The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn/The Further Adventures of Ebenezer Scrooge

 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

I didn't like it when I first read it a few years ago, and upon reading it again I still don't. I tried to enjoy it as a boy's adventure story but whenever my mind goes to this book it's always in terms of Jim, not Huck. I do love Twain's writing and his sense of humour but I can't say I found much of this funny. I couldn't get past the way they treated Jim - the most decent character in the book - and I found Tom Sawyer so annoying and ridiculous I just wanted him to go away and stay there. Not my thing at all.  

The Further Adventures of Ebenezer Scrooge by Charlie Lovett

This was unexpected. I was familiar with the author from The Bookman's Tale, which was nothing at all like this, and was surprised by how much like Dickens it sounded. I listened to the audio version read by Tim Gerard Reynolds, who did a stellar job of creating a setting and characters authentic to the original story. 

Having seen the error of his stingy ways in A Christmas Carol, Scrooge now goes to the opposite extreme, giving away more money than he can afford and causing his banker no end of headaches. Bob Cratchit, Jacob Marley, and the three spirits all make an appearance and help bring Scrooge back to his senses.

Though I didn't find the plot all that interesting, the writing and narration were such a delight I didn't want to stop listening. I'll try it again next Christmas, maybe right after the first one so it will feel more like one integrated story.