I had never read A Christmas Carol before, and even more shocking, I'd never read Charles Dickens before last week (unless you count a manga adaptation of Great Expectations). I was however familiar with the story (can someone not be familiar with the story?) and after I happened to stumble on the first chapter by chance last week, I immediately thought: I want to read this for Christmas.
I got a copy that was made available via Project Gutenberg, bringing ebooks of old books. I will just discuss some thought, as I believe the books has been reviewed way better than I could possibly do, and detailed description can easily be found.
I liked it more than I expected. Of course, the story held little to no surprises, and that's exactly why I was afraid I wouldn't like it any more. However, in reading there was something extra, I can't really decide what it was, that made it feel like it still added something to what I already knew. (As good books tend to do). Even though it was written quite some time ago, it didn't bother me when reading and there was definitely enough going on to keep the story (which is not so long after all) interesting.
It almost breathed Christmas. I was never such a big fan of the story, but in the light of Christmas, I may have to revise my opinion!