Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, 29 Nov 2008
The book is delightful and I enjoyed it immensely, the only downside of this paperback edition being that pages fall out as you turn them over and read them (only a problem if you drop them, which I did!). But what can you expect for £1.99?

It gives a very interesting insight into Victorian life of both poor and rich, and links what goes on in the outside world with the inner thoughts and the actions of individuals. Wonderful descriptions of people and places. Better than the television production, though rather long and needing a lot of concentration. Well worth buying, well worth reading, and I would have given it 5-star for content, but I marked it down to 4-star because of the many loose pages.

Dickens at what he does best!, 20 Nov 2008
Little Dorrit is a prime example of Dickens' weighty descriptive style and his genius for observation and characterisation. It also, perhaps unusually for Dickens, has a semi-coherent story line.
The book chronicles the respective fortunes of the title heroine, a young women caring for her incarcerated father in the Marshalsea Prison, and Mr Arthur Clennam, a kindly businessman returned lately from the east, who becomes obsessed with the idea that his father was responsible for the Dorrit families woes. An entrie host of characters, good and bad, amusing and obnoxious, accompany the main protagonists on their mysteriously intertwined journeys. The only fault I can find is with the tale's finale, when it seems Dickens grows tired of the story, not actually having a great twist for the climax, and bumps off many of his characters before ending with a rather predictable chocolate tin finish. However, your sense of achievment at having penetrated deeper into the world of Dickens, meeting memorable heroes and villains will probably overcome any misgivings on this score. The scene where Mr Pancks cuts the patriarch's hair is pure genius and the petulant Mr Dorrit, Flora Casby and her objectionable Aunt are another constant stream of entertainment.
Apart from the moral that money will not buy you happiness, Dickens also used this book to launch a scathing criticism against the government and society of the time, represented by the infamous Circumlocution Office and a certain affluent couple named Merdle.
An excellent read for all those who have a reasonable grasp of the English language or have enjoyed other Dickens books.

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Long neglected, this has become deservedly popular after the brilliant TV adaptation. A panoramic picture of Victorian society, showing how poverty gives rise to riches and riches give way to integrity.

Great History and Insights...a tale of two societies., 13 May 2004
Little Dorritt was born at Marshalsea-the debtors prison. Her father is something of an informal mayor ('father') of the place, and everyone imprisoned there pays him homage-and alms- for his long suffering good nature and the 'tone' he sets for the experience of being thrown in jail Indeed, Mr. Dorritt has raised self pity to an art form. Little Dorritt is small and wan. People continually ask her if she 'has strength and can endure things.' She reminds them she was born in the poor house. Through the kind offices of 'a friend,' Arthur Clennam, midway through the book the family is released from prison, debts paid and they live the genteel life that Mr. Dorritt always assumed was his birthright. In a classic case of projection, Mr. Dorritt prattles to Amy (Little) Dorritt how she should not be morose, and she should forget life in the poor house. 'Put on airs for the sake of the servants so they would remember 'their place.' Mr Dorritt assures Amy 'he has completely wiped the sad episode of living in debtors prison' from his mind. In order to secure his place in society, Mr. Dorritt seeks favor from an unseen Mr. Myrtle who it seems has the economy of the entire world in the palm of his hand. Indeed, Fanny Dorritt, Amy's sister is also smitten with the Myrtle clan and seeks the favor of Edmund Myrtle, just so she can put on even more superior airs than Mrs. Myrtle does. The circumlocutions of speech, especially those Mr. Dorritt and Mrs. Myrtle use, when these characters talk to one other in itself is worth the price of admission. Amy is devoted to her father and shows little interest in social activities. She does however manage, through her needlework, to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Clemmens, Arthurs mother- that's how Arthur comes to learn of Mr. Dorritt's legal plight and thanks to Arthur they got away from Marshalsea, the debtor's prison. In time, Mr. Dorritt falls sick. He stands up at a dinner party to give his 'welcome to Marshallsea speech, much to the embarrassment of all the high society types there present. Hence the contrast between the two societies, the debtors and the wealthy. Mr. Dorritt's disease in terminal and inevitably, we meet Mr. Myrtle when he comes to commiserate with the Fanny, his son Edmund and the other mourners. The mighty economic dynamo does not put on many airs at all, but he does ask if he might have a pen knife...one of the wedding tokens from Edmund and Fanny's wedding. Mr. Myrtle then privately kills himself. All his financial wheelings and dealings were false and the family is busted. Arthur Clemmens is busted too, and Amy goes to find him at Marshalsea in her families old lodgings. She insists on helping him and he is ashamed as he believes he was not only instrumental in their release from Marshalsea but also in connecting the family with the notorious Myrtles. Amy will have nothing to do with this theory. She goes to plead Arthur's case with his mother who has money locked up in a vault. She has been paralyzed for a very long time and is unable to walk. The steward is furious that the family fortune should be spent to pay Arthur's debts as the steward believes and has tried to convince Mother that Arthur is a spendthrift playboy. Mother rises from her chair and with assistance from Amy and her maid, descends the stairs and sees the steward open the safe, at which point the house collapses. Amy takes the money, frees Arthur and the two are married.

Well, I hope this quick sketch does justice to the characterizations in this book. What can be said? It is truly Dickensian! Debtors prison is the Victorian answer to welfare and the novel does serviceable duty in presenting the life style of both down and outers as well as the worst elements of snobbery in the genteel set. As such, the story is illuminating as history and as a study in character. It is a story that stuck with me. As to whether it could be classified as a 'fun read,' well on that score, the book does fall somewhat short. Little Dorritt is big and heady stuff.

A great work long unnoticed, 24 Jun 1999
"Bleak House" may have been masterfully managed, but I preferred this tense tale of poverty, riches and the parasitic class that breeds both. It is as cautionary a tale as the former: the role of the machinery of government and capitalist class on the lives of all under them has never been so powerfully depicted. Mr Merdle was based on a real person, a Sadlier who killed himself in Hyde Park when he caused the Tipperary Bank to fail. Amy Dorrit is to be preferred to Esther Summerson as a heroine in not being so off-puttingly and impossibly sweet. Dickens' mastery of plot is such to create an exciting mystery and a rich interweaving of character and plot that kept me up all night unravelling the puzzle.

Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, 29 Nov 2008
The book is delightful and I enjoyed it immensely, the only downside of this paperback edition being that pages fall out as you turn them over and read them (only a problem if you drop them, which I did!). But what can you expect for £1.99?

It gives a very interesting insight into Victorian life of both poor and rich, and links what goes on in the outside world with the inner thoughts and the actions of individuals. Wonderful descriptions of people and places. Better than the television production, though rather long and needing a lot of concentration. Well worth buying, well worth reading, and I would have given it 5-star for content, but I marked it down to 4-star because of the many loose pages.

Dickens at what he does best!, 20 Nov 2008
Little Dorrit is a prime example of Dickens' weighty descriptive style and his genius for observation and characterisation. It also, perhaps unusually for Dickens, has a semi-coherent story line.
The book chronicles the respective fortunes of the title heroine, a young women caring for her incarcerated father in the Marshalsea Prison, and Mr Arthur Clennam, a kindly businessman returned lately from the east, who becomes obsessed with the idea that his father was responsible for the Dorrit families woes. An entrie host of characters, good and bad, amusing and obnoxious, accompany the main protagonists on their mysteriously intertwined journeys. The only fault I can find is with the tale's finale, when it seems Dickens grows tired of the story, not actually having a great twist for the climax, and bumps off many of his characters before ending with a rather predictable chocolate tin finish. However, your sense of achievment at having penetrated deeper into the world of Dickens, meeting memorable heroes and villains will probably overcome any misgivings on this score. The scene where Mr Pancks cuts the patriarch's hair is pure genius and the petulant Mr Dorrit, Flora Casby and her objectionable Aunt are another constant stream of entertainment.
Apart from the moral that money will not buy you happiness, Dickens also used this book to launch a scathing criticism against the government and society of the time, represented by the infamous Circumlocution Office and a certain affluent couple named Merdle.
An excellent read for all those who have a reasonable grasp of the English language or have enjoyed other Dickens books.

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Long neglected, this has become deservedly popular after the brilliant TV adaptation. A panoramic picture of Victorian society, showing how poverty gives rise to riches and riches give way to integrity.

Great History and Insights...a tale of two societies., 13 May 2004
Little Dorritt was born at Marshalsea-the debtors prison. Her father is something of an informal mayor ('father') of the place, and everyone imprisoned there pays him homage-and alms- for his long suffering good nature and the 'tone' he sets for the experience of being thrown in jail Indeed, Mr. Dorritt has raised self pity to an art form. Little Dorritt is small and wan. People continually ask her if she 'has strength and can endure things.' She reminds them she was born in the poor house. Through the kind offices of 'a friend,' Arthur Clennam, midway through the book the family is released from prison, debts paid and they live the genteel life that Mr. Dorritt always assumed was his birthright. In a classic case of projection, Mr. Dorritt prattles to Amy (Little) Dorritt how she should not be morose, and she should forget life in the poor house. 'Put on airs for the sake of the servants so they would remember 'their place.' Mr Dorritt assures Amy 'he has completely wiped the sad episode of living in debtors prison' from his mind. In order to secure his place in society, Mr. Dorritt seeks favor from an unseen Mr. Myrtle who it seems has the economy of the entire world in the palm of his hand. Indeed, Fanny Dorritt, Amy's sister is also smitten with the Myrtle clan and seeks the favor of Edmund Myrtle, just so she can put on even more superior airs than Mrs. Myrtle does. The circumlocutions of speech, especially those Mr. Dorritt and Mrs. Myrtle use, when these characters talk to one other in itself is worth the price of admission. Amy is devoted to her father and shows little interest in social activities. She does however manage, through her needlework, to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Clemmens, Arthurs mother- that's how Arthur comes to learn of Mr. Dorritt's legal plight and thanks to Arthur they got away from Marshalsea, the debtor's prison. In time, Mr. Dorritt falls sick. He stands up at a dinner party to give his 'welcome to Marshallsea speech, much to the embarrassment of all the high society types there present. Hence the contrast between the two societies, the debtors and the wealthy. Mr. Dorritt's disease in terminal and inevitably, we meet Mr. Myrtle when he comes to commiserate with the Fanny, his son Edmund and the other mourners. The mighty economic dynamo does not put on many airs at all, but he does ask if he might have a pen knife...one of the wedding tokens from Edmund and Fanny's wedding. Mr. Myrtle then privately kills himself. All his financial wheelings and dealings were false and the family is busted. Arthur Clemmens is busted too, and Amy goes to find him at Marshalsea in her families old lodgings. She insists on helping him and he is ashamed as he believes he was not only instrumental in their release from Marshalsea but also in connecting the family with the notorious Myrtles. Amy will have nothing to do with this theory. She goes to plead Arthur's case with his mother who has money locked up in a vault. She has been paralyzed for a very long time and is unable to walk. The steward is furious that the family fortune should be spent to pay Arthur's debts as the steward believes and has tried to convince Mother that Arthur is a spendthrift playboy. Mother rises from her chair and with assistance from Amy and her maid, descends the stairs and sees the steward open the safe, at which point the house collapses. Amy takes the money, frees Arthur and the two are married.

