A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

In Chipping Cleghorn an advertisement is placed in the social pages of the local newspaper announcing the date and time of a murder. When several townsfolk show up thinking it is a game they soon see that it is not. For a murder does take place and the police begin to focus on the suspects. But soon Miss Jane Marple becomes involved and the murderer begins to become more desperate.

Continuing with my mystery kick, I checked out A Murder is Announced. It seems that there are a quite a few Miss Marple audios but less Poirot or at least at my library anyway. But that's okay. I enjoy Miss Marple and how she is constantly underestimated because she is a little old lady. Underestimated, of course, by those who do not know her because once they do they never make that mistake again. 

This is one of those mysteries, like most of Christie's, that looks one way at the beginning but has a completely different outcome. All the little clues are there but it takes a mind like Jane Marple's to see the big picture. All the characters are wholly believable as residents of a little village and it is a peek at British life after the war.

8 hours, 42 minutes

Rosemary Leach is the reader and she does a wonderful job making the various characters stand out. Her narration is very clear and I really enjoyed this audio book.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Poirot finds himself on a train with a murdered man next door and too many suspects. As he methodically makes his way through the passengers, he finds a connection to an old kidnapping case lies at the heart of the murder.

This is probably my 4th reading of Orient Express. I can't remember when I first read it but it was one of my favorites as a teenager. It's a joy to get to listen to the audio book version especially as it is read by David Suchet, the quintessential Hercule Poirot. He does an excellent job, as expected, of bringing to life one of Christie's most famous mysteries.

The mystery itself, though now a classic mystery ending, is surprising at the end with its complexity. There are a number of clues, misdirections, and red herrings but once all the pertinent information has been gathered Poirot uses his little grey cells to solve the case.

6 hours, 53 minutes.

The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie (audio)

When  Colonel Protheroe is found dead at the vicarage, it causes quite the stir in St. Mary Mead. Even after there are two confessions, the police and the townsfolk are wondering how it happened. But little old Miss Marple is the one who solves the case.

I read a lot of Agatha Christie as a teenager, like a lot. But it's been a while so when SYNC offered up The Murder at the Vicarage I knew I had to give it a listen. And I'm glad I did. I love a good murder mystery especially one that features Miss Marple who is clearly one of the best detectives ever conceived. It's interesting that everyone views her as a nosy old lady even the vicar at the start of the book. But by the end he comes to respect her keen observation powers and skills at deduction. Miss Marple is an example to us all.

I don't remember reading this book though I'm sure I did so I couldn't remember the solution. It was simple yet not at all obvious like most of Christie's mysteries. I didn't remember it being from the vicar's view point but I liked that. He had the most clues and was the most involved so it makes sense. Now I feeling like a mystery kick and will have to grab a few more Agatha Christie mysteries.

She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith (audio)

This is a play and I rarely listen to plays on audio. So it took a few adjustments on my part but I really liked this. It's kind of a manor house comedy of errors, taking place in one night at Mr. Hardcastle's house, a wealthy gentleman. His daughter, Kate, is being set up with his friend's son, Marlow, who is arriving that night to meet her with his friend Hastings. But the man's stepson, Tony, pulls a prank on the arriving gentleman and tells him the house is an inn. So Marlow is seemingly impediment to Mr. Marlow thinking him an inn keeper. At the same time Marlow is bashful around women of social standing while being brazen with working women so Kate pretends to be a barmaid to get to know him. There is also a subplot involving Hastings and the niece of the family who want to run off together. It's pretty funny. I like comedies likes this and it reminded me of Wodehouse though this play came before him.

 This play is read by a full cast, of course but features some notable actors in Joanne Whalley, James Marsters and Ian Ogilvy.  It was very well acted and I enjoyed listening to it.

1 hours, 52 minutes.

Heavy Weather by P.G. Wodehouse

This installment of the Blandings Castle Saga finds the house in an uproar as usual and is a sequel to Summer Lightning. Ronnie Fish still wants to marry Sue Brown over the objections of his aunts. But when they bring his mother into the mix and Ronnie suspects Sue of being in love with someone else, it all comes crashing down.  Meanwhile, a variety of people are steal trying to steal Gally Threepwood's manuscript, some to destroy it, other to publish it.

