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Oliver Twist: The Original 1838 Unabridged and Complete Edition
"Oliver The Original 1838 Unabridged and Complete Edition" by Charles Dickens is a classic novel that follows the life of an orphan named Oliver Twist as he navigates the harsh realities of 19th-century London. Born into poverty and subjected to a life of crime and exploitation, Oliver’s quest for a better life is marked by a series of harrowing adventures and encounters with a colorful cast of characters. Dickens' portrayal of social injustices and his vivid depiction of London’s underworld make this an enduring and influential work in English literature.
529 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1838
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About the author
Charles Dickens
12.9k books31.5k followersCharles John Huffam Dickens (1812-1870) was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.
Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction. Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters.
On 8 June 1870, Dickens suffered another stroke at his home after a full day's work on Edwin Drood. He never regained consciousness, and the next day he died at Gad's Hill Place. Contrary to his wish to be buried at Rochester Cathedral "in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner," he was laid to rest in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. A printed epitaph circulated at the time of the funeral reads: "To the Memory of Charles Dickens (England's most popular author) who died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, Kent, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years. He was a sympathiser with the poor, the suffering, and the oppressed; and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world." His last words were: "On the ground", in response to his sister-in-law Georgina's request that he lie down.
(from Wikipedia)
Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction. Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters.
On 8 June 1870, Dickens suffered another stroke at his home after a full day's work on Edwin Drood. He never regained consciousness, and the next day he died at Gad's Hill Place. Contrary to his wish to be buried at Rochester Cathedral "in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner," he was laid to rest in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. A printed epitaph circulated at the time of the funeral reads: "To the Memory of Charles Dickens (England's most popular author) who died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, Kent, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years. He was a sympathiser with the poor, the suffering, and the oppressed; and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world." His last words were: "On the ground", in response to his sister-in-law Georgina's request that he lie down.
(from Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 3, 2025
Alte Sprache, die schwer zu verstehen ist.
January 12, 2026
C’était un peu difficile de se mettre dedans, surtout le début mais ensuite quelle aventure romanesque, c’est trop bien ! Même si c’est quand même difficile de passer après David Copperfield, j’ai beaucoup aimé.
September 26, 2024
🎩 An enthralling tale that will be with us forever. However I think few are familiar with the entire storyline because it is so full, so layered, so complex, if you’ve only experienced a movie or stage version, they can only render some of the story’s threads, whereas the novel in its entirety is a much better feast for the soul and the imagination.
This abridged edition captures the heart of it. Nothing critical is lost. The ugly murder of Nancy, one of the darkest strokes in Victorian literature; the double hangings of Bill Sykes and Fagin (no clownish, jolly, Ron Moody musical version of Fagin here); the rescue and restoration of Oliver’s fortunes; the kindness and iron strength for justice of Mr. Brownlow (much more ought to be made of him in Dickensian studies); a fully rounded denouement.
Immaculately read by John Wells and heartily recommended (a rather Dickensian way of putting it).
Nevertheless this: the wicked, scheming Fagin is rarely called by his surname, but by the appellation the Jew, the Jew, the Jew, over and over again ad nauseum. It became irritating. How had I not noticed this in previous readings over the years? I did some research. Dickens received such pushback for using this expression he rewrote his manuscript, or portions of it, substituting “the old man” for the nefarious label. Obviously some editions retain the content of the original publication. By and large it is considered evidence of an anti-Semitic streak in Dickens (the character Shylock providing the same evidence for a similar streak in Shakespeare).
It made me angry. I thought: so then why not call Bill Sykes the Christian if you’re going to do that? Dickens, you write the Jew did this, the Jew did that - why not spread this style across the board and write - the Christian struck Nancy with his club, killing her; the Christian growled and spat and thundered for more ale, his eyes crackling like sheet lightning; the Christian snarled and blasphemed and shook his fist at the mob gathered to capture him for Nancy’s murder, lost his balance on the rooftop, and fell, the rope in his hand slipping around his neck, fatally snapping his body up short.
🎩 Despite this, the overall story of Oliver Twist is an important and essential addition to both English and world literature and is recommended, though that caveat of the prejudicial appellation ought to be kept in mind.
This abridged edition captures the heart of it. Nothing critical is lost. The ugly murder of Nancy, one of the darkest strokes in Victorian literature; the double hangings of Bill Sykes and Fagin (no clownish, jolly, Ron Moody musical version of Fagin here); the rescue and restoration of Oliver’s fortunes; the kindness and iron strength for justice of Mr. Brownlow (much more ought to be made of him in Dickensian studies); a fully rounded denouement.
Immaculately read by John Wells and heartily recommended (a rather Dickensian way of putting it).
Nevertheless this: the wicked, scheming Fagin is rarely called by his surname, but by the appellation the Jew, the Jew, the Jew, over and over again ad nauseum. It became irritating. How had I not noticed this in previous readings over the years? I did some research. Dickens received such pushback for using this expression he rewrote his manuscript, or portions of it, substituting “the old man” for the nefarious label. Obviously some editions retain the content of the original publication. By and large it is considered evidence of an anti-Semitic streak in Dickens (the character Shylock providing the same evidence for a similar streak in Shakespeare).
It made me angry. I thought: so then why not call Bill Sykes the Christian if you’re going to do that? Dickens, you write the Jew did this, the Jew did that - why not spread this style across the board and write - the Christian struck Nancy with his club, killing her; the Christian growled and spat and thundered for more ale, his eyes crackling like sheet lightning; the Christian snarled and blasphemed and shook his fist at the mob gathered to capture him for Nancy’s murder, lost his balance on the rooftop, and fell, the rope in his hand slipping around his neck, fatally snapping his body up short.
🎩 Despite this, the overall story of Oliver Twist is an important and essential addition to both English and world literature and is recommended, though that caveat of the prejudicial appellation ought to be kept in mind.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 13, 2025
I have never actually read Charles Dickens before and was quite entertained by how sassy he is! He's also very good at characterisation (though we won't go into all the raving anti-jew stuff which aged like milk), which makes it all the more noticeable that Oliver really has no petsonality.
Oliver Twist is more of a plot device than a character, and I think you can tell when Dickens got sick of writing him because Oliver is barely even in the last half of the book.
The first half was great, and the crims really are fun and engaging to read, but the second half of the book really flounders into boredom territory pretty quickly and I was just skimming paragraphs by the end.
tbh I think Nancy or Fagan would be much better characters to serve as the central focus, Oliver's crying pure lamb schtick gets old pretty quickly.
Oliver Twist is more of a plot device than a character, and I think you can tell when Dickens got sick of writing him because Oliver is barely even in the last half of the book.
The first half was great, and the crims really are fun and engaging to read, but the second half of the book really flounders into boredom territory pretty quickly and I was just skimming paragraphs by the end.
tbh I think Nancy or Fagan would be much better characters to serve as the central focus, Oliver's crying pure lamb schtick gets old pretty quickly.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews