Happy Birthday, Mr. Dickens!

Today would have been Charles Dickens 200th birthday. I love reading Dickens books, such as Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickleby, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and of course, A Christmas Carol, which is by far my favorite. All of these stories were originally published as weekly or monthly chapters and were then collected as novels. While many of Dickens' stories are sad, dealing with the struggles of the poor and destitute, they also contain a message of hope that things will get better if you can just hold on, and a belief that people can be better.

Dickens' final work, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, was never completed, but it is one of my favorites. The story has been turned into a play, and much like the movie Clue, has multiple possible endings. When you go to see the play, the actors portray the story as written by Dickens. Then, they all come out onto the stage and tell the audience that this is as far as Dickens' story goes, but that notes he had left hint at three possible endings. They explain that each ending has a different culprit for the disappearance of Edwin Drood, and then allow the audience to vote on which ending they'd like to see. When I saw the play many years ago, they actors performed all three endings, much like in Clue. (This may be how it happened, but what about this?) I loved it! I think Charles Dickens is one of the greatest authors in the English language, with as long-lasting an impact as Shakespeare. So, today is a great day to remember Mr. Dickens and revisit one of your favorite Dickens' stories.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Dickens!