These books are so amusing.  I really do enjoy them. They are the perfect easy and funny read when I'm in the mood for light reading. Usually Wodehouse's books are sequels but this one is for Summer Lightning. And it took me a little to remember what happened in that book, but it's not hard as Wodehouse is not meant to be complex.  I"m happy that Sue and Ronnie worked it out and Gally is really growing on me. And Lord Emsworth's obsession with the Empress of Blandings is always amusing.

Wodehouse

Forever (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3) by Maggie Steifvater

Sam and Grace have been through so much together and now they face a challenge that means life or death.  Isabelle's dad has found a way to eliminate the wolves and with Grace still shifting, it becomes imperative that Sam, Cole, and Isabelle find a way to save the wolves.

This was a great ending to this series. I was actually expecting a much sadder ending.  While it was sad enough that I cried, it was still hopeful and I didn't mind the fact that a finite ending wasn't given to Sam and Grace. Real life doesn't work that way and so books don't have to either. Though I did find Sam and Grace, well Sam in particular, much more frustrating. His inability to do something made me want to shake him. Isabelle and Cole are really my favorites. They are much more sarcastic and proactive and I love them for it. Sam and Grace's pure sweet love is wonderful to read and I love them too, but sometimes you need a bit of grit in your romance.

12 hours, 10 minutes

Read by Jenna Lamia, Pierce Cravens, Dan Bittner, Emma Galvin, Maggie Stiefvater

The same cast from the previous book returns and they do a great job. Each manages to embody their character and they play them beautifully. The audio books are great for this series because the actors really manage to convey the emotions well. I enjoyed this audio series a lot.

Blandings Castle ... and Elswhere by P.G. Wodehouse

The Blandings Castles short stories contained in this book are meant to be read before Summer Lightning.  Something I didn't do, but still I don't know how much that really matters. All the stories were hilarious and entertaining in true Wodehouse style. 

"The Custody of the Pumpkin" takes the reader back before Lord Emsworth acquired the Empress of Blandings and become obsessed with his pig.  In this story he is worried about a prized pumpkin and the loss of his head gardener.  Also Freddie gets married and Lord Emsworth is at first dismayed, but then later delighted to learn who Freddie married.

"Lord Emsworth Acts for the Best"- Freddie's wife leaves him when he does something stupid (just like Freddie) and Lord Emsworth decides to fix the situation so as not to be stuck with Freddie. This leads to an awkwardly hilarious encounter with his daughter-in-law and her little dog. 

"Pig-hooo-o-o-ey" - With the loss of his pig-man, Lord Emsworth searches for a way to get the Empress of Blandings to eat for fear of her losing weight and the prized pig competition.  With the help of niece Angela's young man, he succeeds in both his endeavor with his pig and with helping the two young people come together.

"Company for Gertrude - Freddie tries to help his cousin Gertrude with her love problems but manages to annoy his father in the meantime. 

"The Go-getter" - Freddie tries to convince his aunt to buy the dog biscuits of his father-in-law's company, leading to a confrontation between Gertrude's fiance's dog and his aunt's dog and solving Gertrude's love problems.

"Lord Emsworth and the Girl Friend" - Lord Emsworth makes friend with a young girl and her brother and tries to avoid a tiresome event at Blandings Castle.

Wodehouse Challenge

Betsy's Wedding by Maud Hart Lovelace

Betsy and Joe get married and Betsy adjusts to married life, wanting to be a good wife to Joe.  But with the War looming over the entire world, will Betsy have the ideal life she is wishing for?

Things couldn't be perfect, for herself or Tacy either, unless Tib was happy too.  p.242

Betsy and Joe get married!  Excited.  I loved how quickly they got married and started their life together, though Betsy's role as wife illustrates just how old fashioned this series is.   But Betsy and Joe are a sweet couple and he treats her with a great deal of respect and she does the same for him.  They are so sensible and loving with each other and towards their friends too.  I love that Tacy found someone to complement her and that she had two boys.  And that Tib found someone as well.  This was the perfect ending to the series and I'm sad that it is over, which is a little funny given how old these books are. 

Betsy and the Great World by Maud Hart Lovelace

Betsy is 21 and embarking on a European trip to help her learn to become a better writer and to help her with the heartbreak of her broken relationship with Joe Willard.  Betsy experiences life in a variety of European cities and learns about heartbreak and what she really wants out of life.

