1876 Rare Book - Christmas Books (A Christmas Carol, etc.) by Charles Dickens

Author: Charles Dickens. Illustrated by Fred Barnard.
Title: Christmas Books (Household Edition).
Publisher: London, Chapman & Hall, 193 Piccadilly, [1876].
Language: Text in English.
Size: 10 x 8 inches. 
Pages: 200 pages.
Binding: Attractive and very good original publisher’s green cloth binding, richly decorated in black and gilt with elaborate ornamental borders, central gilt title panel, and four charming Dickensian character vignettes in gilt. Spine gilt-lettered and decorated; rear board with blind-stamped central medallion (hinges fine, overall slightly scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover. An exceptionally bright, clean, and well-preserved copy of this striking Victorian binding.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean, rare light foxing and toning - as shown). Neat 19th-century ownership inscription on the front flyleaf dated June 21, 1877. 
Illustrations: Complete with 28  illustrations by Fred Barnard, including the frontispiece. Barnard’s dynamic, character-driven line work vividly captures the emotional depth and theatrical spirit of Dickens’s Christmas tales, making this one of the most beloved illustrated editions of the Household series.

Estimate: (USD 225–250).

The book: A beautiful and highly desirable Household Edition of Christmas Books, featuring all five of Dickens’s classic Christmas stories gathered into a single illustrated volume: A Christmas Carol, The Chimes, The Cricket on the Hearth, The Battle of Life, The Haunted Man.

Issued around 1876 by Chapman & Hall, Dickens’s long-standing publishers, this edition forms part of the celebrated Household Edition, created to make Dickens’s works accessible to a broader audience while offering high-quality illustrations by some of the best artists of the period.

Fred Barnard’s illustrations—more expressive and psychologically nuanced than the earlier Leech woodcuts—bring new depth and humanity to Dickens’s beloved characters. His depictions of Scrooge, Marley, Tiny Tim, and the Cratchit family remain among the finest ever produced for the Christmas stories.

The author: Charles Dickens (1812–1870) remains one of the greatest literary figures of the 19th century and a foundational voice of English literature. His Christmas books, beginning with A Christmas Carol (1843), reshaped the cultural meaning of Christmas itself—emphasizing generosity, compassion, and social conscience. Dickens’s vivid storytelling and moral clarity made these works perennial favorites, read aloud in Victorian households and reprinted countless times.

By the time the Household Edition was published, Dickens’s popularity was at its peak, and his Christmas stories had already achieved iconic status. They continue to shape modern Christmas traditions and remain touchstones of holiday reading around the world.

The illustrator: Fred Barnard (1846–1896) was one of the most influential artists associated with Dickens’s later illustrated editions. Commissioned specifically for the Chapman & Hall Household Edition, Barnard’s work helped redefine the visual identity of Dickens’s characters for a new generation of readers. His illustrations are known for their lively movement, theatrical composition, and ability to capture emotional nuance—qualities fully on display in this volume.

Barnard’s Christmas Books plates are among his finest, balancing humor, sentiment, and drama, and remain highly collectible today.