Oliver Twist

by Marian Leighton (Adapter), Ric Estrada (Illustrator), Charles Dickens (Creator)

Oliver Twist is a poor orphan boy cruelly treated in the public workhouse. Pennyless and hungry, he runs away to London, only to fall into the clutches of a gang of thieves and pickpockets led by the master criminal, Fagin. Befriended by a man robbed by the gang, Oliver ultimately learns his true identity and gains a home, a fortune, and a family.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Childrens, Young Adult, Literature, Middle Grade, Historical Fiction

240 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Amit]

4.25 ⭐

GENRE - FICTION.

A Classic fun read!!! Charles Dickens is a master narrator.

Oliver Twist is a Story of an orpan boy who having spent most of his childhood in Public workhouses runs away when he is barely 12 years old.Reaching London, Oliver is taken by a gang of thieves & housebrakers led by the evil genius and master criminal, Fagin.

Eventually befriended by a Women and a Man who were robbed by the gang, Oliver finally learns his true identity and gains a family and an inheritance.

Thank you 😁🙏🥳

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library)]

A decent read...but nothing terribly special. Even within this series, readers can do better.

[Rashel]

This book was just lying around in one of our shelves since I was a child. I didn't give notice to it since I was still very young to appreciate a novel. I would only glance at the illustrations; but even so, I still didn't understand the story by just looking at it's illustrations. I really wanted to know the story, but every time I held the book in my hands I just couldn't get myself to read it.

Then the time came that I finally learned to enjoy reading novels. I saw this book once more then I started reading it. When I was finally finished, I became speechless and I said to myself, "No wonder this book was a classic." It was absolutely the most heart-warming story I have ever read!

The arrangement of the plot was fantastic and the ending was just perfect. It was easy to understand and since there were some illustrations, it was much fun to read. I really adore the artist who drew the illustrations since it was drawn clearly and artistically.

I truly love this book. An all time classic favorite.

[Bodosika Bodosika]

Read this one a long time ago!

[Abel]

Oliver Twist , un copil orfan face față tuturor provocărilor și nu se lasă bătut nici atunci când îi moare mama sa sau când este batjocorit și închis pe ne drept , învingă chiar și boala cea mai năprasnică .Prin povestea orfanului autorul scoate în evidență faptul că atunci când viața ne pare nedreaptă , urmând calea adevărului și a binelui putem îndrepta lucrurile și ne putem regăsi identitatea.

[Noor]

I first met Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens through the abridged edition in the Great Illustrated Classics series, adapted by Marian Leighton. For me, these books were more than just stories. They were stepping stones. Along with Moby Books, they opened the door to English literature when English was not my first language. They made the great classics friendly and approachable, and I truly believe every growing child should read them.

The abridged version kept the heart of the story intact while making it easy to follow. The illustrations helped me imagine the scenes more vividly, and the simpler language gave me confidence to explore the full unabridged works later.

Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist around the 1830s. The setting is England in the early Victorian era, a time when poverty was widespread and the laws were harsh on the poor. Dickens takes us from the cold, grim workhouses to the crowded, dangerous streets of London. He shows us the underworld of pickpockets and thieves, but also the kindness of strangers who offer Oliver a chance at a better life.

Reading it felt like stepping into a strange and distant world. The way people lived, the way the city looked, and the way society treated its weakest members was both fascinating and unsettling.

Why the Ending Matters to Me
Although much of Oliver's journey is filled with misery, I always look for a happy ending in any story. In Oliver Twist, that ending comes when Oliver finally finds safety and family. It is a reminder that even fragile lives can find joy after hardship.

[Michelle Adeoshun]

Oliver Twist was a very interesting book. It had many things that interested me like action,sadness,and comedy. It a book for someone who like to change their emotion during a book and not just stick to one genre. This book was nice and calm. It was about a young boy whose mother died while giving birth to him. He lived in a workshop with many mean owners. He got beatings most of the time, had no clothes, and was fed skim soup of only 1/4 of the bowl. He was badly treated for asking for more food to eat. He was sold for 10 pounds. He moved to a house where he slept with coffins and had to work all day. He finally ran away to London and met a gang of robbers. He once followed them and got blames for stealing a man’s money. When he went to court a friendly English man took Oliver in to his home. He notices something about Oliver and starts to look into it. He sends Oliver to deliver mail. Fagin the leader of the gang Oliver was with notices him and kidnaps him. He looks Oliver in a room and sends him to steal jewelry from a house. That night Oliver gets shot and left in a dish. If you want to find out what happens to Oliver read this book. I recommend this book to all grades. If you what to read check it out in the Brooklyn library.

[David Erkale]

Oliver Twist is a depressing story about a young boy whose mother had passed on and is sent to work in labor. At one vital point in this journey, he ends up joining the likes of a gang who attempt to endanger him. While it is a pretty unfortunate tale with plenty of deaths, readers will not be disappointed to find that there's a silver lining after all and Oliver finally gets to live a normal life around the end. Bit more rough than David Copperfield.

[Varna Binu Sasidharan]

Poor Oliver 😭

[Adhidev Syamlal]

Kind of bad

[Kianna C]

Oliver's Wild Adventure

" The mother was so young and pretty! Who was she?" asked the doctor.

