Thursday, November 22, 2018

Bah! Humbug!

Bah! Humbug! Michael Rosen. Illustrated by Tony Ross. 2017/2018. 192 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: "Your Scrooge mask?" Ray Gruber yelled as the family climbed into the car.

Premise/plot:  Harry Gruber is playing Scrooge in his school's production of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. His father, Ray, a real-life Scrooge himself, is not pleased that he "has" to stop everything and attend the performance. Will Ray stop working long enough to watch his son shine as Scrooge? Will he tune in to the needs of his family? Or is he a lost cause?

My thoughts: This one was predictable. I won't lie. But it's predictable in a good way. It juxtaposes several stories. First, we have Rosen's adaptation of A Christmas Carol--the script Harry's performing. Second, we get a behind-the-scenes perspective as Harry is performing--on stage, off stage, in the audience. Third, we get to follow Ray as he undergoes a transformation not unlike Scrooge's.

I enjoyed this one and would recommend it.

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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