Dickens Charles

After a traumatic early childhood spent living in poverty in a Preston cellar, the suddenly orphaned George Silverman grows up convinced that he is at fault for all the misfortunes in his life. Hoodwinked by hypocritical clergymen and exploited by his employer, he finds himself forsaking love and facing professional ruin. One of Dickens's very last writings, 'George Silverman's Explanation' is a dark and psychologically insightful investigation of failure and guilt. This volume also includes two other lesser-known pieces of fiction: the novella for children 'Holiday Romance' and the detective story 'Hunted Down'.

Few writers have better captured the times they were writing in as well as Charles Dickens. Dickens' ability to observe and record human character and environment have placed him at the top table of English fiction writers alongside Shakespeare and Austen, and his titles are still as popular today as they were upon first publication. Charles Dickens was a sensation in his own time, his stories as popular upon publication as they are now, where he sits at the summit of English literature. His depictions of Victorian England, in particular, have become so engrained in common consciousness that they are considered as almost historical texts on the age. In this collection you will find the tale of Oliver Twist, the orphan who Dickens used as a vehicle to highlight the unfairness of the Poor Law and the treacherous conditions of London slum life. In Great Expectations we are introduced to a vast array of quirky and interesting characters — from Pip to Estella, Magwitch to Honest Joe — whilst getting a study on class division and personal relationships. The third novel, A Tale of Two Cities, transports us to revolutionary France, where events fascinated Dickens' social interests. The study of Dr Manette's readjustment to freedom from prison is a brilliant demonstration of the author's unrivalled talent for producing fiction of subtlety and depth.

Charles Dickens' ability to observe and record human character and environment have placed him at the top table of English fiction writers alongside Shakespeare and Austen, and his titles are still as popular today as they were upon first publication. Dickens was a sensation in his own time, his stories as popular upon publication as they are now, where he sits at the summit of English literature. His depictions of Victorian England, in particular, have become so engrained in common consciousness that they are considered as almost historical texts on the age. Nicholas Nickleby was Dickens' third novel, and backed up the successes of Pickwick Papers and Oliver Twist, with the eponymous hero encountering an array of characters and types in the world of Victorian theatre. A Christmas Carol is the immortal tale of mean Ebenezer Scrooge, who ultimately renounces his curmudgeonly and tight-fisted ways after being visited by ghosts at Christmas time. Hard Times reflects Dickens' deepening interests in social inequalities, the story of a fictional milltown in Lancashire borne from time the author spent in Preston in 1854.

Handsomely produced in hardcover at a very affordable price, Barnes & Noble Signature Editions have been carefully edited and reset in a modern design for greater readability. Each volume includes an introduction, informative notes and a chronology of the writer's life and times to enable the reader to gain a deeper understanding of these enduring works.

Handsomely produced in hardcover at a very affordable price, Barnes & Noble Signature Editions have been carefully edited and reset in a modern design for greater readability. Each volume includes an introduction, informative notes and a chronology of the writer's life and times to enable the reader to gain a deeper understanding of these enduring works.

David’s life changes for the worse when his mother dies and he is left with a cruel stepfather who sends him to work in London. But he doesn't want to work in a factory all his life, so he runs away and finds a kind relative who is willing to help him. As David grows up, he learns that life is full of trouble, hardship and cruelty. But he also finds friendship, kindness and… love.

Set in the dark streets of 19th-century London, this unforgettable classic tells the story of Oliver Twist, a penniless orphan who lives through all kinds of hardship for many years. Find out how, in spite of adverse circumstances, he finds happiness in the end.

A Christmas Carol, The Chimes, and The Cricket on the Hearth, by Charles Dickens, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics: New introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Study questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographies for further reading Indices & Glossaries, when appropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of influences-biographical, historical, and literary-to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works. Generations of readers have been enchanted by Dickens's A Christmas Carol -the most cheerful ghost story ever written, and the unforgettable tale of Ebenezer Scrooge's moral regeneration. Written in just a few weeks, A Christmas Carol famously recounts the plight of Bob Cratchit, whose family finds joy even in poverty, and the transformation of his miserly boss Scrooge as he is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future. From Scrooge's Bah and Humbug to Tiny Tim's God bless us every one A Christmas Carol shines with warmth, decency, kindness, humility, and the value of the holidays. But beneath its sentimental surface, A Christmas Carol offers another of Dickens's sharply critical portraits of a brutal society, and an inspiring celebration of the possibility of spiritual, psychological, and social change. This new volume collects Dickens's three most renowned Christmas Books, including The Chimes, a New Year's tale, and The Cricket on the Hearth, whose eponymous creature remains silent during sorrow and chirps amid happiness. Katharine Kroeber Wiley, the daughter of a scholar and a sculptor, has a degree in English Literature from Occidental College. Her work has appeared in Boundary Two and the recent book, Lore of the Dolphin, She is currently working on a book on Victorian Christmas writings.