Well, I hope this quick sketch does justice to the characterizations in this book. What can be said? It is truly Dickensian! Debtors prison is the Victorian answer to welfare and the novel does serviceable duty in presenting the life style of both down and outers as well as the worst elements of snobbery in the genteel set. As such, the story is illuminating as history and as a study in character. It is a story that stuck with me. As to whether it could be classified as a 'fun read,' well on that score, the book does fall somewhat short. Little Dorritt is big and heady stuff.

A great work long unnoticed, 24 Jun 1999
"Bleak House" may have been masterfully managed, but I preferred this tense tale of poverty, riches and the parasitic class that breeds both. It is as cautionary a tale as the former: the role of the machinery of government and capitalist class on the lives of all under them has never been so powerfully depicted. Mr Merdle was based on a real person, a Sadlier who killed himself in Hyde Park when he caused the Tipperary Bank to fail. Amy Dorrit is to be preferred to Esther Summerson as a heroine in not being so off-puttingly and impossibly sweet. Dickens' mastery of plot is such to create an exciting mystery and a rich interweaving of character and plot that kept me up all night unravelling the puzzle.

Good on characterisation poor on plot, 09 Nov 2008
Warning: this review contains spoilers.

The major strengths of the novel are its characters and atmosphere. Every character is sharply drawn, we can visualise them in our mind's eye; Dickens has the ability to invest each of them with their own distinctive speech patterns. He can also create atmosphere whether it be describing the Marshalsea or the interior of Mrs Clennam's house. He is wonderful at creating a scene, of placing his characters in that scene and exploring the interaction of each.

The weakness of the novel is its plot. It never really gains momentum and there is always a sense of stasis, of things about to develop, but never doing so. We are presented with a series of tableaux and then, suddenly, something happens with no relation to anything that has gone before. Much is left unexplained; we are never told what Doyce's invention actually is, we are given no clue as to the nature of Merdle's financial dealings, his downfall just happens. The Dorrits suddenly become rich halfway through the novel. It dosen't convince.

A warning about this Penguin edition. For some inexplicable reason, American spellings are used throughout (eg 'honor' instead of 'honour'). I am not sure why this has been done and as certain Victorian spellings are also used, it makes even less sense. Some readers may find this annoying and would prefer to read a different edition.

A bonus of the Penguin edition, though, is the inclusion of the original illustrations.


Superb, 21 May 2008
From its first publication in book form after the serialisation, Little Dorrit has always proved to be a good seller. So why has this book always been so popular? For whole segments Amy 'Little' Dorrit does not even appear. The novel covers so much more than the title implies.

Little Dorrit is born in the Marshalsea, where her father is imprisoned for debt. Eventually he is released at the end of book one, when he comes into an inheritance. For Mr Dorrit this leads to paranoia that people are talking behind his back or laughing at him due to his former poverty. Poor little Dorrit finds it difficult to change her ways and is still a ministering angel to all and sundry.

What really stands out in this book are the locations, as the story travels from London through France, Switzerland and Italy. This is the most widespread geographically of any of Dickens' novels. Also this book probably has the most sub-plots of any Dickens novel, with mention of murder and smuggling, to actual acts of corruption and suicide, to love, marriages and death. Mrs Clennam tries to keep a family secret buried but is being blackmailed, and is her house haunted or is there a more rational explanation?

As to be expected with Dickens there are some great characters and some good comedy. Anyone who has ever had any dealings with govermental departments can really appreciate the Circumloction Office, and its practices. A few of the illustrations in this book are some of the very best to appear in any of his novels.

This is a must read book, that with so many things going on throughout will keep you absorbed for hours, and that you will want to read again.

Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, 29 Nov 2008
The book is delightful and I enjoyed it immensely, the only downside of this paperback edition being that pages fall out as you turn them over and read them (only a problem if you drop them, which I did!). But what can you expect for £1.99?

It gives a very interesting insight into Victorian life of both poor and rich, and links what goes on in the outside world with the inner thoughts and the actions of individuals. Wonderful descriptions of people and places. Better than the television production, though rather long and needing a lot of concentration. Well worth buying, well worth reading, and I would have given it 5-star for content, but I marked it down to 4-star because of the many loose pages.

Dickens at what he does best!, 20 Nov 2008
Little Dorrit is a prime example of Dickens' weighty descriptive style and his genius for observation and characterisation. It also, perhaps unusually for Dickens, has a semi-coherent story line.
The book chronicles the respective fortunes of the title heroine, a young women caring for her incarcerated father in the Marshalsea Prison, and Mr Arthur Clennam, a kindly businessman returned lately from the east, who becomes obsessed with the idea that his father was responsible for the Dorrit families woes. An entrie host of characters, good and bad, amusing and obnoxious, accompany the main protagonists on their mysteriously intertwined journeys. The only fault I can find is with the tale's finale, when it seems Dickens grows tired of the story, not actually having a great twist for the climax, and bumps off many of his characters before ending with a rather predictable chocolate tin finish. However, your sense of achievment at having penetrated deeper into the world of Dickens, meeting memorable heroes and villains will probably overcome any misgivings on this score. The scene where Mr Pancks cuts the patriarch's hair is pure genius and the petulant Mr Dorrit, Flora Casby and her objectionable Aunt are another constant stream of entertainment.
Apart from the moral that money will not buy you happiness, Dickens also used this book to launch a scathing criticism against the government and society of the time, represented by the infamous Circumlocution Office and a certain affluent couple named Merdle.
An excellent read for all those who have a reasonable grasp of the English language or have enjoyed other Dickens books.

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Long neglected, this has become deservedly popular after the brilliant TV adaptation. A panoramic picture of Victorian society, showing how poverty gives rise to riches and riches give way to integrity.

Great History and Insights...a tale of two societies., 13 May 2004
Little Dorritt was born at Marshalsea-the debtors prison. Her father is something of an informal mayor ('father') of the place, and everyone imprisoned there pays him homage-and alms- for his long suffering good nature and the 'tone' he sets for the experience of being thrown in jail Indeed, Mr. Dorritt has raised self pity to an art form. Little Dorritt is small and wan. People continually ask her if she 'has strength and can endure things.' She reminds them she was born in the poor house. Through the kind offices of 'a friend,' Arthur Clennam, midway through the book the family is released from prison, debts paid and they live the genteel life that Mr. Dorritt always assumed was his birthright. In a classic case of projection, Mr. Dorritt prattles to Amy (Little) Dorritt how she should not be morose, and she should forget life in the poor house. 'Put on airs for the sake of the servants so they would remember 'their place.' Mr Dorritt assures Amy 'he has completely wiped the sad episode of living in debtors prison' from his mind. In order to secure his place in society, Mr. Dorritt seeks favor from an unseen Mr. Myrtle who it seems has the economy of the entire world in the palm of his hand. Indeed, Fanny Dorritt, Amy's sister is also smitten with the Myrtle clan and seeks the favor of Edmund Myrtle, just so she can put on even more superior airs than Mrs. Myrtle does. The circumlocutions of speech, especially those Mr. Dorritt and Mrs. Myrtle use, when these characters talk to one other in itself is worth the price of admission. Amy is devoted to her father and shows little interest in social activities. She does however manage, through her needlework, to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Clemmens, Arthurs mother- that's how Arthur comes to learn of Mr. Dorritt's legal plight and thanks to Arthur they got away from Marshalsea, the debtor's prison. In time, Mr. Dorritt falls sick. He stands up at a dinner party to give his 'welcome to Marshallsea speech, much to the embarrassment of all the high society types there present. Hence the contrast between the two societies, the debtors and the wealthy. Mr. Dorritt's disease in terminal and inevitably, we meet Mr. Myrtle when he comes to commiserate with the Fanny, his son Edmund and the other mourners. The mighty economic dynamo does not put on many airs at all, but he does ask if he might have a pen knife...one of the wedding tokens from Edmund and Fanny's wedding. Mr. Myrtle then privately kills himself. All his financial wheelings and dealings were false and the family is busted. Arthur Clemmens is busted too, and Amy goes to find him at Marshalsea in her families old lodgings. She insists on helping him and he is ashamed as he believes he was not only instrumental in their release from Marshalsea but also in connecting the family with the notorious Myrtles. Amy will have nothing to do with this theory. She goes to plead Arthur's case with his mother who has money locked up in a vault. She has been paralyzed for a very long time and is unable to walk. The steward is furious that the family fortune should be spent to pay Arthur's debts as the steward believes and has tried to convince Mother that Arthur is a spendthrift playboy. Mother rises from her chair and with assistance from Amy and her maid, descends the stairs and sees the steward open the safe, at which point the house collapses. Amy takes the money, frees Arthur and the two are married.

