Charles Dickens
Список книг автора Charles DickensThe Complete Christmas Books of Charles Dickens
While readers will be most familiar with «The Christmas Carol» in which Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by four ghosts who endeavor to show him the error of his miserly ways just in time for Christmas, Dickens also wrote four other Christmas themed books. These include «The Chimes», the story of Toby «Trotty» Veck, a poor working-class man who has lost his faith in humanity and believes that his poverty is the result of his unworthiness; «The Cricket on the Hearth», the story of John Peerybingle and his family who are visited by a guardian angel in the form of a cricket who is constantly chirping on their hearth; «The Battle of Life» a charmingly uplifting and romantic Christmas story; and «The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain», which is the story of Redlaw, a chemistry teacher constantly brooding over the grief caused by wrongs done to him in the past. These five books are collected here together in this edition of «The Complete Christmas Books of Charles Dickens.»
The Chimes
"The Chimes" is Charles Dickens 1844 novella that concerns the disillusionment of Toby «Trotty» Veck, a poor working-class man. When Trotty has lost his faith in Humanity and believes that his poverty is the result of his unworthiness he is visited on New Year's Eve by spirits to help restore his faith and show him that nobody is born evil, but rather that crime and poverty are things created by man.
American Notes for General Circulation
Charles Dickens (1812-1870) was an English short story writer, dramatist, essayist, and the most popular novelist to come from the Victorian era. He created some of the most iconic characters and stories in English literature, including Mr. Pickwick from «The Pickwick Papers», Ebenezer Scrooge from «A Christmas Carol», David Copperfield, and Pip from «Great Expectations», to name a few. In 1842, Dickens and his wife travelled to the United States and Canada for the first time, and during his time there he kept a travelogue which he later published as «American Notes for General Circulation». In it, he lays out his impressions of America: a powerful condemnation of slavery, high regard for President John Tyler, impressions of the prisons and mental institutions, criticism of the press, and parodies of the locals. Although he was generally impressed with what he found, he could not forgive the existence of slavery. This American journey was also an inspiration for his novel «Martin Chuzzlewit».
Great Expectations
"Great Expectations" is the classic novel by Charles Dickens that traces the life of an orphan named Pip, beginning at age seven, from Christmas eve 1812 to the winter of 1840. At the center of the novel is a complicated set of themes that can be simplified by the idea that the affection of love and loyalty of friendship are more important than aspirations for wealth and to a higher social class. «Great Expectations» is one of the great classics of the English language.
A Child's History of England
"A Child's History of England", which first appeared serially in «Household Words» between January 25, 1851 and December 10, 1853, is a history of England written for school-aged children. The works originally consisted of three volumes that covered the history of England from between 50 BC to 1689, beginning with ancient history and ending with a summarization of the events of the accession of Queen Victoria. The three volumes of the original edition [Volume I.—England from the Ancient Times, to the Death of King John (1852), Volume II.—England from the Reign of Henry the Third, to the Reign of Richard the Third (1853), and Volume III.—England from the Reign of Henry the Seventh to the Revolution of 1688 (1854)] have been combined into one volume for this edition.
The Cricket On The Hearth
"The Cricket on the Hearth" is Charles Dickens 1845 novella, which marks the third of five Christmas books written by the author between 1843 and 1847. It is the story of John Peerybingle and his family who are visited by a guardian angel in the form of a cricket who is constantly chirping on their hearth. A delightfully fantastic story, «The Cricket on the Hearth» was the best-selling of Dickens five Christmas books and is a perfect little tale for the Christmas holiday season.
Nicholas Nickleby
Though only the third novel Dickens wrote, «Nicholas Nickleby» is a well-crafted and significant precursor to his other great works. The tale follows the fortunes of the young man Nicholas, the son of an imprudent gentleman who leaves his family without resources. Fiercely devoted to his mother and sisters, as well as his true friends, Nicholas is occasionally emotional and even violent, yet always idealistic. He seeks the aid of his villainous uncle, Ralph Nickleby, who comes to hate his nephew and wish him serious harm. Nicholas goes through more than one attempt at employment, being first disgusted by the abuse of the schoolmaster Squeers, later surprised by the acting and antics of Vincent Crummles, and finally assisted by the merchant Cheeryble brothers. Dickens employs a cast of characters, both good and unsavory, in this adventurous story of Nicholas Nickleby, who helps those in need, despises wickedness, grows in self-awareness, and even experiences falling in love in a plot that is by turns melodramatic and comedic. An uplifting tale full of poignant indictments on Victorian society, Dickens' work has all the best characteristics of his classics.
The Battle Of Life
While not as well known as «The Christmas Carol», «The Chimes» or «The Cricket on the Hearth»; «The Battle of Life» is a charming addition to Dickens' series of five Christmas books, of which this is the fourth and is concluded by «The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain». In this short novel fans of Dickens will find an entertaining and cheerfully uplifting love story, perfect reading for the holiday season.
Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of 'Eighty
Fully entitled «Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of 'Eighty,» this novel was Dickens' first attempt at a historical novel. As such, it is the precursor to his more famous «A Tale of Two Cities,» in which his exploration of mob violence, and especially the effect of public events on individual lives, becomes apparent. This work centers on Barnaby Rudge, a mentally simple son, and his loving mother, who are a part of the small village of Epping Forest, just outside of London. This community displays both ties of enmity and love between its members, but all is threatened when the misguided Lord George Gordon arrives in the village with his followers. Their lives are disrupted and caught up in riots that incite destruction in London. This tangle of events leads to misunderstandings that wrongly sentence Barnaby to mount the scaffold. The climactic conclusion of the novel attests to Dickens' early skill as a writer and makes «Barnaby Rudge» a worthy part of his body of works.
Martin Chuzzlewit
Regarded by Dickens himself as his best novel upon publication, the experiences of Martin Chuzzlewit relate a tale of familial selfishness and eventual moral redemption. While he is in love with the young Mary Graham, Martin alienates himself from his grandfather and begins working for the corrupt and dishonest Seth Pecksniff. Though he meets the unequivocally kind Tom Pinch during this apprenticeship, Martin is fired and decides to travel to the United States, where he nearly dies. It is in the swampy land of Eden, however, that he reforms, and upon return the crimes of other characters in Dickens's exceptional cast of characters are revealed, particularly those of the arch-villain Jonas Chuzzlewit. A dark comedy full of greed, manipulation, and duplicity intertwined with humility and selfless kindness, «Martin Chuzzlewit» is an exemplary story that carries a timeless message for its readers.