The next morning, of course, Betsy made a list.  Lists were always her comfort.  p.150

It was good to see Betsy growing up and learning about the world.  That way she has these experiences before settling down and getting married.  If she hadn't had a couple of romances, then her reunion with Joe might have fallen flat.  Betsy needed more life experience and she got plenty in her travels in Germany, France, Italy and Great Britain.  I enjoyed the descriptions of the places she visited and loved the clothing they wore and the trends in clothing at the time.  It was also interesting to see World War I begin from the viewpoint of an American in Europe and how that occupied the attentions of everyone.  It felt very real (mostly because these books are a fictionalized autobiography of Maud Hart Lovelace) and I was glad that Betsy and Joe are reunited in the end, but it was nice to see Betsy experience life outside of her comfort zone.

Betsy and Joe by Maud Hard Lovelace

Betsy is now a senior and she is ready for a great year.  The elusive Joe Willard is finally  interested in her and everything seems perfect for her senior year.  But Tony Markham has become interested in her as well and proud Joe does not like the competition especially since Betsy is unwillingly to hurt Tony's feelings.  Suddenly everything is not as perfect as it was suppose to be.

 It was getting difficult, though, to divide he time between Joe and Tony.  Balancing their claims, she felt sometimes like an acrobat on a tight rope.  p.142

The last high school book!  It was bittersweet to see Betsy and her friends graduate high school.  I am happy that they had a great year even if it didn't turn out like Betsy wanted.  I was frustrated by her inability to politely tell Tony that she preferred Joe.  I understand that they are good friends and she was trying to keep him from the "bad crowd" but I think she did it at the expense of Joe.  Also she did Joe a disservice by not explaining her reasons for going around with Tony.  He might have understood if she had tried to explain. 

I wasn't too keen on the football part of the story.  But I liked hearing about all the dances and the clothing.  It is interesting to read about how things were done in 1910.  And I wonder if they ever resolve the Carney/Larry subplot.  I guess I will find out in the next books. 

Hogwarts: 7 in a series

Betsy in Spite of Herself & Betsy Was a Junior by Maud Hart Lovelace

Betsy in Spite of Herself

Betsy is now a sophomore and is extremely popular with her Crowd but she is dissatisfied with how boys look at her.  She wants to be different but doesn't know how to change, until she visits Tib in Milwaukee and decides to go back to Deep Valley Dramatic and Mysterious.  Despite attracting the attention of the sophisticated Phil Brandish, Betsy is unhappy with not acting like herself anymore, proving that it's hard to change your nature.

A Betsy-Tacy picnic, she thought as she foraged, was just about the nicest thing in the world.  p.13

So this book covers Betsy's sophomore year and picks up close to where Heaven to Betsy left off.  Betsy decides she needs to be a different version of herself to shake up her life a little and it works for a bit.  Phil Brandish decides he likes her and they "go around" together for a little while.  But Betsy gets tired of acting different from her nature and lets Phil go in order to go back to being happy, smiling, sometimes silly Betsy.  I like this lesson.  And I like how subtly is it done.  Betsy is not made to be Dramatic and Mysterious and I am happy that she embraces her nature at the end of the book.  It is also nice how her relationship with Joe is slowly built up over time and doesn't happen all at once.  That is so much better than how books are sometimes written now.

Betsy Was a Junior

Now that Betsy is a junior in high school, she has decided to mature and sets up a list of resolutions for the year.  But soon she is caught up in the idea of sororities as a result of her sister's Julia's experiences at college and decides to form her own sorority at Deep Valley High, derailing her resolutions.

"I really want him for a friend," Betsy thought. "Not just that I'm sweet on him.  We have so much in common.  We were intended to be friends." p.207

Tib is back! This made me so happy.  Of course, she was in Betsy in Spite of Herself for a little bit, but now is back in Deep Valley for good.  It is nice to see her and her practicality is a great rounder to the Betsy-Tacy team.  It's funny to remember the little girls from the first books and reconcile them with the teenagers of these books. 
Betsy starts a sorority which seems like a good idea at the time, but it means that some girls are excluded and that does not go over well.  The girls who are asked are already in the Crowd so it's not like Betsy means to exclude anyone but that is the nature of sororities.  But then nothing Betsy wanted to do goes right.  She had planned on excelling in school and going with Joe and learning the piano and hanging out with her younger sister more now that Julia has gone to college. But she only really manages to do one of those things.  But Betsy has a good heart and she tries to do the right thing but she can be careless a lot of the time and she doesn't stop to think about what she is doing.  But she matures more in this book.


