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by Marron Marvel on 12.13.10

PadWorx Digital Media's interactive steampunk version of the Charles Dickens classic A Chrismas Carol may have me eating my words. When I first heard about this, I was sort of adamant against it because I'm really against the abridging of books, especially classics. I was skeptical about PadWorx's claim the book was "lovingly abridged," but being a fan of Charles Dickens and steampunk, I decided to give it a try anyway.

There was no lie when the word "lovingly" was used. I was thoroughly impressed by this eBook. Each page presents the story with fun and colorful steampunk graphics, original music, and (for many of the pages) some sort of interaction; for instance, on the page in which Scrooge first returns to his residence and Marley's ghost appears in the door knocker, there is a key on the page. Once you drag the key over to the keyhole below the normal, unghostly door knocker and it turns, Marley's ghost appears over it, and the entire page changes. It's pretty cool, and the entire book is filled with cool things like this.

It was nice re-reading A Christmas Carol as it's been a few years since I've touched it. Although the book is centered around Christmas, the moral lessons provided by Dickens are only quasi-religious at best. A greedy, selfish miser who has no consideration and a lack of empathy for his fellow man, Scrooge and his bitter indifference are transformed by the acts of love, generosity, and goodwill the spirits show him, through memories of his own childhood and life, the plight of others — such as his employee Bob Cratchit's son Tiny Tim — and even fear of his own death. Dickens illustrates even the most insensitive and self-serving of people can become charitable and caring. Seeing the visions the spirits give to Scrooge is also a warning of what happens if one does not change and learn to become a socially conscious member of society. It's an important lesson to learn, and I really feel like the way PadWorx has presented the story will make it absolutely great for parents to read with their kids.

There was really only one flaw I found with this eBook app, and that flaw is it takes way too long to turn the pages. When I press the arrow to turn the page, there's a visible lag before the page slowly begins to flip to the next one. Other than that, the graphics and music are fantastic, and it's a fun and imaginative way to present a classic story to the next generation.

A Christmas Carol is available for purchase for your iPad in the iTunes store for $4.99. It's worth every penny.