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A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations: Two Novels
Two of the most beloved novels in all of English literature-together in one extraordinary volume. A TALE OF TWO CITIESAfter eighteen years as a political prisoner in the Bastille, the ageing Doctor Manette is finally released and reunited with his daughter in England. There the lives of the two very different men, Charles Darnay, an exiled French aristocrat, and Sydney Carton, a disreputable but brilliant English lawyer, become enmeshed through their love for Lucie Manette. From the tranquil roads of London, they are drawn against their will to the vengeful, bloodstained streets of Paris at the height of the Reign of Terror, and they soon fall under the lethal shadow of the guillotine.GREAT EXPECTATIONSA terrifying encounter with an escaped convict in a graveyard on the wild Kent marshes; a summons to meet the bitter, decaying Miss Havisham and her beautiful, cold-hearted ward Estella; the sudden generosity of a mysterious benefactor- these form a series of events that changes the orphaned Pip's life forever, and he eagerly abandons his humble origins to begin a new life as a gentleman. Dickens's haunting late novel depicts Pip's education and development through adversity as he discovers the true nature of his "great expectations."
573 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1859
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About the author
Charles Dickens
12.6k books31.3k 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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December 13, 2022
Tales of Two Cities
3 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
(this review was posted on another edition that I read in 2020)
It took me 8 attempts to complete this book.
I read the first 10% 7 times.
Then I reached 15% and decided to start one more time because I couldn’t figure out where the story was going.
After 30%, when I was about to quit, I told myself “you can do this”.
As I said during my book update/activities, this is the first time ever that I totally refused to quit a book.
Yes, it was a slow burn.
I could have read 5 other novels within 2 weeks, but it’s Dickens. And he requires patience and understanding and focus, and complete silence and a dictionary (especially if English is not your first language) - but I did not have to use a dictionary for this work - this is when ebooks are so handy - and, if possible, reading the book while listening to the audiobook version is a great help (believe me, I’m not into audiobooks, but this was the best part. It really helps to enjoy a classic - it’s my first time doing it and I do recommend).
What I liked the most about this book is the humor hidden in the dialogues and some situations, but irony and sarcasm seems to be the main ingredients.
Anyways, my problem with this book is that it took too long to get to the point, and, in my opinion, a very disappointing one.
It’s a mad house. Those characters are rude and crazy. The dialogues are sometimes repetitive. Most of the characters are unlikeable. Most of the situations and “coincidences” are unlikely to happen (I know it’s a fiction - no lecture needed here). The accuracy of history does not concern me.
All I really wanted was to feel connected.
This is definitely not my favourite work.
Give me “Bleak House” or “Hard Times” anytime.
Below is an excerpt from “A Tale of Two Cities”:
“Is, I assure you," said the spy; "though it's not important."
"Though it's not important," repeated Carton, in the same mechanical way—"though it's not important—No, it's not important. No. Yet I know the face."
"I think not. I am sure not. It can't be," said the spy.
"It-can't-be," muttered Sydney Carton, retrospectively, and idling his glass (which fortunately was a small one) again. "Can't-be. Spoke good French. Yet like a foreign...”
Great Expectations
5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
(This review was posted on a different edition that I read in 2021)
This was my second time reading this book but my first time reading it in English.
The pace is extremely slow (and some times boring), but one principal reason why this is such a good book is that it contains such memorable and colorful cast of characters, likable or not.
Dickens had a genius for creating believable and human characters.
This book reveals important truths about life and about humanity.
Who did not have delusional expectations while growing up? Delusions about love, about money?
Although I thought that the storyline was more like a fairytale (some events I thought were a bit unrealistic), its slow development is superb.
I found the writing a lot easier than I expected, but I did not realize that Dickens repeated the same words in the same sentence (I guess it’s a way to give more emphasis to the sentence or dialogue, or perhaps that’s how people used to talk).
I was simultaneously listening to the audiobook narrated by Martin Jarvis, who I thought did a terrific job. It really added that extra joy and a different pace to the book (as I have said on other reviews, I’m still not able to enjoy an audiobook on its own. I’m experimenting. Thank goodness for the public library!).
Now I want to watch the movie or TV adaptation (I have a couple of versions sitting on my shelves of DVD collection).
PS. This book was not meant to be read at once. It was originally intended for weekly publication. Great Expectations was divided into nine monthly sections, with new pagination for each, and released between December 1860 and August 1861.
A good reason to take it slow.
3 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
(this review was posted on another edition that I read in 2020)
It took me 8 attempts to complete this book.
I read the first 10% 7 times.
