Clad in a new festive and glorious clothbound cover, this timely reissue of Quentin Blake's take on "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens is a looker from the word go.

Everyone is probably familiar with the classic tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and his miserly ways, but Quentin brings the story to life in his trademark ink and colour drawings, dazzling and delighting us in equal measure as each of the familiar scenes unfold.

Scrooge is a horrid wretch at first, wizened and penny-pinching, he won't even let his employee Bob Cratchitt have a day off for Christmas.

But when Scrooge tucks himself up in bed that night, he's visited by three ghosts - the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas yet to come - who show Scrooge what will happen if he continues to live his life in his miserly manner.
This is one of Dickens' most powerful stories, and it's really not surprising that it has become as synonymous with Christmas as it has (in fact most folk lay the blame at Dickens' door for kicking off that whole Victorian tradition of Christmas as we have come to know (and love) it today!)

It's an utterly gorgeous book though...!

The beautiful illustrations underpin a child-friendly version of the original story.

Dashes of colour make Quentin Blake's illustrations even more amazing than they usually are (and having recently seen his work for "The BFG" up close, we're always completely amazed at his inking skills - turning the most innocuous inky squiggle into something that looks like it could leap off the page at any minute!)

"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens and Sir Quentin Blake is out now, published by Pavilion Children's Books (kindly supplied for review).

Is there a more Christmassy book than this? For Day 10 on our Booky Advent Calendar here's a festive classic reprinted lovingly in a new hardback edition...

Charles Dickens' classic christmas tale deserves a place on anyone's Booky Advent Calendar, but the original story can be quite a hard sell to kids. It's very wordy and unapproachable for younger readers so it's great to see a fantastically edited and illustrated version from the Usborne Young Readers range.

The tale itself is so well known, the story of mean old Ebenezer Scrooge who pinches pennies and lives in a constant state of avaricious misery, inflicting misery on others too. A thoroughly nasty and unchristmassy chap!

On the night before Christmas, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his late departed business partner Marley, who warns him that he will be visited by three spirits, the ghosts of christmases past, present and future. Scrooge scoffs at the warning but the first ghost soon arrives hot on the heels of Marley to show Scrooge the error of his ways.

The ghost of christmas present shows Scrooge what he's missing out on, and even though Scrooge is mean to his employee Bob Cratchit, the poor fellow manages to scrape together a christmas for his family and his young son Tiny Tim all the same.

The ghost of christmas yet to come has the most chilling message to impart. Scrooge is dead, and no one mourns him, no one is sorry that he has gone, no one misses him - the most tragic message of all. Is it too late for Scrooge to change his ways?

You'll know the rest - and though this book heavily edits down a fairly hefty story into just a few pages, it's nonetheless an effective and lovely version of a well loved classic, perfectly rekindled for children to love and enjoy.

Charlotte's best bit: Tiny Tim having a shoulder carry from a newly reformed Scrooge! Hooray!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A lovely version of a well loved Christmas classic, perfect for introducing children to the wonderful works of Dickens.