Well, I hope this quick sketch does justice to the characterizations in this book. What can be said? It is truly Dickensian! Debtors prison is the Victorian answer to welfare and the novel does serviceable duty in presenting the life style of both down and outers as well as the worst elements of snobbery in the genteel set. As such, the story is illuminating as history and as a study in character. It is a story that stuck with me. As to whether it could be classified as a 'fun read,' well on that score, the book does fall somewhat short. Little Dorritt is big and heady stuff.

A great work long unnoticed, 24 Jun 1999
"Bleak House" may have been masterfully managed, but I preferred this tense tale of poverty, riches and the parasitic class that breeds both. It is as cautionary a tale as the former: the role of the machinery of government and capitalist class on the lives of all under them has never been so powerfully depicted. Mr Merdle was based on a real person, a Sadlier who killed himself in Hyde Park when he caused the Tipperary Bank to fail. Amy Dorrit is to be preferred to Esther Summerson as a heroine in not being so off-puttingly and impossibly sweet. Dickens' mastery of plot is such to create an exciting mystery and a rich interweaving of character and plot that kept me up all night unravelling the puzzle.

Good on characterisation poor on plot, 09 Nov 2008
Warning: this review contains spoilers.

The major strengths of the novel are its characters and atmosphere. Every character is sharply drawn, we can visualise them in our mind's eye; Dickens has the ability to invest each of them with their own distinctive speech patterns. He can also create atmosphere whether it be describing the Marshalsea or the interior of Mrs Clennam's house. He is wonderful at creating a scene, of placing his characters in that scene and exploring the interaction of each.

The weakness of the novel is its plot. It never really gains momentum and there is always a sense of stasis, of things about to develop, but never doing so. We are presented with a series of tableaux and then, suddenly, something happens with no relation to anything that has gone before. Much is left unexplained; we are never told what Doyce's invention actually is, we are given no clue as to the nature of Merdle's financial dealings, his downfall just happens. The Dorrits suddenly become rich halfway through the novel. It dosen't convince.

A warning about this Penguin edition. For some inexplicable reason, American spellings are used throughout (eg 'honor' instead of 'honour'). I am not sure why this has been done and as certain Victorian spellings are also used, it makes even less sense. Some readers may find this annoying and would prefer to read a different edition.

A bonus of the Penguin edition, though, is the inclusion of the original illustrations.


Superb, 21 May 2008
From its first publication in book form after the serialisation, Little Dorrit has always proved to be a good seller. So why has this book always been so popular? For whole segments Amy 'Little' Dorrit does not even appear. The novel covers so much more than the title implies.

Little Dorrit is born in the Marshalsea, where her father is imprisoned for debt. Eventually he is released at the end of book one, when he comes into an inheritance. For Mr Dorrit this leads to paranoia that people are talking behind his back or laughing at him due to his former poverty. Poor little Dorrit finds it difficult to change her ways and is still a ministering angel to all and sundry.

What really stands out in this book are the locations, as the story travels from London through France, Switzerland and Italy. This is the most widespread geographically of any of Dickens' novels. Also this book probably has the most sub-plots of any Dickens novel, with mention of murder and smuggling, to actual acts of corruption and suicide, to love, marriages and death. Mrs Clennam tries to keep a family secret buried but is being blackmailed, and is her house haunted or is there a more rational explanation?

As to be expected with Dickens there are some great characters and some good comedy. Anyone who has ever had any dealings with govermental departments can really appreciate the Circumloction Office, and its practices. A few of the illustrations in this book are some of the very best to appear in any of his novels.

This is a must read book, that with so many things going on throughout will keep you absorbed for hours, and that you will want to read again.

A Good Read, 07 Sep 2007
I have just finished reading this book and I must say that I found it a little disjointed, although there were some real gems of characters in it - Swiveller, the Brasses, Quilp. That's why I've given it a 4 instead of a 3. The "good" characters were, as often in Dickens, rather boring and just too good to be true. Some things were left unsaid: for instance, how did Quilp's wife ever get to marry him!!!! There was a little note at the end that said her mother coerced her, but that part of the story might have been a lot better. All in all worth a read and, despite my criticisms, I wish I could write a fraction as good as Dickens!

Twee heroine but revel in the characters, 03 Aug 2006
The basic set up of this story may have pulled at Victorian heart stings but I thought it just silly : Nell, a young girl (12 I think) is brought into poverty by her uselss gambler of a grandfather and so decides they should both escape from the evil clutches of Quilp and run away to live as travellers in the countryside.

As is often the case in Dickens the good characters are dull and Nell is certainly this. Dull and niave the book drags when it's just her and her ga ga grandfather trapssing around the countryside. However, what saves the books is the great characters around them. Mrs Jaffery who runs the wax works, Richard Swiveller and the Marchioness, the noble, trustworthy Kit and of course the vile Quilp. Quilp is the star of the book, evil incarnate he steals every scene he's in. I'd love a really dark version of this story to be made for tv or the cinema.

The essence of Charles Dickens , 28 Jul 2006
This is the story of a little girl called Nell, who together with her grandfather, must run away from a succession of villains in an almost epic journey! You'll find everything here that you love about Charles Dickens: humour, satire, drama, unforgettable characters, laughter, and tears (I read somewhere that when Dickens read The Old Curiosity Shop at his public readings, the audience would actually burst into mass tears!) There are moments of heart-warming joy and moments of despair, and I think anyone with empathy and imagination will love this classic tale of good and evil.

A word of warning though: if you buy an edition with annotations, don't read them!! I made this fatal mistake, and was informed by a note in the middle of the novel about the fate of one of the main characters and what happens to the person at the end. What a spoiler! It ruined the whole pleasure of reading for me and I only managed to finish because the narrative was so lovely... if it had been any other novel I would surely not have bothered to go on to the end. Allow yourself the pleasure of reading this novel for its warmth and literary greatness - don't touch the notes.

Quite Delightful, 28 Apr 2004
I found this Charles Dickens novel quite what I expected: vividcharacters, demonic villains, comedy and tragedy together. I especiallyliked Mr. Swiveller and Marchionette. I liked how Swiveller turns out tobe at the end. Quilp was one of the worst villains I ever met inliterature. The parts where Dickens describes the poverty and inhumanconditions in the beginning of the industrialization process are simplytouching. Also towards the end, Nell's wanderings in the ancient town areso foretelling that one cannot help being moved. Although I found the plotto be quite predictable, it takes nothing away from the story. Theillustrations are quite fun too.

An amazing piece of work, 10 Apr 2003
I had bought this book in a multi-buy deal with other classics, and somehow it managed to sit on my bookshelf for almost a year before I got round to reading it - by the time I had finished it, I was kicking myself that it been wasting away for so long!

There are so many things going on it, and although some things are just *too* coincidental, it never fails to grab you into the story. Couple this with the fact that Dickens can draw a wonderful picture of London of his time, and you feel part of the whole thing.

The characters are wonderful as well - my favourites being Quilp, the evil dwarf, and Richard Swiveller (his antics 'working' in the office were always highly amusing).

In short, a real rollercoaster of a novel, thoroughly recommended!!

Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, 29 Nov 2008
The book is delightful and I enjoyed it immensely, the only downside of this paperback edition being that pages fall out as you turn them over and read them (only a problem if you drop them, which I did!). But what can you expect for £1.99?

It gives a very interesting insight into Victorian life of both poor and rich, and links what goes on in the outside world with the inner thoughts and the actions of individuals. Wonderful descriptions of people and places. Better than the television production, though rather long and needing a lot of concentration. Well worth buying, well worth reading, and I would have given it 5-star for content, but I marked it down to 4-star because of the many loose pages.

Dickens at what he does best!, 20 Nov 2008
Little Dorrit is a prime example of Dickens' weighty descriptive style and his genius for observation and characterisation. It also, perhaps unusually for Dickens, has a semi-coherent story line.
The book chronicles the respective fortunes of the title heroine, a young women caring for her incarcerated father in the Marshalsea Prison, and Mr Arthur Clennam, a kindly businessman returned lately from the east, who becomes obsessed with the idea that his father was responsible for the Dorrit families woes. An entrie host of characters, good and bad, amusing and obnoxious, accompany the main protagonists on their mysteriously intertwined journeys. The only fault I can find is with the tale's finale, when it seems Dickens grows tired of the story, not actually having a great twist for the climax, and bumps off many of his characters before ending with a rather predictable chocolate tin finish. However, your sense of achievment at having penetrated deeper into the world of Dickens, meeting memorable heroes and villains will probably overcome any misgivings on this score. The scene where Mr Pancks cuts the patriarch's hair is pure genius and the petulant Mr Dorrit, Flora Casby and her objectionable Aunt are another constant stream of entertainment.
Apart from the moral that money will not buy you happiness, Dickens also used this book to launch a scathing criticism against the government and society of the time, represented by the infamous Circumlocution Office and a certain affluent couple named Merdle.
An excellent read for all those who have a reasonable grasp of the English language or have enjoyed other Dickens books.

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Long neglected, this has become deservedly popular after the brilliant TV adaptation. A panoramic picture of Victorian society, showing how poverty gives rise to riches and riches give way to integrity.