Then I reached 15% and decided to start one more time because I couldn’t figure out where the story was going.
After 30%, when I was about to quit, I told myself “you can do this”.
As I said during my book update/activities, this is the first time ever that I totally refused to quit a book.
Yes, it was a slow burn.
I could have read 5 other novels within 2 weeks, but it’s Dickens. And he requires patience and understanding and focus, and complete silence and a dictionary (especially if English is not your first language) - but I did not have to use a dictionary for this work - this is when ebooks are so handy - and, if possible, reading the book while listening to the audiobook version is a great help (believe me, I’m not into audiobooks, but this was the best part. It really helps to enjoy a classic - it’s my first time doing it and I do recommend).
What I liked the most about this book is the humor hidden in the dialogues and some situations, but irony and sarcasm seems to be the main ingredients.
Anyways, my problem with this book is that it took too long to get to the point, and, in my opinion, a very disappointing one.
It’s a mad house. Those characters are rude and crazy. The dialogues are sometimes repetitive. Most of the characters are unlikeable. Most of the situations and “coincidences” are unlikely to happen (I know it’s a fiction - no lecture needed here). The accuracy of history does not concern me.
All I really wanted was to feel connected.
This is definitely not my favourite work.
Give me “Bleak House” or “Hard Times” anytime.
Below is an excerpt from “A Tale of Two Cities”:
“Is, I assure you," said the spy; "though it's not important."
"Though it's not important," repeated Carton, in the same mechanical way—"though it's not important—No, it's not important. No. Yet I know the face."
"I think not. I am sure not. It can't be," said the spy.
"It-can't-be," muttered Sydney Carton, retrospectively, and idling his glass (which fortunately was a small one) again. "Can't-be. Spoke good French. Yet like a foreign...”
Great Expectations
5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
(This review was posted on a different edition that I read in 2021)
This was my second time reading this book but my first time reading it in English.
The pace is extremely slow (and some times boring), but one principal reason why this is such a good book is that it contains such memorable and colorful cast of characters, likable or not.
Dickens had a genius for creating believable and human characters.
This book reveals important truths about life and about humanity.
Who did not have delusional expectations while growing up? Delusions about love, about money?
Although I thought that the storyline was more like a fairytale (some events I thought were a bit unrealistic), its slow development is superb.
I found the writing a lot easier than I expected, but I did not realize that Dickens repeated the same words in the same sentence (I guess it’s a way to give more emphasis to the sentence or dialogue, or perhaps that’s how people used to talk).
I was simultaneously listening to the audiobook narrated by Martin Jarvis, who I thought did a terrific job. It really added that extra joy and a different pace to the book (as I have said on other reviews, I’m still not able to enjoy an audiobook on its own. I’m experimenting. Thank goodness for the public library!).
Now I want to watch the movie or TV adaptation (I have a couple of versions sitting on my shelves of DVD collection).
PS. This book was not meant to be read at once. It was originally intended for weekly publication. Great Expectations was divided into nine monthly sections, with new pagination for each, and released between December 1860 and August 1861.
A good reason to take it slow.
July 3, 2020
Great Expectations: 2020 review
I first read Great Expectations in ninth grade—an age when there was no way I could possibly appreciate any aspect of it. Revisiting it later in life showed me that it is a truly fantastic novel, and now I’ve been thrilled to read it aloud to the family in the evenings and enjoy it all over again. Dickens’s riff on the Prodigal Son story is full of heart-rending emotion and hilarious comedy. Pip’s hindsight perspective on himself is stunning—and the ability of Dickens to put himself in the place not only of the young Pip in the story but also of the older Pip reminiscing about his younger self.
Every time I read this I’m sure different aspects will be memorable. This time the little detail that we all enjoyed was the many ways Dickens avoids saying “he died.” Those verbose, paragraph-long euphemisms for death are incredible. There’s no one like Dickens for finding tortuously wordy ways of saying simple, mundane things. Reading it aloud brings this out perhaps even more, because there are times when I’d finish a sentence and then have to pause while we all tried to work out what had just happened in the sentence—often followed by uproarious laughter.
------------------------------------
A Tale of Two Cities: 2018 review
I don't know if I'd read A Tale of Two Cities since 10th grade (I think it used to be required reading for a lot of us in school in those days). I remember enjoying it back then, but I wasn't prepared to return to it and find that it is such a brilliant, hilarious, exciting story. My wife, who has taught the novel a number of times in high school classes, suggested that we all read it together as bedtime stories. I thought at first that this was a crazy idea, because I know how complicated Dickens's sentences can be, and how long it might take us to get through the book. And as we started it, I still thought it was kind of a crazy idea, because the beginning starts rather slowly and demands a lot of intuitive, contextual understanding. But once the characters and setting are established, the story quickly starts moving toward its inevitable conclusion, and it was extremely fun to share together in the evenings.
