give an even more personal insight, readers can discover how the
Dickens family itself celebrated Christmas, through the eyes of
Dickens's unfinished autobiography, family letters, and his children's
memoirs.
In Victorian Britain, the celebration of Christmas lasted for 12 days,
ending on 6 January, or Twelfth Night. Through Dickens and Christmas,
readers will come to know what it would have been like to celebrate
Christmas in 1812, the year in which Dickens was born. They will journey
through the Christmases Dickens enjoyed as a child and a young adult,
through to the ways in which he and his family celebrated the festive
season at the height of his fame. It also explores the ways in which his
works have gone on to influence how the festive season is celebrated
around the globe.
