Good evening and welcome to the sleepy bookshelf.

This season we have a special holiday treat installed for you.

We'll be reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

We know our listeners are as unique as our novels and lucky for you, our bookshelf is varied

with lots of different types of stories to lull you into a deep sleep.

The following is a preview to give you an idea of what to expect from this season.

A Christmas Carol is a short book by English journalist and author Charles Dickens.

It was first published on December the 19th, 1843.

Dickens wrote the book in just over a month while taking walks around London at night.

It was so popular that the first edition sold out by Christmas Eve.

Like many of Dickens' stories, the Christmas Carol is a socially conscious work.

He used his writing to shine a light on the inequality he saw around him in Victorian England.

It tells the tale of a miserly businessman named Ebenezer Scrooge who cares for money

and profit above all else until never has time or a kind word for any of the people around him.

On Christmas Eve, he's visited by the ghost of his old business partner, Jacob Marley,

who warns him that he'll be haunted by three spirits.

They are the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and yet to come, who teach Scrooge a valuable lesson

about love, charity and kindness.

We hope you will join us for this season.

However, if you decide that a Christmas Carol isn't your cup of tea,

feel free to explore the rest of the bookshelf.

Make sure you'll find something to help guide you into a restful sleep.

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