Hogwarts: 7 in a series

Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown & Heaven to Betsy by Maud Hart Lovelace

Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown (Betsy-Tacy #4)

Betsy, Tacy and Tib are 12 and begin to explore the town they live in further.  They go downtown shopping and Tib rides in a horseless carriage and they attend the theater.

Betsy and Tacy and Tib were twelve years old now, and when they made plans like that they didn't quite believe them.  But they liked to make them anyhow.  p.116

I've said it before.  I like how these stories grow up with the girls.  It's like getting to know them when they are 5 and watching them grow up into young ladies.  They are still children in this story though they are growing up fast.  It's fun to read about the era that they grew up in and the excitement over the horseless carriage and the theater troupes and on on.  And on the dime novels that the hired girl at the Ray's house lends them are considered shocking and too old for 12 year olds to read.  I liked the plot with Mrs. Poppy though I felt sorry for her and her part in the other plot about Mrs. Ray's long lost brother was nice.  I also liked Betsy's trip to the library (of course) and what a wonder that is for her.  It was really sweet.


Heaven to Betsy (Betsy-Tacy #5)
Betsy and Tacy are freshmen in high school now, making new friends and becoming apart of the affectionate Crowd.  Betsy is becoming more interested in boys and in developing her talents as a writer.

"Now," said Mr. Ray.  "I'd better go put the coffee pot on." For that was what the family always did in moments of stress.  p.213

Now that Betsy is a freshmen, her whole world expands once again to accommodate more friends and new loves.  It's exciting to see Betsy and Tacy growing up.  I missed Tib.  I was surprised that she had moved away in the interim and it wasn't really made a big deal of.  I'm glad that Betsy and Tacy are still best friends and that they always have each other, but are willing to let each other make new friends and it doesn't compromise their friendship.

I also love the descriptions of the hair and clothing styles.  It sounds just lovely, the way they dressed and entertained themselves.  Reminds me of Meet Me in St. Louis, one of my favorite musicals.   I love that Betsy and her sister, Julia, are allowed to decide career paths for themselves and their parents support them wholeheartedly. And that the sisters are also allowed to decided their own religion.  It's very progressive for that time. 

Hogwarts: 7 in a series

Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill by Maud Hard Lovelace

 Betsy, Tacy and Tib are 10 years old and decided that they must act more grown-up.  But they cannot resist a good birthday party and an election for the Queen of Summer.

This is the first Betsy-Tacy book with a plot.  The ones before were more anecdotal, but this one had a more cohesive storyline.  Betsy and her friends all turn 10 and they have a few adventures like "falling in love" with the King of Spain which leads to a feud with their older sisters about an idea for a Queen of Summer.  It was very cute and I liked how they resolved it.  There was some interesting commentary on treating immigrants nicely even if the language is (understandably) dated.  And there is a lesson on being nice to your siblings and getting along.

Hogwarts: 7 in a series

Summer Lightning by P.G. Wodehouse

Once again, Blandings Castle is host to a series of misunderstandings and false identities, all leading up to some seriously funny happenings.  Hugo Carmody, secretary to Lord Emsworth, is in love with Lord Emsworth's niece, Millicent Threepwood, and he schemes to find a way to marry her.  Meanwhile, Lord Emsworth's nephew, Ronnie Fish, is in love with a chorus girl named Sue Brown, much to the objections of his aunt.  And Galahad Threepwood, brother to Lord Emsworth, is writing his reminiscences which worries the upper class society.  These three things together make up the hilarious goings-on in Summer Lightning

"There are mysteries afoot in this house, and I don't like 'em. The atmosphere of Blandings Castle has changed all of a sudden from that of normal, happy
English home into something Edgar Allan Poe might have written on a rainy Sunday."