" I dont know," replied the nurse."Someone found her lying on the street last night and brought her inside. She must have walked a long way because her shoes are all worn out But no one knows were she came from."(Charles Dickens p 9)

The book Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens is a spectacular book because of the mystery. There is always a problem. Also the conflicts are always interesting. One of the problems is that they're trying to find Oliver a home.

The book Oliver Twist is full of facts. Poor peaople used to be treated very horribly. To me the book Oliver Twist made me confused in a lot of parts because the author is making too many things happen at once. The book takes place in England. some of the main charactors are Oliver,Nancy,fagin,Sikes and Rose. I already told you one of the problems but the other one is there trying to figure out who Oliver's family is.

The book is about a boy who wants to find a home and then accedentaly teams up with a pair of bad guys."I have it," cried Fagin slaping Noah's knee. "The children! Ther Mothers always send them on errands with sixspence and shrilling's. All you have to do is grab the money from ther hand's knock,them down and run away." (Charles Dickens p 170)

I would recomend this book to a kid/pre-teen if they like adventure.

[Daniil W]

Oliver Twist is a very hard to put down book written by Charles Dickens. It starts when a boy is born in a work house. His mother brought him there and died shortly after. In this work house they treat the children poorly. The cook gives them so little food. Then one day Oliver asks him for more food. the cook declines and Oliver is sent to work at a coffin makers shop. In less detail I am describing this treatment. The coffin makers son was horribly mean to Oliver. His father also is. Then one day Oliver leaves the house with out word. He then by himself goes to London where he finds many secrets out about his family. I enjoyed this book so much it was just full of drama. I would definitely recommend this book to boys in 6th grade or higher.

[Mary Taitt]

I will not tell the story or give a regular review, since this book and movies made from it are so familiar, I will only say this:

I finished Oliver Twist today and liked it very much. I really enjoyed it and was quite sucked in.

However, I did not like the black and white view of people where good people were essentially perfect and bad people were all bad. And I did not like what happened to the dog. (Or Nancy, but I guess that was essential to the story--the other was not!)

[Lauren Risner]

This was one of my favorite books growing up. It is about a boy, Oliver, who is an orphan. He was mistreated in a public workhouse so he ran away to London. While he was in London, he fell into the hands of a gang of pick-pocketers. When he befriended a man who was a victim of the gang, Oliver discovered his true identity. This would be a good book to read in the classroom because it introduces morals at a young age.

[Sarah]

I happened to find this book on my shelves so I decided to read it. Finally. It's a wonderful book, masterfully retold in language children can easily understand. It was a great introduction to Oliver Twist.

[Jennifer Leo]

I'm glad I got to introduce my boys to just a little bit of Oliver Twist but this abridged version was too abridged. Characters would arrive that weren't introduced, scenes changed without explanation, and no one could follow the crazy relationship tangle.

[Ron]

Read this to my son as part of history class.

[Chloe Sp]

This book was adventurous and exciting.
I thought it was well written and the author did a very good job.

[Cookielover]

It was a good story, but the sadness was an issue for me for there was not as much hope as I would have liked.

[Rafa]

this is my absolute most favorite book ever ever ever! :) i cried, laugh and got angry while reading this book :) if you haven't read it, i suggest you don, NOW! :)
Rafa xx

[Mlequire]

This book is very good I have read it 4 or 5 times and it will catch you interest right when you first start reading it

[Netta]

Although I miss the incredibly descriptive language of the actual Dickens story, this version was lovely to read.

[Falak Somani]

amazing book

[Kevin S.]

interesting and fun

[Maythin Kyi]

It describes the life of the children in the Victorian times. How he get out from the orphanage and how he got lucky.

[Martha Avila]

Me gusto mucho es versión resumida pero esta muy bien

[Rachel]

this books SCARRED ME as a child

still haven't read the original because of that.

thanks for that, charles dickens.

[PawlusIV]

Bardzo ciekawa pod względem narracji - trochę narrator konferansjer. Oliver jest mega uroczy. Zaskakujące jest to, że okładka wskazuje na książkę familijną a występują opisy dość brutalnych scen.

[Erin]

It's hard to compare this to the original to see how much was adapted since I don't think I've read a single Charles Dickens in 30 years (and the last was A Tale of Two Cities). There are so many secrets and storylines and characters that it was a little hard for me and my 2nd grader to follow. It was probably edited down a little TOO much. Oliver honestly isn't in it much--he's more of a character that motivates the rest of the plot. I'm not sure the original has this problem??

Regardless, I love this series for my kid. It doesn't shy away from some terrible situations (like what happens to Bill Sikes at the end, or poor Nancy), but such is life in the poor parts of Victorian England. Not one that I'll return to, but selfishly, I'm glad I read it as an adult so at least I know the plot and some characters! My son was interested in this when he saw the musical Oliver! on TCM a few nights ago, so they went hand in hand.

[Vanessa]

Ok, but definitely not for me. Honestly, if I wasn't on a kick to read classics, I probably wouldn't have finished this one.

The story was ok. Once I arrived at the end and it all came full circle, I was happier with it. However, the way it was written was tough to follow so my mind wandered a lot mid-chapter. Oliver was a sweet boy that fell into hardship at the hand of many, so he was likeable but I struggled with how the story became about everyone around him. I missed him being more central to the story over the scheming of others. Though I did enjoy a couple of the side characters.