A WORLD FULL OF DICKENS STORIES

Eight classic tales of rags to (literal or at least spiritual) riches, in long summary versions.

Arranged in no discernible order, the mini-tales open with chapter-length versions of Oliver Twist, close on Hard Times, and in between offer renditions of A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, and four more dramas. Along with occasional full-page scenes Hansen adds an opening gallery of major characters to each entry and a smallish illustration on every page. These do a bit to relieve the dense-looking blocks of narrative—though her small, hunched, wooden-looking figures, almost all bearing the stark-white, pink-cheeked complexions of mimes, only intensify the general air of gloom. McAllister successfully encapsulates the themes, main events, and leading character types in each story. Her efforts to evoke Dickens’ rich language are, however, at best pedestrian: “If you are wondering if I turn out to be the hero then you must read on,” David Copperfield tells readers; “It was the best of times but also the worst of times”; “From that day on nobody ever celebrated the spirit of Christmas better than Ebenezer Scrooge. And may that be true of us all.” Young readers intimidated by the bulk of the originals will find a livelier invitation to take the plunge in Marcia Williams’ Charles Dickens and Friends (2002), particularly when conjoined with Deborah Hopkinson’s A Boy Called Dickens, illustrated by John Hendrix (2012).

Anemic, dispirited distillations that argue eloquently for waiting till kids are ready for the originals.