 Another fun adventure at Blandings Castle! I love these British stories.  It's like reading a British sitcom.  As usual, it is a typical Wodehouse comedy.  The Efficient Baxter makes an appearance after an invitation from Lady Constance to steal Galahad's manuscript and I love how Lord Emsworth thinks that Baxter is just crazy even though all the stuff Baxter does has a rationale.  And this book involves what it seems will be one of many stories involving the thief of the Empress of Blandings, Lord Emsworth's prized pig.  So funny!


Hogwarts: Muggle Studies
Wodehouse Challenge

Leave It to Psmith by P.G. Wodehouse

Back to Blandings Castle! This time the occupants get involved in what becomes a fairly elaborate scheme to steal Lady Constance's necklace in order to get money for both Freddie, youngest son of Lord Emsworth, and Lady Constance's stepdaughter.  Enter Psmith to aid in the scheme and romance the new library cataloger in his charming and verbose way.

Psmith himself regarded the coming ordeal with equanimity.  He was not one of those whom the prospect of speaking in public afflicts with nervous horror.  He liked the sound of his own voice, and night, when it came,found him calmly cheerful.  p.228

I was, once again, amused by the antics at Blandings Castle.  Lord Emsworth played a small role in this novel with most of the action centering on Psmith.  I suppose that is because this is counted as the second Blandings Castle novel and also as the fourth Psmith novel.  I liked Psmith and thought he was witty and funny and very clever and I am definitely going to have to read the other Psmith books.  I liked all the characters in general though Baxter and Lady Constance are the perfect foils for the insanity that surrounds everything that happens at Blandings Castle. I want to feel sorry for Baxter but he sort of makes it impossible for that to happen.  I know he pops up in parts of the rest of the series. 

The plot to steal the necklace got pretty complicated though it was all explained throughout.  It was amazing just how many characters ended up on the scheme. But it all worked out (hilariously) for the best.

Hogwarts: Muggle Studies
Wodehouse

Betsy-Tacy and Tib by Maud Hart Lovelace

Neither Betsy nor Tacy would have pointed that out.  Tib was always pointing such things out.  But Betsy and Tacy liked her just the same.  p.6

Betsy, Tacy and Tib are eight years old and beginning to explore even more of their neighborhood.  This book is more like a series of stories rather than one long plot.  The girls are growing older so the stories have more to do with them "keeping house" for their mothers or forming their own club to get back at their older sisters for having a club of their own.  Betsy is the ringleader and she usually thinks all of the ideas such as intertwining their hair to put in "lockets" just case one of them should die and making everything pudding.  And the other girls go along with her since she has the best ideas.  Tacy is much more a follower and Tib is the more practical one.  I like that this series grows along with the girls and I'm looking forward to the teenage years.

Hogwarts: 7 in a Series

Mother Carey's Chickens by Kate Douglas Wiggin

After the death of her husband, Mrs. Carey and her children pack up and move to the Yellow House in Beulah, a country village.

There is an old Hayley Mills movie called Summer Magic that is based on this book.  I love that movie and have been meaning to read the book it was based on for a while now.  This was a very sweet book.  I can see the similarities between the movie and the book and, while it is not faithful, the movie manages to capture the tone of the book though it gets rid of the language thankfully.  Because the flowery language is the hardest part of the book and I found myself skipping over bits of it.

Nancy is the eldest, spunkiest daughter (Hayley Mills played her) and I really liked her.  She was funny and spirited and charming.  There are 3 more Carey children, Gilbert the oldest boy, Kathleen the youngest girl and Peter the youngest and the smallest boy.  Together they all rally around their mother after their father's death and help to support her and do their best with lot that life has handed them, especially since they don't have a lot of money.  But they get the Yellow House and it makes for a fine life for them.  It really is a charming little book and very sweet.

Hogwarts: Book in the Day mini-challenge
ABC
E-book

Something New by P.G. Wodehouse

Originally titled Something New, this was republished in the United States as Something Fresh.  When I bought an omnibus Something New was the novel that was included so that is what I read and am reviewing.

If girls realized their responsibilities they would be so careful when they smiled that they would probably abandon the practice altogether.  There are moments in a man's life when a girl's smile can have as important results as an explosion of dynamite.