Pip is destined to become a village blacksmith, but a chance meeting with an escaped prisoner and the acquaintance of an eccentric old woman and a beautiful young girl change the course of his life. He is suddenly dissatisfied with his social status and wants to become a gentleman. But one day he discovers a terrible secret.

Penguin Readers are written by specialist ELT authors. The language, vocabulary, style and content of every book is carefully graded to make sure it suits the learner's own language ability. Every Penguin Reader has a range of activities in the book and accompanying Factsheet to help increase comprehension and develop reading, writing, listening and speaking skills.

John Leech's original magnificent illustrations to A Christmas Carol have been beautifully hand-coloured by Barbara Frith. A celebration of Christmas, a tale of redemption and a critique on Victorian society, Dickens' atmospheric novella follows the miserly, penny-pinching Ebenezer Scrooge who views Christmas as 'humbug'. It is only through a series of eerie, life-changing visits from the ghost of his deceased business partner Marley and the spirits of Christmas past, present and future that he begins to see the error of his ways. With heart-rending characters, rich imagery and evocative language, the message of A Christmas Carol remains as significant today as when it was first published.

Psychologically the latter part of Great Expectations is about the best thing Dickens ever did. George Orwell Philip Pirrip — known more commonly as Pip — is an orphan. His visits to the mysterious Miss Havisham are his only escape from his childhood of poverty. But then an anonymous bequest changes his life for ever — until secrets from Pip's past emerge, threatening to destroy the genteel new life he has built for himself, and Pip soon discovers the merciless cruelty of love, and the harsh reality of his great expectations.

If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. Ebenezer Scrooge hates Christmas. It's all humbug to him. But one Christmas Eve, he is visited by the ghost of Jacob Marley, and then by three more spirits... the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet To Come. Will the things they show Scrooge be enough to make him change his miserly ways and learn the true meaning of Christmas?

This is the «Penguin English Library Edition» of «The Old Curiosity Shop» by Charles Dickens. 'But what added most to the grotesque expression of his face, was a ghastly smile, which, appearing to be the mere result of habit and to have no connexion with any mirthful or complacent feeling, constantly revealed the few discoloured fangs that were yet scattered in his mouth, and gave him the aspect of a panting dog'. The tale of «Little Nell» gripped the nation when it first appeared in 1841. Described as a 'tragedy of sorrows', the story tells of Nell uprooted from a secure and innocent childhood and cast into a world where evil takes many shapes, the most fascinating of which is the stunted, lecherous Quilp. Blending realism with non-realistic genres such as fairy-tale, allegory, and pastoral, the tale of Nell's tragedy contains some of Dickens most memorable comic and grotesque creations, including the dwarf Daniel Quilp, Dick Swiveller and Kit Nubbles. «The Penguin English Library» contains 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

This is the «Penguin English Library Edition» of «Oliver Twist» by Charles Dickens. A parish child — the orphan of a workhouse — the humble, half-starved drudge — to be cuffed and buffeted through the world, despised by all, and pitied by none. Dark, mysterious and mordantly funny, «Oliver Twist» features some of the most memorably drawn villains in all of fiction — the treacherous gangmaster Fagin, the menacing thug Bill Sikes, the Artful Dodger and their den of thieves in the grimy London backstreets. Dicken's novel is both an angry indictment of poverty, and an adventure filled with an air of threat and pervasive evil. «The Penguin English Library» — 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

Shows how a young man's life is transformed by a mysterious series of events — an encounter with an escaped prisoner; a visit to a black-hearted old woman and a beautiful girl; a fortune from a secret donor.

