Mr. Dickens and His Carol

October 15, 2017

Silva's fiction offers a take on how Charles Dickens came to write his famous holiday story, A Christmas Carol. Dickens has just excitedly finished his latest installment of Martin Chuzzlewit and welcomed his sixth child when his publishers inform him that Chuzzlewit isn't selling and he needs to write a Christmas story or lose money from his advance. Dickens is adamantly opposed, but with family depending on him, he accepts the challenge. Beset by demands from everyone he encounters, he struggles to write the story. Finally, he's captivated by an unexpected muse and his holiday spirit comes back, inspiring the much-loved and enduring classic. VERDICT Silva has imagined an intriguing and atmospheric backstory to the quintessential holiday tale and its most revered author.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2017
It's November 1843, and Charles Dickens is a man besieged. His latest serial, Martin Chuzzlewit, isn't selling, and his wife and children expect a splendid Christmas, with expensive decorations and gifts. Other family members, reliant on his generosity, need him to pay their bills. Citing a clause in his contract, his publisher demands he write a Christmas-themed book to satisfy his fans, but time is pressing. And how can he get in the holiday mood when it's so unseasonably warm? Bah, humbug! Frustrated yet determined, Dickens embarks on a quest that takes him back to his old haunts and introduces him to a beautiful young seamstress who motivates him. Making her debut, Silva creatively imagines the circumstances that inspired A Christmas Carol. The characters and atmosphere of Victorian London feel wonderfully Dickensian, and it's fun to see Dickens gathering new material through his interactions. His writerly dilemmas should resonate with literary types, too. With the wit and sprightly tone of a classic storyteller, Silva presents a heartwarming tale of friendship and renewal that's imbued with the true Christmas spirit.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)