I remembered the general outline of the narrative, but I'd forgotten many details along the way. In particular, I didn't remember the full character arc of Jerry Cruncher, nor did I remember the climactic confrontation between two very strong female characters. I doubt 10th-grade me understood Mr. Lorry very well, and now I find him fascinating and admirable. I did remember loving Sidney Carton, but looking back at him from middle age is even better than looking up to him from youth. Were we to have another son, I think "Sidney Carton" would be a great choice for his name. I really resonated with so much of Carton's struggle against darkness and hopelessness.
I always find it hard to write anything worthwhile about a long and beautiful novel such as this one. I don't think I'll let so many years pass before revisiting A Tale of Two Cities.
I first read Great Expectations in ninth grade—an age when there was no way I could possibly appreciate any aspect of it. Revisiting it later in life showed me that it is a truly fantastic novel, and now I’ve been thrilled to read it aloud to the family in the evenings and enjoy it all over again. Dickens’s riff on the Prodigal Son story is full of heart-rending emotion and hilarious comedy. Pip’s hindsight perspective on himself is stunning—and the ability of Dickens to put himself in the place not only of the young Pip in the story but also of the older Pip reminiscing about his younger self.
Every time I read this I’m sure different aspects will be memorable. This time the little detail that we all enjoyed was the many ways Dickens avoids saying “he died.” Those verbose, paragraph-long euphemisms for death are incredible. There’s no one like Dickens for finding tortuously wordy ways of saying simple, mundane things. Reading it aloud brings this out perhaps even more, because there are times when I’d finish a sentence and then have to pause while we all tried to work out what had just happened in the sentence—often followed by uproarious laughter.
------------------------------------
A Tale of Two Cities: 2018 review
I don't know if I'd read A Tale of Two Cities since 10th grade (I think it used to be required reading for a lot of us in school in those days). I remember enjoying it back then, but I wasn't prepared to return to it and find that it is such a brilliant, hilarious, exciting story. My wife, who has taught the novel a number of times in high school classes, suggested that we all read it together as bedtime stories. I thought at first that this was a crazy idea, because I know how complicated Dickens's sentences can be, and how long it might take us to get through the book. And as we started it, I still thought it was kind of a crazy idea, because the beginning starts rather slowly and demands a lot of intuitive, contextual understanding. But once the characters and setting are established, the story quickly starts moving toward its inevitable conclusion, and it was extremely fun to share together in the evenings.
I remembered the general outline of the narrative, but I'd forgotten many details along the way. In particular, I didn't remember the full character arc of Jerry Cruncher, nor did I remember the climactic confrontation between two very strong female characters. I doubt 10th-grade me understood Mr. Lorry very well, and now I find him fascinating and admirable. I did remember loving Sidney Carton, but looking back at him from middle age is even better than looking up to him from youth. Were we to have another son, I think "Sidney Carton" would be a great choice for his name. I really resonated with so much of Carton's struggle against darkness and hopelessness.
I always find it hard to write anything worthwhile about a long and beautiful novel such as this one. I don't think I'll let so many years pass before revisiting A Tale of Two Cities.
January 18, 2011
I have a confession. I have never read a classic. Yes, never. I've always found them intimidating and hard to read. I thought I wouldn't understand them and they would be boring. But I figured they had to be called "classics" for a reason. I just finished A Tale of Two Cities which is divided into 3 sections. I started out thinking "see this is why I never read classics" but by the end I was thinking "I can't believe it's taken me this long to read a classic, it was brilliant!" It did take me till the end of section 2 to finally figure out what the heck was going on and who everyone was. I was determined to finish this book and continued to give it a chance. After that point the book was hard to put down and lived up to how Jonathan Franzen described it: "a page turner". I'm glad Oprah chose this book, A Tale of Two Cities would have probably been the last classic I would have chosen to read. But I'm glad I did. It was a powerful story of ultimate love and self sacrifice as well as ultimate evil and horror. I liked the historical aspect of the book, learning about the French revolution. The suspense was intense and the story touches your soul in a way things rarely do. At the end tears were streaming down my face and blurring my eyes where I could hardly finish the book. Bravo, Charles Dickens, bravo.
May 22, 2016
A Tale of Two Cities
4 Stars
Great Expectations
4 Stars
4 Stars
Great Expectations
4 Stars
July 18, 2017
I have just finished A Tale of Two Cities and I am in awe of the story and the man that wrote it.