Chronicles David Copperfield's extraordinary journey through life, as he encounters villains, saviours, eccentrics and grotesques, including the wicked Mr Murdstone, stout-hearted Peggotty, formidable Betsey Trotwood, impecunious Micawber and odious Uriah Heep.

HarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics. It was a town of red brick, or of brick that would have been red if the smoke and ashes had allowed it; but as matters stood, it was a town of unnatural red and black like the painted face of a savage. Set in fictitious Coketown, England during the Industrial Revolution of the 1850s, Dickens wished to expose the enormous gulf between the rich and poor through his writing. In Hard Times, the social and moral purpose of his work is at its most evident. Openly ironic and satirical in its tone, Dickens suggests a mechanization of society, where the wealthy are ruthless and uncharitable towards those less fortunate than themselves. Siblings Louisa and Tom Gradgrind are raised by their father, a harsh and pragmatic educator and his influence means that they go on to lead lives that are lacking in all areas. Louisa marries the arrogant and greedy Josiah Bounderby, ending in an unhappy pairing and the unfeeling and villainous Tom robs his own brother-in-law's bank. As their father watches their plight, he realises that his own principles may have led to their downfall.

Every idiot who goes around with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding . Charles Dickens' tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, who is haunted by three spirits and learns the true meaning of Christmas has had, along with Dickens' other Christmas writings, a lasting and significant influence upon our ideas about the season as a time for celebration, charity and memory. The Penguin English Library — 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

'The earth was made for Dombey and Son to trade in, and the sun and moon were made to give them light'. Dombey and Son is both a firm and a family and the ambiguous connection between public and private life lies at the heart of Dickens' novel. Paul Dombey is a man who runs his domestic affairs as he runs his business: calculatingly, callously, coldly and commercially. Through his dysfunctional relationships with his son, his two wives, and his neglected daughter Florence, Dickens paints a vivid picture of the limitations of a society dominated by commercial values and the drive for profit and explores the possibility of moral and emotional redemption through familial love. The Penguin English Library — 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

'In the wakeful misery of the night, girded by sordid realities, or wandering through Paradises and Hells of visions... I loved you madly'. Dickens' last novel is a mystery built around a presumed crime — the murder of a nephew by his uncle. Dickens died before completing the story, leaving the mystery unsolved and encouraging successive generations of readers to turn detective. Beyond the preoccupying fact of this intriguing crime, however, the novel also offers readers a characteristically Dickensian mix of the fantastical world of the imagination and a vibrantly journalistic depiction of gritty reality. The Penguin English Library — 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

Yours is a 'spectable calling. To save your 'spectability, it's worth your while to pawn every article of clothes you've got, sell every stick in your house, and beg and borrow every penny you can get trusted with. When you've done that and handed over, I'll leave you. Not afore. Our Mutual Friend centres on an inheritance — Old Harmon's profitable dust heaps — and its legatees, young John Harmon, presumed drowned when a body is pulled out of the River Thames, and kindly dustman Mr Boffin, to whom the fortune defaults. With brilliant satire, Dickens portrays a dark, macabre London, inhabited by such disparate characters as Gaffer Hexam, scavenging the river for corpses; enchanting, mercenary Bella Wilfer; the social climbing Veneerings; and the unscrupulous street-trader Silas Wegg. The novel is richly symbolic in its vision of death and renewal in a city dominated by the fetid Thames, and the corrupting power of money. The Penguin English Library — 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

Celebrate the bicentenary of Dickens' birth with this beautiful gift edition of Oliver Twist Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist is one of the best-loved stories ever written. The story of the young orphan is as powerful now as when it was first published over a century ago. The text in this edition has been carefully abridged so that it is accessible to younger readers and retains both the drama and the humour of the original. Throughout, Christian Birmingham's exquisite illustrations enhance the story and bring to life the amazing range of colourful characters. With a foreword from Michael Morpurgo.

Bah Humbug! That's how Ebeneezer Scrooge feels about Christmas — until the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future decide to show the crotchety old miser the error of his ways. Together they travel through time, revisiting all the people who have played an important role in Scrooge's life. And as their journey concludes, Scrooge is reminded of what it means to have love in his heart, and what the true spirit of Christmas is all about. A timeless story the whole family will enjoy!