Jacob T. Marley by R. William Bennett - Product Review

A New Christmas Tradition!

Jacob T. Marley
by R. William Bennett
Deseret Book
2011 Christmas Books & Things, pg. 9
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About the book:  “Marley was dead to begin with . . .”

These chillingly familiar words begin the classic Christmas tale of remorse and redemption in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Now R. William Bennett rewinds the story and focuses the spotlight on Scrooge’s miserly business partner, Jacob T. Marley, who was allowed to return as a ghost to warn Scrooge away from his ill-fated path. Why was Marley allowed to return? And why hadn’t he been given the same chance as Ebenezer Scrooge?

Or had he?

Written with a voice reminiscent of Dickens, Jacob T. Marley is a masterfully crafted story of remorse and redemption, sure to become a Christmas favorite.

About the Author:  R. William (Bill) Bennett grew up on the New Jersey shore and in New England. He spent more than thirty years in business, including many years as an executive of various technology companies, and most recently, as a division president of Franklin Covey. He is also the author of the award-winning novella The Christmas Gift. Bill and his wife, Loree, have been blessed with four wonderful children and two grandchildren and reside at the base of the Rocky Mountains in Alpine, Utah.

Kay's Kritique:  A tradition I have is watching A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens every year.  My favorite is the one with George C. Scott as Scrooge - although I also really enjoy the 1951 version with Alastair Sim as old Ebenezer.  So when I saw this title coming out, I thought - "Yes I always wanted to know a little more about Jacob Marley!" and Jacob T. Marley by R. William Bennett did not disappoint.  The writing is very "Dickenish" -- and when looking at Marley's life with the aid of some "spirits", it caused me to pause and reflect on my own life and wonder how many opportunities I've passed up by not following a simple little prompting or just not paying a little more attention to people around me.  Here are a few quotes I pulled out of many that struck me as I read:

"Jacob, love does not prosecute.  It seeks neither revenge nor dominance.  It does not win at the cost of someone else's loss.  Love only accepts, completely and without reservation."

And

"If we find we lack faith in ourselves or in others, we can at least have faith in the trustworthiness of nature, that at the appointed time, the horizon will lighten in grand prelude to the sun throwing its morning shafts into our lives."

 Definitely one I will be nominating for a 2011 Whitney Award.  It has all the makings of an annual classic you will want to read every year.


Other Readers Reviews:

Read Full Review at Good Choice Reading:  The very first thing I loved about this book was how the author, Bennett, attempted and succeeded at writing the novel in a similar style to the original Dickens classic. This novel does not change anything about the original story, but rather focuses the camera, if you will, at the character of Jacob Marley.

I truly enjoyed learning more about Marley’s past, and how he played an even bigger role in the change that occurred that night for his partner Ebenezer Scrooge . . .The book is well written, making it easy to read, but not so easy to put down . . .


C DaBell:  Beautiful, heartwarming, uplifting. In short, all that a book should be. I want to read this every Christmas. Thanks to Mr. Bennett for writing such a wonderful book.

Jacob Marley is a horrible, selfish, greedy man, who at the very last moment of his life realizes it. This book is about his afterlife and his strenuous efforts to redeem Ebzenezer Scrooge. Excellent.