Great History and Insights...a tale of two societies., 13 May 2004
Little Dorritt was born at Marshalsea-the debtors prison. Her father is something of an informal mayor ('father') of the place, and everyone imprisoned there pays him homage-and alms- for his long suffering good nature and the 'tone' he sets for the experience of being thrown in jail Indeed, Mr. Dorritt has raised self pity to an art form. Little Dorritt is small and wan. People continually ask her if she 'has strength and can endure things.' She reminds them she was born in the poor house. Through the kind offices of 'a friend,' Arthur Clennam, midway through the book the family is released from prison, debts paid and they live the genteel life that Mr. Dorritt always assumed was his birthright. In a classic case of projection, Mr. Dorritt prattles to Amy (Little) Dorritt how she should not be morose, and she should forget life in the poor house. 'Put on airs for the sake of the servants so they would remember 'their place.' Mr Dorritt assures Amy 'he has completely wiped the sad episode of living in debtors prison' from his mind. In order to secure his place in society, Mr. Dorritt seeks favor from an unseen Mr. Myrtle who it seems has the economy of the entire world in the palm of his hand. Indeed, Fanny Dorritt, Amy's sister is also smitten with the Myrtle clan and seeks the favor of Edmund Myrtle, just so she can put on even more superior airs than Mrs. Myrtle does. The circumlocutions of speech, especially those Mr. Dorritt and Mrs. Myrtle use, when these characters talk to one other in itself is worth the price of admission. Amy is devoted to her father and shows little interest in social activities. She does however manage, through her needlework, to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Clemmens, Arthurs mother- that's how Arthur comes to learn of Mr. Dorritt's legal plight and thanks to Arthur they got away from Marshalsea, the debtor's prison. In time, Mr. Dorritt falls sick. He stands up at a dinner party to give his 'welcome to Marshallsea speech, much to the embarrassment of all the high society types there present. Hence the contrast between the two societies, the debtors and the wealthy. Mr. Dorritt's disease in terminal and inevitably, we meet Mr. Myrtle when he comes to commiserate with the Fanny, his son Edmund and the other mourners. The mighty economic dynamo does not put on many airs at all, but he does ask if he might have a pen knife...one of the wedding tokens from Edmund and Fanny's wedding. Mr. Myrtle then privately kills himself. All his financial wheelings and dealings were false and the family is busted. Arthur Clemmens is busted too, and Amy goes to find him at Marshalsea in her families old lodgings. She insists on helping him and he is ashamed as he believes he was not only instrumental in their release from Marshalsea but also in connecting the family with the notorious Myrtles. Amy will have nothing to do with this theory. She goes to plead Arthur's case with his mother who has money locked up in a vault. She has been paralyzed for a very long time and is unable to walk. The steward is furious that the family fortune should be spent to pay Arthur's debts as the steward believes and has tried to convince Mother that Arthur is a spendthrift playboy. Mother rises from her chair and with assistance from Amy and her maid, descends the stairs and sees the steward open the safe, at which point the house collapses. Amy takes the money, frees Arthur and the two are married.

Well, I hope this quick sketch does justice to the characterizations in this book. What can be said? It is truly Dickensian! Debtors prison is the Victorian answer to welfare and the novel does serviceable duty in presenting the life style of both down and outers as well as the worst elements of snobbery in the genteel set. As such, the story is illuminating as history and as a study in character. It is a story that stuck with me. As to whether it could be classified as a 'fun read,' well on that score, the book does fall somewhat short. Little Dorritt is big and heady stuff.

A great work long unnoticed, 24 Jun 1999
"Bleak House" may have been masterfully managed, but I preferred this tense tale of poverty, riches and the parasitic class that breeds both. It is as cautionary a tale as the former: the role of the machinery of government and capitalist class on the lives of all under them has never been so powerfully depicted. Mr Merdle was based on a real person, a Sadlier who killed himself in Hyde Park when he caused the Tipperary Bank to fail. Amy Dorrit is to be preferred to Esther Summerson as a heroine in not being so off-puttingly and impossibly sweet. Dickens' mastery of plot is such to create an exciting mystery and a rich interweaving of character and plot that kept me up all night unravelling the puzzle.

Good on characterisation poor on plot, 09 Nov 2008
Warning: this review contains spoilers.

The major strengths of the novel are its characters and atmosphere. Every character is sharply drawn, we can visualise them in our mind's eye; Dickens has the ability to invest each of them with their own distinctive speech patterns. He can also create atmosphere whether it be describing the Marshalsea or the interior of Mrs Clennam's house. He is wonderful at creating a scene, of placing his characters in that scene and exploring the interaction of each.

The weakness of the novel is its plot. It never really gains momentum and there is always a sense of stasis, of things about to develop, but never doing so. We are presented with a series of tableaux and then, suddenly, something happens with no relation to anything that has gone before. Much is left unexplained; we are never told what Doyce's invention actually is, we are given no clue as to the nature of Merdle's financial dealings, his downfall just happens. The Dorrits suddenly become rich halfway through the novel. It dosen't convince.

A warning about this Penguin edition. For some inexplicable reason, American spellings are used throughout (eg 'honor' instead of 'honour'). I am not sure why this has been done and as certain Victorian spellings are also used, it makes even less sense. Some readers may find this annoying and would prefer to read a different edition.

A bonus of the Penguin edition, though, is the inclusion of the original illustrations.


Superb, 21 May 2008
From its first publication in book form after the serialisation, Little Dorrit has always proved to be a good seller. So why has this book always been so popular? For whole segments Amy 'Little' Dorrit does not even appear. The novel covers so much more than the title implies.

Little Dorrit is born in the Marshalsea, where her father is imprisoned for debt. Eventually he is released at the end of book one, when he comes into an inheritance. For Mr Dorrit this leads to paranoia that people are talking behind his back or laughing at him due to his former poverty. Poor little Dorrit finds it difficult to change her ways and is still a ministering angel to all and sundry.

What really stands out in this book are the locations, as the story travels from London through France, Switzerland and Italy. This is the most widespread geographically of any of Dickens' novels. Also this book probably has the most sub-plots of any Dickens novel, with mention of murder and smuggling, to actual acts of corruption and suicide, to love, marriages and death. Mrs Clennam tries to keep a family secret buried but is being blackmailed, and is her house haunted or is there a more rational explanation?

As to be expected with Dickens there are some great characters and some good comedy. Anyone who has ever had any dealings with govermental departments can really appreciate the Circumloction Office, and its practices. A few of the illustrations in this book are some of the very best to appear in any of his novels.

This is a must read book, that with so many things going on throughout will keep you absorbed for hours, and that you will want to read again.

A Good Read, 07 Sep 2007
I have just finished reading this book and I must say that I found it a little disjointed, although there were some real gems of characters in it - Swiveller, the Brasses, Quilp. That's why I've given it a 4 instead of a 3. The "good" characters were, as often in Dickens, rather boring and just too good to be true. Some things were left unsaid: for instance, how did Quilp's wife ever get to marry him!!!! There was a little note at the end that said her mother coerced her, but that part of the story might have been a lot better. All in all worth a read and, despite my criticisms, I wish I could write a fraction as good as Dickens!

Twee heroine but revel in the characters, 03 Aug 2006
The basic set up of this story may have pulled at Victorian heart stings but I thought it just silly : Nell, a young girl (12 I think) is brought into poverty by her uselss gambler of a grandfather and so decides they should both escape from the evil clutches of Quilp and run away to live as travellers in the countryside.

As is often the case in Dickens the good characters are dull and Nell is certainly this. Dull and niave the book drags when it's just her and her ga ga grandfather trapssing around the countryside. However, what saves the books is the great characters around them. Mrs Jaffery who runs the wax works, Richard Swiveller and the Marchioness, the noble, trustworthy Kit and of course the vile Quilp. Quilp is the star of the book, evil incarnate he steals every scene he's in. I'd love a really dark version of this story to be made for tv or the cinema.

The essence of Charles Dickens , 28 Jul 2006
This is the story of a little girl called Nell, who together with her grandfather, must run away from a succession of villains in an almost epic journey! You'll find everything here that you love about Charles Dickens: humour, satire, drama, unforgettable characters, laughter, and tears (I read somewhere that when Dickens read The Old Curiosity Shop at his public readings, the audience would actually burst into mass tears!) There are moments of heart-warming joy and moments of despair, and I think anyone with empathy and imagination will love this classic tale of good and evil.

A word of warning though: if you buy an edition with annotations, don't read them!! I made this fatal mistake, and was informed by a note in the middle of the novel about the fate of one of the main characters and what happens to the person at the end. What a spoiler! It ruined the whole pleasure of reading for me and I only managed to finish because the narrative was so lovely... if it had been any other novel I would surely not have bothered to go on to the end. Allow yourself the pleasure of reading this novel for its warmth and literary greatness - don't touch the notes.

Quite Delightful, 28 Apr 2004
I found this Charles Dickens novel quite what I expected: vividcharacters, demonic villains, comedy and tragedy together. I especiallyliked Mr. Swiveller and Marchionette. I liked how Swiveller turns out tobe at the end. Quilp was one of the worst villains I ever met inliterature. The parts where Dickens describes the poverty and inhumanconditions in the beginning of the industrialization process are simplytouching. Also towards the end, Nell's wanderings in the ancient town areso foretelling that one cannot help being moved. Although I found the plotto be quite predictable, it takes nothing away from the story. Theillustrations are quite fun too.

An amazing piece of work, 10 Apr 2003
I had bought this book in a multi-buy deal with other classics, and somehow it managed to sit on my bookshelf for almost a year before I got round to reading it - by the time I had finished it, I was kicking myself that it been wasting away for so long!

There are so many things going on it, and although some things are just *too* coincidental, it never fails to grab you into the story. Couple this with the fact that Dickens can draw a wonderful picture of London of his time, and you feel part of the whole thing.

The characters are wonderful as well - my favourites being Quilp, the evil dwarf, and Richard Swiveller (his antics 'working' in the office were always highly amusing).

In short, a real rollercoaster of a novel, thoroughly recommended!!

A Christmas Carol, 02 Jan 2008
It seems that lots of Christmas traditions were born in the UK between 15th and 19th century. Charles Dickens cleverly used the background of the Victorian houses and societies and produced a splendid Christmas story.

