Showing results by author "Charles Dickens" in All Categories

One of Charles Dickens's most personally resonant novels, Little Dorrit speaks across the centuries to the modern audience. Its depiction of shady financiers and banking collapses seems uncannily topical, as does Dickens's compassionate admiration for Amy Dorrit, the "child of the Marshalsea," as she struggles to hold her family together in the face of neglect, irresponsibility, and ruin. Intricate in its plotting, the novel also satirizes the cumbersome machinery of government.

Written in 1890, the story is a murder mystery in which Edwin Drood is supposedly murdered. The novel investigated the characters in a distinctly Dickensian manner from the suspicious and tormented Jasper to the Reverend Crisparkle to Princess Puffer, the enigmatic Datchery and finally the gravedigger and his obnoxious but perceptive boy assistant. But who is the murderer? We will never know.

Sydney Carton, a lawyer and wastrel, tries to redeem himself somewhere between Paris and London to make up for his mis-spent youth. A tale of two cities is considered by many to be Dickens' most thrilling novel. Whilst contrasting the tranquility of London with revolution-torn Paris, incident follows incident as Sydney Carton finally redeems himself from his past. Read movingly by Martin Jarvis.

"Little Dorrit is a novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in serial form between 1855 and 1857. It satirises the shortcomings of both government and society, including the institution of debtors' prisons, where debtors were imprisoned, unable to work, until they repaid their debts. The prison in this case is the Marshalsea, where Dickens's own father had been imprisoned'." - Wikipedia

Many people dream of being a fly on the wall or, even better, a companion and friend to the great artists of the day. We cannot offer you quite that, but we can take you on a walk through parts of London that will give you a real sense and feel of the world of Dickens and its impact upon himself, his characters and his stories. Your tour guide is Emma Parker, and the book extracts are read by Richard Mitchley.

Considered to be Dickens' finest novel, Bleak House is a suspenseful tale about the injustices of the 19th-century English legal system. This novel set the standard for modern day legal thrillers.

The story deals with the life of David Copperfield from childhood to maturity. David is born in England in about 1820. David's father had died six months before he was born, and seven years later, his mother marries Mr. Edward Murdstone. David is given good reason to dislike his stepfather and has similar feelings for Mr. Murdstone's sister Jane, who moves into the house soon afterwards.

A Christmas Carol is the classic story of Scrooge and Marley who get into adventures with ghosts during Christmas. To avoid spoiling this holiday classic, not one word more about this beloved Christmas story will be shared here.

A Tale of Two Cities is a story of love, mystery, suspense, and action all rolled up into one beautifully written novel taking place in two prominent cities, Paris and London, during the French Revolution. The story follows the release and rehabilitation of Dr. Manette, a man falsely imprisoned in the Bastille in France for almost two decades. While trouble is brewing in France with citizens being starved and taxed to death, Dr. Manette is taken to London by Mr. Lorrie, a prominent business man, and Lucie, Dr. Manette's daughter.

Filled with an array of comic characters, The Chimes tells the story of Toby Veck, a humble porter whose loses his faith in human nature at the hands of his presumed social superiors but regains it thanks to the spirits of the bells. Like its predecessor, it carries a heartfelt plea for charity and brotherhood and examines such distressing themes as suicide and infanticide as well as the question of whether the poor have any right to live at all.

Dicken's classic morality tale which lead the way with its themes of nostalgia and festive redemption. Read by leading celebrated British Actor, Sir Timothy Ackroyd.

In the wonderful fairy tale, Charles Dickens creates a number of memorable characters, including a King, who also has a regular office job and is always running out of money, his lovely wife, the Queen and their 17 children, as well as an elderly and very cranky fairy who gives their eldest daughter a magic fishbone she can use to grant one wish. However it will only work if the "circumstances are right".

Charles Dickens was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity. NIGHT WALKS: Some years ago, a temporary inability to sleep, referable to a distressing impression, caused me to walk about the streets all night, for a series of several nights.

Sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge has an emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and yet to come. The novella met with instant success and critical acclaim. A Christmas Carol has never been out of print and has been adapted to film, opera, and other media.

A Victorian family gathers round the hearth, and one by one they tell each other their Winter's tales. Charles Dickens begins 'the round of stories they were to relate, as they sat in a goodly circle by the Christmas fire', and then hands over to Elizabeth Gaskell, Samuel Sidney and other respected contributors to the Christmas 1852 number of Household Words.

Little Nell and her grandfather are forced to leave their curiosity shop and live as beggars. Peopled with such unforgettable characters as Daniel Quilp, Dick Swiveller, Thomas Codlin, Kit Nubbles, and Sampson and Sarah Brass, this Dickens classic is a real tearjerker.

On New Year’s Eve, Trotty becomes disheartened with life and feels that the working classes are wicked by nature after so many report of crime and mortality. His daughter, Meg, announces her plans to marry her fiancé on New Year's Day, something that Trotty is not particularly happy about. After meeting Will and his niece Lilian, the group return to Trotty's house. During the night, Trotty feels the church bells are calling him, so heads to the tower and climbs up to the bell chamber.

The famous story of David Copperfield and his journey from young boy to man.

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Oliver Twist is an orphan who was born in a workhouse. After an unhappy apprenticeship, Oliver steals away to London where he is taken in by thieves, headed by a man named Fagin. He is rescued by Mr Brownlow, but the gang kidnaps him back. Oliver discovers the identity of his parents and the gang is exposed.