A Carol for Mrs. Dickens by Rebecca Connolly - ADVISABLE

A Carol for Mrs. Dickens by Rebecca Connolly, 176 pages. Shadow Mountain Publishing, 2025. $18.

Language: PG (2 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: G

BUYING ADVISORY: HS, ADULTS - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Eight years after Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol, his wife Catherine, or Kate, is struggling to feel up to celebrating Christmas. One of her children died earlier that year, and all the commercialization of a holiday meant to mean so much more and meant to be about Christ has left Kate forcing a smile at the Christmas party she and Charles are hosting. But then she has three marvelous experiences that breathe joy back into the celebrations.

This historical fiction story mirrors some of the elements of A Christmas Carol, and it is a lovely reimagining in a realistic setting. I was a tad disappointed about the lack of fantastical elements because I wanted to see what Connolly would do for a representation of the ghost of Christmas future, but Kate’s experiences were focused on past and present. Kate’s story is about the true meaning of Christmas, choosing to start the journey to change, and the goodness that can be found all around us.

Catherine is Scottish, and the rest of the characters are implied English. The mature content rating is for mentions of alcohol.

Reviewer: Carolina Johnson