The highlight of this classic is that Mr Scrooge gradually becomes aware of his selfishness and indifference whilst being hooked on earning a lot of money for himself, while his former colleague, Marley takes him to the world where an awful number of people are suffering from the poverty. Marley who died seven years ago feels extremely guilty for ever not helping the poor when he was alive. Having become a ghost, he begs Mr Scrooge to provide goodwill to the miserable people. Moreover, he is taken to various places, in line with Christmas in his past, present, and future.

A series of dramatic dreams shows him the moral of Christianity and conveys the true spirit of Christmas, i.e. peace and goodwill to all. Consequently, he changes his mind, presents a cheerful manner, and offers generous support to people, to the astonishment of his employee, Bob Cratchit who is told by his boss that his salary will be raised.


The classic Victorian Christmas story, 15 Dec 2007
A Christmas Carol is the classic Victorian Christmas story. Even though we know it well it continues to be a joy to read. Dickens creates some wonderful pictures of the bustling life in 19th century London. Some of the dialogue remains so fresh and still raises a smile in the reader no matter how many times you have read the book before. "You'll want all day tomorrow, I suppose" says Scrooge to his clerk on Christmas Eve. And the conversation between Scrooge and the two gentlemen who are asking him for donations to help the poor and destitute at Christmas is as funny (and poignant) as anything in any Dickens novel.

Although it is sometimes described as a children's book I do feel parents need to make an assessment as to how their children may react to some of the ghost scenes. Some adults I know say they had nightmares as a result of the appearance of Marley's ghost and the rattling chains!

It just would not be the same without it........, 03 Oct 2007
My all time fave story and I just have to re-read at least twice in the Xmas run-up. The writing just grabs you in a way that no other writer can and as for the characters, well they are already written into folklore.

Baa... Humbug, 02 Jan 2007
Christmas is a time to give and this story really gives the reader something!
Charles Dickens has a magical power over a reader and he used it over me!
Hope you enjoy this childrens classic!
One little point though... to everyone who doesn't like Dickens don't bother writing a review!

great classic novel, but difficult to read, especially for children, 17 Sep 2006
The review below is slightly misleading as this particular version is COMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED.
I would recommend reading a simplified version first, if you are not familiar with the story. Then have a dictionary to hand as you read this one!
The classic story is timeless, and one of Charles Dickens' most well known tales. As with many of his stories, the pictures he conjures up are rooted in his own experience of life in Victorian Britain, with it's great contrast between rich and poor.

Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, 29 Nov 2008
The book is delightful and I enjoyed it immensely, the only downside of this paperback edition being that pages fall out as you turn them over and read them (only a problem if you drop them, which I did!). But what can you expect for £1.99?

It gives a very interesting insight into Victorian life of both poor and rich, and links what goes on in the outside world with the inner thoughts and the actions of individuals. Wonderful descriptions of people and places. Better than the television production, though rather long and needing a lot of concentration. Well worth buying, well worth reading, and I would have given it 5-star for content, but I marked it down to 4-star because of the many loose pages.

Dickens at what he does best!, 20 Nov 2008
Little Dorrit is a prime example of Dickens' weighty descriptive style and his genius for observation and characterisation. It also, perhaps unusually for Dickens, has a semi-coherent story line.
The book chronicles the respective fortunes of the title heroine, a young women caring for her incarcerated father in the Marshalsea Prison, and Mr Arthur Clennam, a kindly businessman returned lately from the east, who becomes obsessed with the idea that his father was responsible for the Dorrit families woes. An entrie host of characters, good and bad, amusing and obnoxious, accompany the main protagonists on their mysteriously intertwined journeys. The only fault I can find is with the tale's finale, when it seems Dickens grows tired of the story, not actually having a great twist for the climax, and bumps off many of his characters before ending with a rather predictable chocolate tin finish. However, your sense of achievment at having penetrated deeper into the world of Dickens, meeting memorable heroes and villains will probably overcome any misgivings on this score. The scene where Mr Pancks cuts the patriarch's hair is pure genius and the petulant Mr Dorrit, Flora Casby and her objectionable Aunt are another constant stream of entertainment.
Apart from the moral that money will not buy you happiness, Dickens also used this book to launch a scathing criticism against the government and society of the time, represented by the infamous Circumlocution Office and a certain affluent couple named Merdle.
An excellent read for all those who have a reasonable grasp of the English language or have enjoyed other Dickens books.

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Long neglected, this has become deservedly popular after the brilliant TV adaptation. A panoramic picture of Victorian society, showing how poverty gives rise to riches and riches give way to integrity.

Great History and Insights...a tale of two societies., 13 May 2004
Little Dorritt was born at Marshalsea-the debtors prison. Her father is something of an informal mayor ('father') of the place, and everyone imprisoned there pays him homage-and alms- for his long suffering good nature and the 'tone' he sets for the experience of being thrown in jail Indeed, Mr. Dorritt has raised self pity to an art form. Little Dorritt is small and wan. People continually ask her if she 'has strength and can endure things.' She reminds them she was born in the poor house. Through the kind offices of 'a friend,' Arthur Clennam, midway through the book the family is released from prison, debts paid and they live the genteel life that Mr. Dorritt always assumed was his birthright. In a classic case of projection, Mr. Dorritt prattles to Amy (Little) Dorritt how she should not be morose, and she should forget life in the poor house. 'Put on airs for the sake of the servants so they would remember 'their place.' Mr Dorritt assures Amy 'he has completely wiped the sad episode of living in debtors prison' from his mind. In order to secure his place in society, Mr. Dorritt seeks favor from an unseen Mr. Myrtle who it seems has the economy of the entire world in the palm of his hand. Indeed, Fanny Dorritt, Amy's sister is also smitten with the Myrtle clan and seeks the favor of Edmund Myrtle, just so she can put on even more superior airs than Mrs. Myrtle does. The circumlocutions of speech, especially those Mr. Dorritt and Mrs. Myrtle use, when these characters talk to one other in itself is worth the price of admission. Amy is devoted to her father and shows little interest in social activities. She does however manage, through her needlework, to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Clemmens, Arthurs mother- that's how Arthur comes to learn of Mr. Dorritt's legal plight and thanks to Arthur they got away from Marshalsea, the debtor's prison. In time, Mr. Dorritt falls sick. He stands up at a dinner party to give his 'welcome to Marshallsea speech, much to the embarrassment of all the high society types there present. Hence the contrast between the two societies, the debtors and the wealthy. Mr. Dorritt's disease in terminal and inevitably, we meet Mr. Myrtle when he comes to commiserate with the Fanny, his son Edmund and the other mourners. The mighty economic dynamo does not put on many airs at all, but he does ask if he might have a pen knife...one of the wedding tokens from Edmund and Fanny's wedding. Mr. Myrtle then privately kills himself. All his financial wheelings and dealings were false and the family is busted. Arthur Clemmens is busted too, and Amy goes to find him at Marshalsea in her families old lodgings. She insists on helping him and he is ashamed as he believes he was not only instrumental in their release from Marshalsea but also in connecting the family with the notorious Myrtles. Amy will have nothing to do with this theory. She goes to plead Arthur's case with his mother who has money locked up in a vault. She has been paralyzed for a very long time and is unable to walk. The steward is furious that the family fortune should be spent to pay Arthur's debts as the steward believes and has tried to convince Mother that Arthur is a spendthrift playboy. Mother rises from her chair and with assistance from Amy and her maid, descends the stairs and sees the steward open the safe, at which point the house collapses. Amy takes the money, frees Arthur and the two are married.

Well, I hope this quick sketch does justice to the characterizations in this book. What can be said? It is truly Dickensian! Debtors prison is the Victorian answer to welfare and the novel does serviceable duty in presenting the life style of both down and outers as well as the worst elements of snobbery in the genteel set. As such, the story is illuminating as history and as a study in character. It is a story that stuck with me. As to whether it could be classified as a 'fun read,' well on that score, the book does fall somewhat short. Little Dorritt is big and heady stuff.

A great work long unnoticed, 24 Jun 1999
"Bleak House" may have been masterfully managed, but I preferred this tense tale of poverty, riches and the parasitic class that breeds both. It is as cautionary a tale as the former: the role of the machinery of government and capitalist class on the lives of all under them has never been so powerfully depicted. Mr Merdle was based on a real person, a Sadlier who killed himself in Hyde Park when he caused the Tipperary Bank to fail. Amy Dorrit is to be preferred to Esther Summerson as a heroine in not being so off-puttingly and impossibly sweet. Dickens' mastery of plot is such to create an exciting mystery and a rich interweaving of character and plot that kept me up all night unravelling the puzzle.

Good on characterisation poor on plot, 09 Nov 2008
Warning: this review contains spoilers.

The major strengths of the novel are its characters and atmosphere. Every character is sharply drawn, we can visualise them in our mind's eye; Dickens has the ability to invest each of them with their own distinctive speech patterns. He can also create atmosphere whether it be describing the Marshalsea or the interior of Mrs Clennam's house. He is wonderful at creating a scene, of placing his characters in that scene and exploring the interaction of each.

The weakness of the novel is its plot. It never really gains momentum and there is always a sense of stasis, of things about to develop, but never doing so. We are presented with a series of tableaux and then, suddenly, something happens with no relation to anything that has gone before. Much is left unexplained; we are never told what Doyce's invention actually is, we are given no clue as to the nature of Merdle's financial dealings, his downfall just happens. The Dorrits suddenly become rich halfway through the novel. It dosen't convince.

A warning about this Penguin edition. For some inexplicable reason, American spellings are used throughout (eg 'honor' instead of 'honour'). I am not sure why this has been done and as certain Victorian spellings are also used, it makes even less sense. Some readers may find this annoying and would prefer to read a different edition.

A bonus of the Penguin edition, though, is the inclusion of the original illustrations.


