Happy Halloween!

 

Hope you have more treats than tricks!

Bonus C.A. Murphy

I've talked a lot about how I enjoyed C.A. Murphy's illustrations for the 1957 Wonder Books adaptation of "A Christmas Carol," so I thought before we totally leave that topic, we should take a look at some more of his work.

These are from various pulp magazines and you can definitely see his style:

Cowboys, G-Men, spaceships and Tarzan? I'm in!

"A Christmas Carol" - Wonder Books (1957) - The Story

So, we've seen the illustrations by C.A. Murphy from Wonder Books' 1957 adaptation of "A Christmas Carol," but what about the story? How does it stack up?

I think Arthur Beckhard does a good job with the text. It's aimed squarely at 'tweens - the back cover says ages 6-12, but it doesn't really talk down to kids. It's just simplified and Americanized for the younger audience.

In fact, the time and place of the story are never mentioned. It's obviously some time in the past, but a kid would never know it took place in London unless someone told them!

Arthur Beckhard had a knack for such kid things, as he also penned some biographies for the younger set:

He also was a writer on a couple of Shirley Temple movies:

That some serious kiddie cred!

As for his adaptation, it gets in just about every major event from the original book, although some of them only briefly. I think the only scene from the book that doesn't get at least a nod is the future sequence with Caroline and her husband feeling relief at Scrooge's death.

Also, Ignorance and Want are not personified as children here, but the Ghost of Christmas Present does mention them along with Greed as problems in the world.

Other than that, there's not much in the way of social commentary, but that's how it is with most adaptations anyway, especially those aimed at kids.

There is one interesting wrinkle thrown in, however. At Fred's party, Scrooge mentions to him that Peter Cratchit needs a job. So apparently Fred stopped by the Cratchit home the next morning to offer Peter a job, as this is the reason Bob said he got to work late!

Also, Peter (mentioned as being 13 years old) would be making more than Bob, a situation rectified by Scrooge doubling Bob's salary.

In all, we get a good adaptation with fun art. I think kids of today could still enjoy it!

Oh, and on the subject pf Wonder Books, I totally want this one:

"A Christmas Carol" - Wonder Books (1957) - Stave 5

Next up we have Stave Five of "A Christmas Carol" as illustrated by C.A. Murphy for Wonder Books in 1957:

Did I mention I love these illustrations? As I mentioned before, you can tell exactly what's going on and follow the whole story without any text!

"A Christmas Carol" - Wonder Books (1957) - Stave 4

 

C.A Murphy takes us into the future with his illustrations for Stave Four of Wonder Books' adaptation of "A Christmas Carol" from 1957:

Looking good!

"A Christmas Carol" - Wonder Books (1957) - Stave 3

Back to 1957 and Wonder Books with C.A. Murphy's illustrations for Stave Three:

Can't wait for Stave IV!

"A Christmas Carol" - Wonder Books (1957) - Stave 2

Let's get right back to the illustrations by C.A. Murphy for Wonder Books' 1957 adaptation of "A Christmas Carol" with Stave Two:

Love 'em!

"A Christmas Carol" - Wonder Books (1957) - Stave 1

I really enjoy the illustrations by C.A. (Cornelius Anthony) Murphy (1989-1984) in the 1957 edition of "A Christmas Carol" published by Wonder Books.

The illustrations have that cartoony yet realistic style that's appealing to kids - or at least 1950s kids!

There's one on every page, so let's take a look at them stave by stave.

You can easily follow the story with no text!

Here's Stave One:

Good fun!