Something New is classic Wodehouse, but it is early Wodehouse and it is the first of the Blandings Castle Saga.  In it, Lord Emsworth's youngest son, the Honorable Freddie, has become engaged to Aline Peters, the daughter of an American millionaire.  In the course of observing Mr. Peters' priceless scarab collection, the absent-minded Lord Emsworth absconds with one of the scarabs, thinking it a present from Mr. Peters.  Mr. Peters thinks that the old gentleman took it on purpose and contrives a plan to steal it back without Lord Emsworth knowing.  He employs a young man, Ashe Marson, to steal it with a reward of 5000 dollars.  Meanwhile, Miss Peters employs her friend, Joan Valentine, for the same purpose.  When all the parties arrives at Blandings hi-jinks ensue though it ends merrily for all involved.

This was a very amusing story.  I laughed out loud several times.  I like how Lord Emsworth is so absent-minded that he can't even keep track of what he is saying in one conversation.  The core stable of characters is introduced with Lord Emsworth being the central figure.  But we get to know Blandings Castle a bit and are introduced to Rupert Baxter, Lord Emsworth's very efficient secretary and the foil for the robbery.  There was also a surprising amount of women's lib talk, mostly in favor of and that couldn't have been common in 1915.  It is an amusing little comedy and a great start to this series.

Hogwarts: Back in the Day Mini-Challenge
Wodehouse
ABC
e-book

Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #2 ) (audio) by Maggie Steifvater

*SPOILERS for Shiver*
Now that Sam is human again, he can live a normal life as a normal boy with Grace.  But Grace is falling seriously ill.  Coupled with that is the problem of the one of the new wolves, Cole, who can't seem to stay a wolf.  Sam begins to see that his problems aren't over just because he is no longer a wolf.

Just like Shiver this book starts off slow.   But about 1/3 of the way in, it gets really good and then I have a hard time walking away from it.  I actually checked out the CDs for my car and the mp3 version from the library, just so I could have it with me.  And I'm glad I did.  Because once the book got going I needed to find out what happened next.

I actually really liked the characters of Cole and Isabel.  They are a great antidote to perfect Grace and Sam.  Grace and Sam are great characters and I do like them, but they are so sweet and perfect and good all the time that the bitter and sarcastic Cole and Isabel are great.  This book alternates the four characters in POV and while that seems like a lot, it works well.  I was surprised and not surprised by the ending and I am curious to see how the whole thing wraps up in Forever.

10 hours 40 minutes
Read by Dan Bittner, Pierce Cravens, Emma Galvin, Jenna Lamia

It sounds harsh, but I really only enjoy these books in audio.  I doubt I could make it through just reading it.  The audio and the narrators really sell the pacing and writing for me.  It's read at a slow, languorous pace that complements the tone of the book and the music is just beautiful.  I enjoyed all the narrators' voices with Sam and Grace's readers carrying over between the books.  They all did a great job.

Hogwarts: Transfiguration
Whisper in My Ear
ABC

A Christmas Carol (audio) by Charles Dickens + Disney's A Christmas Carol

This is the first time I have ever listened to A Christmas Carol.  Lucky for me the narrator just happens to be Jim Dale, narrator of the Harry Potter series and one of my all-time favorite narrators.  I love his voice so much and he does an excellent job as usual though some of his voices seemed to carry over from Harry Potter and so there was one character who sounded a bit like Hagrid to me.  That might be because I listened to this simultaneously with Deathly Hallows though.

It's funny what things listening to a book can bring to light versus reading it.  I never noticed the dialogue skips and how the book is so wordy.  I still enjoyed it though.  It is such a classic Christmas book and one I don't mind reading over and over.  I'd like to try a different narrator next year just to see how someone else reads it. 

Disney's A Christmas Carol

I wanted to see this last year when it came out but I never got around to it.  I watched it the other day with my husband and son.  We enjoyed it for the most part though I think the ghosts might have scared my son (who is 4) a little.  Definitely he was scared by Marley's ghost and the Ghost of Christmas Yet-to-Come.  The animation was pretty though I didn't care for how the humans looked except maybe Scrooge.  He came out alright.  I really liked how the Ghost of Christmas Yet-To-Come was brought to life (so to speak) and how it turned out.  I was fine with the other ghosts as well.  I liked that it followed the book very accurately and they didn't just let Jim Carrey run amok all over it.  There were only a few points where his general overacting came out but he was a good Scrooge and I liked his voice for the part.  He did a good job overall.  I think I would watch it again.  It was one of the most faithful animated adaptations that I have seen.