Superb, 21 May 2008
From its first publication in book form after the serialisation, Little Dorrit has always proved to be a good seller. So why has this book always been so popular? For whole segments Amy 'Little' Dorrit does not even appear. The novel covers so much more than the title implies.

Little Dorrit is born in the Marshalsea, where her father is imprisoned for debt. Eventually he is released at the end of book one, when he comes into an inheritance. For Mr Dorrit this leads to paranoia that people are talking behind his back or laughing at him due to his former poverty. Poor little Dorrit finds it difficult to change her ways and is still a ministering angel to all and sundry.

What really stands out in this book are the locations, as the story travels from London through France, Switzerland and Italy. This is the most widespread geographically of any of Dickens' novels. Also this book probably has the most sub-plots of any Dickens novel, with mention of murder and smuggling, to actual acts of corruption and suicide, to love, marriages and death. Mrs Clennam tries to keep a family secret buried but is being blackmailed, and is her house haunted or is there a more rational explanation?

As to be expected with Dickens there are some great characters and some good comedy. Anyone who has ever had any dealings with govermental departments can really appreciate the Circumloction Office, and its practices. A few of the illustrations in this book are some of the very best to appear in any of his novels.

This is a must read book, that with so many things going on throughout will keep you absorbed for hours, and that you will want to read again.

A Good Read, 07 Sep 2007
I have just finished reading this book and I must say that I found it a little disjointed, although there were some real gems of characters in it - Swiveller, the Brasses, Quilp. That's why I've given it a 4 instead of a 3. The "good" characters were, as often in Dickens, rather boring and just too good to be true. Some things were left unsaid: for instance, how did Quilp's wife ever get to marry him!!!! There was a little note at the end that said her mother coerced her, but that part of the story might have been a lot better. All in all worth a read and, despite my criticisms, I wish I could write a fraction as good as Dickens!

Twee heroine but revel in the characters, 03 Aug 2006
The basic set up of this story may have pulled at Victorian heart stings but I thought it just silly : Nell, a young girl (12 I think) is brought into poverty by her uselss gambler of a grandfather and so decides they should both escape from the evil clutches of Quilp and run away to live as travellers in the countryside.

As is often the case in Dickens the good characters are dull and Nell is certainly this. Dull and niave the book drags when it's just her and her ga ga grandfather trapssing around the countryside. However, what saves the books is the great characters around them. Mrs Jaffery who runs the wax works, Richard Swiveller and the Marchioness, the noble, trustworthy Kit and of course the vile Quilp. Quilp is the star of the book, evil incarnate he steals every scene he's in. I'd love a really dark version of this story to be made for tv or the cinema.

The essence of Charles Dickens , 28 Jul 2006
This is the story of a little girl called Nell, who together with her grandfather, must run away from a succession of villains in an almost epic journey! You'll find everything here that you love about Charles Dickens: humour, satire, drama, unforgettable characters, laughter, and tears (I read somewhere that when Dickens read The Old Curiosity Shop at his public readings, the audience would actually burst into mass tears!) There are moments of heart-warming joy and moments of despair, and I think anyone with empathy and imagination will love this classic tale of good and evil.

A word of warning though: if you buy an edition with annotations, don't read them!! I made this fatal mistake, and was informed by a note in the middle of the novel about the fate of one of the main characters and what happens to the person at the end. What a spoiler! It ruined the whole pleasure of reading for me and I only managed to finish because the narrative was so lovely... if it had been any other novel I would surely not have bothered to go on to the end. Allow yourself the pleasure of reading this novel for its warmth and literary greatness - don't touch the notes.

Quite Delightful, 28 Apr 2004
I found this Charles Dickens novel quite what I expected: vividcharacters, demonic villains, comedy and tragedy together. I especiallyliked Mr. Swiveller and Marchionette. I liked how Swiveller turns out tobe at the end. Quilp was one of the worst villains I ever met inliterature. The parts where Dickens describes the poverty and inhumanconditions in the beginning of the industrialization process are simplytouching. Also towards the end, Nell's wanderings in the ancient town areso foretelling that one cannot help being moved. Although I found the plotto be quite predictable, it takes nothing away from the story. Theillustrations are quite fun too.

An amazing piece of work, 10 Apr 2003
I had bought this book in a multi-buy deal with other classics, and somehow it managed to sit on my bookshelf for almost a year before I got round to reading it - by the time I had finished it, I was kicking myself that it been wasting away for so long!

There are so many things going on it, and although some things are just *too* coincidental, it never fails to grab you into the story. Couple this with the fact that Dickens can draw a wonderful picture of London of his time, and you feel part of the whole thing.

The characters are wonderful as well - my favourites being Quilp, the evil dwarf, and Richard Swiveller (his antics 'working' in the office were always highly amusing).

In short, a real rollercoaster of a novel, thoroughly recommended!!

A Christmas Carol, 02 Jan 2008
It seems that lots of Christmas traditions were born in the UK between 15th and 19th century. Charles Dickens cleverly used the background of the Victorian houses and societies and produced a splendid Christmas story.

The highlight of this classic is that Mr Scrooge gradually becomes aware of his selfishness and indifference whilst being hooked on earning a lot of money for himself, while his former colleague, Marley takes him to the world where an awful number of people are suffering from the poverty. Marley who died seven years ago feels extremely guilty for ever not helping the poor when he was alive. Having become a ghost, he begs Mr Scrooge to provide goodwill to the miserable people. Moreover, he is taken to various places, in line with Christmas in his past, present, and future.

A series of dramatic dreams shows him the moral of Christianity and conveys the true spirit of Christmas, i.e. peace and goodwill to all. Consequently, he changes his mind, presents a cheerful manner, and offers generous support to people, to the astonishment of his employee, Bob Cratchit who is told by his boss that his salary will be raised.


The classic Victorian Christmas story, 15 Dec 2007
A Christmas Carol is the classic Victorian Christmas story. Even though we know it well it continues to be a joy to read. Dickens creates some wonderful pictures of the bustling life in 19th century London. Some of the dialogue remains so fresh and still raises a smile in the reader no matter how many times you have read the book before. "You'll want all day tomorrow, I suppose" says Scrooge to his clerk on Christmas Eve. And the conversation between Scrooge and the two gentlemen who are asking him for donations to help the poor and destitute at Christmas is as funny (and poignant) as anything in any Dickens novel.

Although it is sometimes described as a children's book I do feel parents need to make an assessment as to how their children may react to some of the ghost scenes. Some adults I know say they had nightmares as a result of the appearance of Marley's ghost and the rattling chains!

It just would not be the same without it........, 03 Oct 2007
My all time fave story and I just have to re-read at least twice in the Xmas run-up. The writing just grabs you in a way that no other writer can and as for the characters, well they are already written into folklore.

Baa... Humbug, 02 Jan 2007
Christmas is a time to give and this story really gives the reader something!
Charles Dickens has a magical power over a reader and he used it over me!
Hope you enjoy this childrens classic!
One little point though... to everyone who doesn't like Dickens don't bother writing a review!

great classic novel, but difficult to read, especially for children, 17 Sep 2006
The review below is slightly misleading as this particular version is COMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED.
I would recommend reading a simplified version first, if you are not familiar with the story. Then have a dictionary to hand as you read this one!
The classic story is timeless, and one of Charles Dickens' most well known tales. As with many of his stories, the pictures he conjures up are rooted in his own experience of life in Victorian Britain, with it's great contrast between rich and poor.

Because it's always good to have a dissenting view, 08 Aug 2008
I've been a big fan of Dickens since reading David Copperfield about six years ago. Bleak House, which was the immediate follow-up to Copperfield, is not one of his best books.
Firstly, what happened to Dickens sense of humour, which went AWOL in Bleak House? There are some half-hearted attempts at comedy but they mostly fall flat. In fact, Dickens never really recovered as a comic writer after this, and his later works, though notable for many merits, are not particularly amusing, with exceptions. The warmth present in the best passages of Copperfield is also missing, though Dickens' notorious sentimentality is rampant.
Half of the book is narrated by Esther, who is more given to protestations of humility than Uriah Heep himself, except we are supposed to accept Esther as sincere, unlike the villanous Heep. Dickens' portrayal of young maidenhood has often been lampooned, and Esther is possibly the nadir, the worst of the worst. The scenes between Esther and her "love" Ada make for queasy reading, for me at least. The part that is not narrated by Esther is told in the present tense, for some reason, and the prose is very stilted and unnatural, and Dickens' characteristic facetiousness and lightness of touch cannot be attained.
There are a few mildly interesting minor characters in the book, such as Harold Skimpole, but none of the main characters are more than cardboard cutouts. The overall impression I got from this book was that Dickens' heart wasn't in it in the same way as in Copperfield or Great Expectations. The current critical vogue this book enjoys is probably down to its dealing with BIG SOCIAL ISSUES, and the fact that it is more carefully plotted than other Dickens novels, but the casual reader should not introduce himself to Dickens via this plodding and uninvolving work, it could put you off Dickens for life. Check out David Copperfield or Great Expectations instead.
I also felt that, contrary to popular opinion, the recent BBC adaptation was boring and incoherent.

unbeatable, 07 Jun 2008
pretty unbeatable, touching, heart breaking, wickedly funny and extremely evocative of Dicken's London...if you just read one classic novel then make it this one. A masterpiece

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Superb panorama of Victorian life, exposing the state, the legal system, the poverty of riches and the hypcrisy of liberalism (Horace Skimpole). Inspiring - the TV series brought it home to millions of people that Dickens really is our finest novelist.

the Wonder of Bleak House !, 27 Nov 2007
'Fog everywhere. Fog up the river...fog down the river...chance people on the bridges...with fog all round them.'


