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Audiobook editionPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if a talkative goblin led you into a country where nonsense makes perfect sense?
Davy is an ordinary boy with a lively mind, but he does not believe in fairies and wonders. Then he meets the Goblin, an odd companion determined to change that. In Charles E. Carryl's Davy and the Goblin, the everyday world gives way to sudden journeys, talking creatures, and one strange adventure after another.
Here, creatures discuss silly matters with complete seriousness, and songs arrive when you least expect them. Characters sing to boast, complain, or explain themselves. As Davy follows his guide through this dream-like country, the story turns belief and imagination into playful questions. Its pleasures lie in comic encounters and loose, lively invention rather than a tightly built plot.
What you’ll discover
- An unlikely pair Follow curious Davy and his talkative guide away from ordinary life and into wonder.
- Nonsense with its rules Meet creatures whose solemn talk makes even the silliest matters seem worth discussing.
- Songs around the corner Enjoy unexpected songs and comic verse that let characters boast, complain, and explain.
- Room for imagination Explore the playful tension between Davy's disbelief and the Goblin's determination to change it.
- A delightfully wandering adventure Let sudden journeys and odd encounters carry you through a quick, funny fantasy.
Who will love it
This book suits lovers of wordplay, nursery rhymes and nonsense verse, readers who enjoy Alice in Wonderland, and families who like a funny, fast-moving Christmas story.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Wonder comes looking for Davy
- Solomon has his own complaint
- Candy rulers lose their power
- Storybook figures tell their own stories
- Impossible creatures take themselves seriously
- Belief leaves room for questions
- Words make the impossible happen
- Curiosity makes things look more alive
Who’s who
- DavyAn eight-year-old boy who does not believe in fairies or goblins, and who learns to meet strange creatures with curiosity and better manners.
- The GoblinA foot-tall scarlet hobgoblin who eats hot coals, changes color with his mood and takes Davy on the Believing Voyage.
- SolomonDavy's grandmother's cat, who talks in the sky and complains about all the teasing he has received.
- The Hole-keeperA flat lemon-candy man who guards a hole, keeps a blank book and renames Davy at every turn.
- The CockalorumA rumpled, gloomy bird who murmurs one short remark at a time and flies off clumsily.
- The CowThe red Cow of the Jack-built house, who insists the old stories got her wrong and wants chewing gum.
- BadorfulA very old giant who lives on eels, recites verses about the boys he once ate, and insists on politeness.
- Sindbad the SailorA bald, chessboard-headed old teller of whoppers who trips on his beard and stirs chessmen in his turban.
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Davy and the Goblin
by Charles E. Carryl · 1884
A boy takes flight with a scarlet goblin who dines on hot coals.
Medium levelUnder 2 hours to read20 languages
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“My rule is, do whatever it takes to be comfortable.”
In short
What would you do if a tiny man in scarlet appeared on an andiron, ate hot coals like peanuts, and told you that you believe in nothing? That is how Davy, an eight-year-old boy stuck indoors on Christmas Eve, meets the Goblin.
Davy and the Goblin at a glance
- Reading time
- About 1 h 40 min1 h 20 min fast, 2 h slow
- Length
- 23,700 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1884by Charles E. Carryl
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A scarlet stranger steps out of the fire
The story opens on a snowy Christmas Eve in the country house of Davy's grandmother. The storm drives Davy in from his sled. Bored, he teases the cat, Solomon, and curls up in a big chair with his book about Alice.
Then the smell of dinner climbs the stairs. Davy stares at a brass knob on the andirons while he plans his feast. Suddenly a little man is sitting on that very knob, smiling so wide that the smile seems to reach behind his ears.
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Which edition is right for me
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Details
- First published
- 1884
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Carryl, Charles E. Davy and the Goblin. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/davy-and-the-goblin.
Carryl, C. E. (2026). Davy and the goblin. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/davy-and-the-goblin (Original work published 1884)
Carryl, Charles E. Davy and the Goblin. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/davy-and-the-goblin.
@book{carryl2026davy,
author = {Carryl, Charles E.},
title = {Davy and the Goblin},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/davy-and-the-goblin},
note = {First published 1884}
}
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What is Davy and the Goblin about?
On Christmas Eve, a boy named Davy is taken by a small scarlet goblin on a Believing Voyage in a flying clock. They visit storybook folk such as Mother Hubbard, Robin Hood, Sindbad and Robinson Crusoe.
Is Davy and the Goblin like Alice in Wonderland?
Davy is reading Alice in Wonderland at the start, and the book shares its dream logic, talking creatures and wordplay. Carryl adds songs, a Christmas frame and a guide, the Goblin, who keeps the adventure moving.
Who is the Hole-keeper in Davy and the Goblin?
He is a flat man of clear lemon candy who guards a hole in a wall. He carries a book of blank pages, which he calls the most complete system ever invented, and keeps giving Davy new names.
The author
Charles E. Carryl
1841–1920 · American children's writer
Charles E. Carryl (1841–1920) was an American writer of children's books. He was born in New York City and worked there as a stockbroker. His books include Davy and the Goblin, published in 1884, and The Admiral's Caravan, published in 1892. He also wrote poetry.
“My rule is, do whatever it takes to be comfortable.”
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