For this year I thought that idea worth a revisit and an expansion. I tracked down some more of my favorites and yours as well! Going through your comments from last time, I found a few versions that were new to me and I’ve included those here.
Though it’s been 174 years and countless illustrated editions of the book what remains is the myriad of ways to approach any given scene. From the arrival of Jacob Marley to the vision of Scrooge’s own grave, I present evidence that the solutions are endless.
Brett Helquist. 2009.
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This was the first Dickens story Rackham had attempted, and despite its ghostliness, and the opportunities for the supernatural that story presents for its illustrator, Rackham did not exploit these to the full. … It’s as if, in choice of his subjects, he voluntarily passed by the opportunity to terrify his readers with too many ghosts and images of retribution, and chose instead to calm them with pictures of sliding on the ice in smoky London, dancing with Mrs. Fezziwig and children bouncing about on Christmas Eve. Perhaps caught by the national anxiety and tragedy of wartime, Rackham voluntarily softened his interpretation of Dickens’ story in a way he might not have done eight or ten years earlier – or indeed twenty years later with Poe’s Tales.
Italian illustrator Roberto Innocenti was a new find for me, from one of your comments, in fact. I had a hard time tracking down any larger images online but this piece above is just lovely.
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Trina Schart Hyman. 1983.
Wow, nice post Corey. I didn’t realize I was missing out on so much Christmas Carol awesomeness! I want all 5 of these copies now.
Dean Morrissey also did a nice version. Rackham gets my vote for the best one.