Repetition breeds a delicious sensory pleasure. This is Dickens's incantatory requiem to visual perception. Indeed our perceptions of the real are under review. This marked investment in temporary blindness is a metaphor for the secrecy and moral misjudgement that contaminates the novel on all levels. For Bleak House is a labyrinthine novel which attempts to conceal as much as to reveal; a novel peopled by isolated, lost individuals, clinging to their secrets and stories buried deep beneath the complex narrative web that is Bleak House.

Everything stands for something else in Bleak House, nothing is ever just itself. Dickens's use of the dual narrative, with the seeming transcendence of the third person narrator set against the apologetic observations of Dickens's only female narrator, Esther Summerson, engenders displacement at every turn. For this split responsibility for disclosure serves to protect the innocence of Esther as mid-Victorian heroine, whilst also tantalising the reader with hints at erotic passions that lie way beyond the permitted script of the upstanding Victorian novel.

Every reader will have their favourite moments in Bleak House for it is a truly gorgeous novel. My personal favourite was revealed to me years ago in a letter from Steve Newman my most inspiring tutor at Liverpool University , and it has never been supplanted in my affections:

'For I don't,' says Jo,'I don't know nothink.'
It must be a strange state to be like Jo! To shuffle through the streets, unfamiliar with the shapes and in utter darkness as to the meaning, of those mysterious symbols, so abundant over the shops, and the corner of streets, and on the doors, and in the windows! To see people read, and to see people write, and to see the postman deliver letters, and not to have the least idea of all that language-to be every scrap of it, stone blind and dumb!'

This must be one of the most Romantic moments in fiction. The sense of wonder grants the street boy Jo a temporary human story that his abject inhuman poverty precludes elsewhere. Not knowing is rescued from ignorance and becomes a creative 'other' experience, where the narrator revisits the known and retranslates it from Jo's point of view.
The lostness of Jo in terms of his illiteracy becomes a metaphor for the novel's own search for significance. For everyone is lonely in Bleak House. Everyone in Bleak House is lost. Everyone is attempting to decipher something, or someone, or somewhere, and these imperatives destroy as much as heal.

Dickens repeatedly employs the infinitive in this passage and in doing so creates an overriding sense of separation and even suspension. Seeing is not believing, it is bewildered incomprehension. Like Pip in Great Expectations when he gazes at Miss Havisham still dressed in her ancient wedding gown, Jo's encounter with the world involves stasis and fear. Jo's impotence in the world is represented through this deployment of the infinitive, rendering the finite a place way beyond the scope of Jo's destiny.

Wonderful!


Brilliant!, 07 Feb 2007
How to describe the story? I leave to better reviewers than I. A long and complicated tale about a dispute over a will and a family inheritance that destroys most of the litigants, either to madness or death, leaving it all to the bloodsucking attorneys.

There are many many unusual characters in the book and you have to pay close attention (or better yet, keep notes), as in the end the author brings everything full circle and not a character is wasted, and ends up playing a part in the tale. It's just amazing how Dickens slowly tells his story, like peeling an onion. Layer after layer is slowly revealed one after another until it all pulls together in the end. I haven't seen another author do this quite as good since reading Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo (unabridged version of course).

Definitely one not to be missed, and I would hope it's required reading at law school, but I seriously doubt that.

Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, 29 Nov 2008
The book is delightful and I enjoyed it immensely, the only downside of this paperback edition being that pages fall out as you turn them over and read them (only a problem if you drop them, which I did!). But what can you expect for £1.99?

It gives a very interesting insight into Victorian life of both poor and rich, and links what goes on in the outside world with the inner thoughts and the actions of individuals. Wonderful descriptions of people and places. Better than the television production, though rather long and needing a lot of concentration. Well worth buying, well worth reading, and I would have given it 5-star for content, but I marked it down to 4-star because of the many loose pages.

Dickens at what he does best!, 20 Nov 2008
Little Dorrit is a prime example of Dickens' weighty descriptive style and his genius for observation and characterisation. It also, perhaps unusually for Dickens, has a semi-coherent story line.
The book chronicles the respective fortunes of the title heroine, a young women caring for her incarcerated father in the Marshalsea Prison, and Mr Arthur Clennam, a kindly businessman returned lately from the east, who becomes obsessed with the idea that his father was responsible for the Dorrit families woes. An entrie host of characters, good and bad, amusing and obnoxious, accompany the main protagonists on their mysteriously intertwined journeys. The only fault I can find is with the tale's finale, when it seems Dickens grows tired of the story, not actually having a great twist for the climax, and bumps off many of his characters before ending with a rather predictable chocolate tin finish. However, your sense of achievment at having penetrated deeper into the world of Dickens, meeting memorable heroes and villains will probably overcome any misgivings on this score. The scene where Mr Pancks cuts the patriarch's hair is pure genius and the petulant Mr Dorrit, Flora Casby and her objectionable Aunt are another constant stream of entertainment.
Apart from the moral that money will not buy you happiness, Dickens also used this book to launch a scathing criticism against the government and society of the time, represented by the infamous Circumlocution Office and a certain affluent couple named Merdle.
An excellent read for all those who have a reasonable grasp of the English language or have enjoyed other Dickens books.

One of the six truly great Dickens novels, 25 Mar 2008
Long neglected, this has become deservedly popular after the brilliant TV adaptation. A panoramic picture of Victorian society, showing how poverty gives rise to riches and riches give way to integrity.

Great History and Insights...a tale of two societies., 13 May 2004
Little Dorritt was born at Marshalsea-the debtors prison. Her father is something of an informal mayor ('father') of the place, and everyone imprisoned there pays him homage-and alms- for his long suffering good nature and the 'tone' he sets for the experience of being thrown in jail Indeed, Mr. Dorritt has raised self pity to an art form. Little Dorritt is small and wan. People continually ask her if she 'has strength and can endure things.' She reminds them she was born in the poor house. Through the kind offices of 'a friend,' Arthur Clennam, midway through the book the family is released from prison, debts paid and they live the genteel life that Mr. Dorritt always assumed was his birthright. In a classic case of projection, Mr. Dorritt prattles to Amy (Little) Dorritt how she should not be morose, and she should forget life in the poor house. 'Put on airs for the sake of the servants so they would remember 'their place.' Mr Dorritt assures Amy 'he has completely wiped the sad episode of living in debtors prison' from his mind. In order to secure his place in society, Mr. Dorritt seeks favor from an unseen Mr. Myrtle who it seems has the economy of the entire world in the palm of his hand. Indeed, Fanny Dorritt, Amy's sister is also smitten with the Myrtle clan and seeks the favor of Edmund Myrtle, just so she can put on even more superior airs than Mrs. Myrtle does. The circumlocutions of speech, especially those Mr. Dorritt and Mrs. Myrtle use, when these characters talk to one other in itself is worth the price of admission. Amy is devoted to her father and shows little interest in social activities. She does however manage, through her needlework, to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Clemmens, Arthurs mother- that's how Arthur comes to learn of Mr. Dorritt's legal plight and thanks to Arthur they got away from Marshalsea, the debtor's prison. In time, Mr. Dorritt falls sick. He stands up at a dinner party to give his 'welcome to Marshallsea speech, much to the embarrassment of all the high society types there present. Hence the contrast between the two societies, the debtors and the wealthy. Mr. Dorritt's disease in terminal and inevitably, we meet Mr. Myrtle when he comes to commiserate with the Fanny, his son Edmund and the other mourners. The mighty economic dynamo does not put on many airs at all, but he does ask if he might have a pen knife...one of the wedding tokens from Edmund and Fanny's wedding. Mr. Myrtle then privately kills himself. All his financial wheelings and dealings were false and the family is busted. Arthur Clemmens is busted too, and Amy goes to find him at Marshalsea in her families old lodgings. She insists on helping him and he is ashamed as he believes he was not only instrumental in their release from Marshalsea but also in connecting the family with the notorious Myrtles. Amy will have nothing to do with this theory. She goes to plead Arthur's case with his mother who has money locked up in a vault. She has been paralyzed for a very long time and is unable to walk. The steward is furious that the family fortune should be spent to pay Arthur's debts as the steward believes and has tried to convince Mother that Arthur is a spendthrift playboy. Mother rises from her chair and with assistance from Amy and her maid, descends the stairs and sees the steward open the safe, at which point the house collapses. Amy takes the money, frees Arthur and the two are married.

Well, I hope this quick sketch does justice to the characterizations in this book. What can be said? It is truly Dickensian! Debtors prison is the Victorian answer to welfare and the novel does serviceable duty in presenting the life style of both down and outers as well as the worst elements of snobbery in the genteel set. As such, the story is illuminating as history and as a study in character. It is a story that stuck with me. As to whether it could be classified as a 'fun read,' well on that score, the book does fall somewhat short. Little Dorritt is big and heady stuff.

A great work long unnoticed, 24 Jun 1999
"Bleak House" may have been masterfully managed, but I preferred this tense tale of poverty, riches and the parasitic class that breeds both. It is as cautionary a tale as the former: the role of the machinery of government and capitalist class on the lives of all under them has never been so powerfully depicted. Mr Merdle was based on a real person, a Sadlier who killed himself in Hyde Park when he caused the Tipperary Bank to fail. Amy Dorrit is to be preferred to Esther Summerson as a heroine in not being so off-puttingly and impossibly sweet. Dickens' mastery of plot is such to create an exciting mystery and a rich interweaving of character and plot that kept me up all night unravelling the puzzle.

Good on characterisation poor on plot, 09 Nov 2008
Warning: this review contains spoilers.

The major strengths of the novel are its characters and atmosphere. Every character is sharply drawn, we can visualise them in our mind's eye; Dickens has the ability to invest each of them with their own distinctive speech patterns. He can also create atmosphere whether it be describing the Marshalsea or the interior of Mrs Clennam's house. He is wonderful at creating a scene, of placing his characters in that scene and exploring the interaction of each.

The weakness of the novel is its plot. It never really gains momentum and there is always a sense of stasis, of things about to develop, but never doing so. We are presented with a series of tableaux and then, suddenly, something happens with no relation to anything that has gone before. Much is left unexplained; we are never told what Doyce's invention actually is, we are given no clue as to the nature of Merdle's financial dealings, his downfall just happens. The Dorrits suddenly become rich halfway through the novel. It dosen't convince.

A warning about this Penguin edition. For some inexplicable reason, American spellings are used throughout (eg 'honor' instead of 'honour'). I am not sure why this has been done and as certain Victorian spellings are also used, it makes even less sense. Some readers may find this annoying and would prefer to read a different edition.

A bonus of the Penguin edition, though, is the inclusion of the original illustrations.


Superb, 21 May 2008
From its first publication in book form after the serialisation, Little Dorrit has always proved to be a good seller. So why has this book always been so popular? For whole segments Amy 'Little' Dorrit does not even appear. The novel covers so much more than the title implies.

Little Dorrit is born in the Marshalsea, where her father is imprisoned for debt. Eventually he is released at the end of book one, when he comes into an inheritance. For Mr Dorrit this leads to paranoia that people are talking behind his back or laughing at him due to his former poverty. Poor little Dorrit finds it difficult to change her ways and is still a ministering angel to all and sundry.

What really stands out in this book are the locations, as the story travels from London through France, Switzerland and Italy. This is the most widespread geographically of any of Dickens' novels. Also this book probably has the most sub-plots of any Dickens novel, with mention of murder and smuggling, to actual acts of corruption and suicide, to love, marriages and death. Mrs Clennam tries to keep a family secret buried but is being blackmailed, and is her house haunted or is there a more rational explanation?

As to be expected with Dickens there are some great characters and some good comedy. Anyone who has ever had any dealings with govermental departments can really appreciate the Circumloction Office, and its practices. A few of the illustrations in this book are some of the very best to appear in any of his novels.

This is a must read book, that with so many things going on throughout will keep you absorbed for hours, and that you will want to read again.

A Good Read, 07 Sep 2007
I have just finished reading this book and I must say that I found it a little disjointed, although there were some real gems of characters in it - Swiveller, the Brasses, Quilp. That's why I've given it a 4 instead of a 3. The "good" characters were, as often in Dickens, rather boring and just too good to be true. Some things were left unsaid: for instance, how did Quilp's wife ever get to marry him!!!! There was a little note at the end that said her mother coerced her, but that part of the story might have been a lot better. All in all worth a read and, despite my criticisms, I wish I could write a fraction as good as Dickens!

Twee heroine but revel in the characters, 03 Aug 2006
The basic set up of this story may have pulled at Victorian heart stings but I thought it just silly : Nell, a young girl (12 I think) is brought into poverty by her uselss gambler of a grandfather and so decides they should both escape from the evil clutches of Quilp and run away to live as travellers in the countryside.

As is often the case in Dickens the good characters are dull and Nell is certainly this. Dull and niave the book drags when it's just her and her ga ga grandfather trapssing around the countryside. However, what saves the books is the great characters around them. Mrs Jaffery who runs the wax works, Richard Swiveller and the Marchioness, the noble, trustworthy Kit and of course the vile Quilp. Quilp is the star of the book, evil incarnate he steals every scene he's in. I'd love a really dark version of this story to be made for tv or the cinema.

The essence of Charles Dickens , 28 Jul 2006
This is the story of a little girl called Nell, who together with her grandfather, must run away from a succession of villains in an almost epic journey! You'll find everything here that you love about Charles Dickens: humour, satire, drama, unforgettable characters, laughter, and tears (I read somewhere that when Dickens read The Old Curiosity Shop at his public readings, the audience would actually burst into mass tears!) There are moments of heart-warming joy and moments of despair, and I think anyone with empathy and imagination will love this classic tale of good and evil.

A word of warning though: if you buy an edition with annotations, don't read them!! I made this fatal mistake, and was informed by a note in the middle of the novel about the fate of one of the main characters and what happens to the person at the end. What a spoiler! It ruined the whole pleasure of reading for me and I only managed to finish because the narrative was so lovely... if it had been any other novel I would surely not have bothered to go on to the end. Allow yourself the pleasure of reading this novel for its warmth and literary greatness - don't touch the notes.

Quite Delightful, 28 Apr 2004
I found this Charles Dickens novel quite what I expected: vividcharacters, demonic villains, comedy and tragedy together. I especiallyliked Mr. Swiveller and Marchionette. I liked how Swiveller turns out tobe at the end. Quilp was one of the worst villains I ever met inliterature. The parts where Dickens describes the poverty and inhumanconditions in the beginning of the industrialization process are simplytouching. Also towards the end, Nell's wanderings in the ancient town areso foretelling that one cannot help being moved. Although I found the plotto be quite predictable, it takes nothing away from the story. Theillustrations are quite fun too.

An amazing piece of work, 10 Apr 2003
I had bought this book in a multi-buy deal with other classics, and somehow it managed to sit on my bookshelf for almost a year before I got round to reading it - by the time I had finished it, I was kicking myself that it been wasting away for so long!

There are so many things going on it, and although some things are just *too* coincidental, it never fails to grab you into the story. Couple this with the fact that Dickens can draw a wonderful picture of London of his time, and you feel part of the whole thing.

The characters are wonderful as well - my favourites being Quilp, the evil dwarf, and Richard Swiveller (his antics 'working' in the office were always highly amusing).

In short, a real rollercoaster of a novel, thoroughly recommended!!

A Christmas Carol, 02 Jan 2008
It seems that lots of Christmas traditions were born in the UK between 15th and 19th century. Charles Dickens cleverly used the background of the Victorian houses and societies and produced a splendid Christmas story.

The highlight of this classic is that Mr Scrooge gradually becomes aware of his selfishness and indifference whilst being hooked on earning a lot of money for himself, while his former colleague, Marley takes him to the world where an awful number of people are suffering from the poverty. Marley who died seven years ago feels extremely guilty for ever not helping the poor when he was alive. Having become a ghost, he begs Mr Scrooge to provide goodwill to the miserable people. Moreover, he is taken to various places, in line with Christmas in his past, present, and future.

A series of dramatic dreams shows him the moral of Christianity and conveys the true spirit of Christmas, i.e. peace and goodwill to all. Consequently, he changes his mind, presents a cheerful manner, and offers generous support to people, to the astonishment of his employee, Bob Cratchit who is told by his boss that his salary will be raised.


The classic Victorian Christmas story, 15 Dec 2007
A Christmas Carol is the classic Victorian Christmas story. Even though we know it well it continues to be a joy to read. Dickens creates some wonderful pictures of the bustling life in 19th century London. Some of the dialogue remains so fresh and still raises a smile in the reader no matter how many times you have read the book before. "You'll want all day tomorrow, I suppose" says Scrooge to his clerk on Christmas Eve. And the conversation between Scrooge and the two gentlemen who are asking him for donations to help the poor and destitute at Christmas is as funny (and poignant) as anything in any Dickens novel.

Although it is sometimes described as a children's book I do feel parents need to make an assessment as to how their children may react to some of the ghost scenes. Some adults I know say they had nightmares as a result of the appearance of Marley's ghost and the rattling chains!

It just would not be the same without it........, 03 Oct 2007
My all time fave story and I just have to re-read at least twice in the Xmas run-up. The writing just grabs you in a way that no other writer can and as for the characters, well they are already written into folklore.

Baa... Humbug, 02 Jan 2007
Christmas is a time to give and this story really gives the reader something!
Charles Dickens has a magical power over a reader and he used it over me!
Hope you enjoy this childrens classic!
One little point though... to everyone who doesn't like Dickens don't bother writing a review!

great classic novel, but difficult to read, especially for children, 17 Sep 2006
The review below is slightly misleading as this particular version is COMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED.
I would recommend reading a simplified version first, if you are not familiar with the story. Then have a dictionary to hand as you read this one!
The classic story is timeless, and one of Charles Dickens' most well known tales. As with many of his stories, the pictures he conjures up are rooted in his own experience of life in Victorian Britain, with it's great contrast between rich and poor.

Because it's always good to have a dissenting view, 08 Aug 2008
I've been a big fan of Dickens since reading David Copperfield about six years ago. Bleak House, which was the immediate follow-up to Copperfield, is not one of his best books.
Firstly, what happened to Dickens sense of humour, which went AWOL in Bleak House? There are some half-hearted attempts at comedy but they mostly fall flat. In fact, Dickens never really recovered as a comic writer after this, and his later works, though notable for many merits, are not particularly amusing, with exceptions. The warmth present in the best passages of Copperfield is also missing, though Dickens' notorious sentimentality is rampant.
Half of the book is narrated by Esther, who is more given to protestations of humility than Uriah Heep himself, except we are supposed to accept Esther as sincere, unlike the villanous Heep. Dickens' portrayal of young maidenhood has often been lampooned, and Esther is possibly the nadir, the worst of the worst. The scenes between Esther and her "love" Ada make for queasy reading, for me at least. The part that is not narrated by Esther is told in the present tense, for some reason, and the prose is very stilted and unnatural, and Dickens' characteristic facetiousness and lightness of touch cannot be attained.
There are a few mildly interesting minor characters in the book, such as Harold Skimpole, but none of the main characters are more than cardboard cutouts. The overall impression I got from this book was that Dickens' heart wasn't in it in the same way as in Copperfield or Great Expectations. The current critical vogue this book enjoys is probably down to its dealing with BIG SOCIAL ISSUES, and the fact that it is more carefully plotted than other Dickens novels, but the casual reader should not introduce himself to Dickens via this plodding and uninvolving work, it could put you off Dickens for life. Check out David Copperfield or Great Expectations instead.
I also felt that, contrary to popular opinion, the recent BBC adaptation was boring and incoherent.

unbeatable, 07 Jun 2008
pretty unbeatable, touching, heart breaking, wick