The story of love, revolution, friendship,and sacrifice.It is a relevant today as it was on publication in serial form in 1859.
Some things shouldn't be forgotten and this story is one of those things. The idea that the oppressed came to be the oppressors is a frighteningly real one. The power mad woman whose very words can bring someone to there death, The beautiful and loving wife one so far removed from the other but in this story of light and dark good and bad right and wrong there are many comparisons to be drawn.
I cried at the end and during for the strength of some of the characters and the sheer will of others to do what needed to be done.
I am rambling a little and will possibly edit this or do a full review in days to come. If not then all I can say is read this, savor the writing the the prose the wonderful literature that I along with countless millions have enjoyed and will continue to enjoy because though this was my first Dickens rest assured it will not be my last.
ps Will read the second book in the volume soon I have Great Expectations of it :)
Great Expectations
This started off so well... In the first book we are introduced to Pip an orphan who is being 'brought up by hand' by his cruel to the extreme older sister and her blacksmith husband Joe who is lovely and tries to help Pip when his sister lays into him.
The meeting in the graveyard between Pip and 'The prisoner' is a truely scary one and the writing so descriptive I read over it twice just because... Pip is in time summoned to the house of the rich if eccentric Miss Havisham where he meets the beautiful cold and proud Estella her adopted daughter. Miss Havisham is a wonderously described character the likes of which I had never read of before and I love her to bits,, I see all her things and her wedding paraphernalia all rotted and wasted. This first book of the 3 is a work of art for me. (I read in pictures)
towards the end of part 1 Pip discovers he has been given some money by a secret benefactor and travels to London leaving his family, Estella and his old life behind with Great Expectations.
The second part of the the story book 2 is about Pips life in London where he meets the Pocket family very odd and wittily described and his guardian Mr Jaggers but really not much happens in this part of the story.Pip is growing up making friends, deliberating on who his benefactor may be and not a lot else really.
Part 3 was where the action is taken up again and we find out that his new life is the direct result of something that happened in part 1.
I really enjoyed this book and I loved some of the characters Miss Havisham and the loony Mrs Pocket so obsessed with the fact that she thinks she is descended from royalty that all she does all day is read a book about titles and her plethora of children are not being brought up or dragged up but are literally 'tumbling up'.
The book is long and has taken me an age to read due to holidays birthdays and life in general getting in the way.
I will not say anymore about the end part other than it was as it should be and I felt satisfied with it.
All in all a very character filled book and sublime writing. I liked it very much but didn't love it like I do ToTC so this for me is ****
The story of love, revolution, friendship,and sacrifice.It is a relevant today as it was on publication in serial form in 1859.
Some things shouldn't be forgotten and this story is one of those things. The idea that the oppressed came to be the oppressors is a frighteningly real one. The power mad woman whose very words can bring someone to there death, The beautiful and loving wife one so far removed from the other but in this story of light and dark good and bad right and wrong there are many comparisons to be drawn.
I cried at the end and during for the strength of some of the characters and the sheer will of others to do what needed to be done.
I am rambling a little and will possibly edit this or do a full review in days to come. If not then all I can say is read this, savor the writing the the prose the wonderful literature that I along with countless millions have enjoyed and will continue to enjoy because though this was my first Dickens rest assured it will not be my last.
ps Will read the second book in the volume soon I have Great Expectations of it :)
Great Expectations
This started off so well... In the first book we are introduced to Pip an orphan who is being 'brought up by hand' by his cruel to the extreme older sister and her blacksmith husband Joe who is lovely and tries to help Pip when his sister lays into him.
The meeting in the graveyard between Pip and 'The prisoner' is a truely scary one and the writing so descriptive I read over it twice just because... Pip is in time summoned to the house of the rich if eccentric Miss Havisham where he meets the beautiful cold and proud Estella her adopted daughter. Miss Havisham is a wonderously described character the likes of which I had never read of before and I love her to bits,, I see all her things and her wedding paraphernalia all rotted and wasted. This first book of the 3 is a work of art for me. (I read in pictures)
towards the end of part 1 Pip discovers he has been given some money by a secret benefactor and travels to London leaving his family, Estella and his old life behind with Great Expectations.
The second part of the the story book 2 is about Pips life in London where he meets the Pocket family very odd and wittily described and his guardian Mr Jaggers but really not much happens in this part of the story.Pip is growing up making friends, deliberating on who his benefactor may be and not a lot else really.
Part 3 was where the action is taken up again and we find out that his new life is the direct result of something that happened in part 1.
I really enjoyed this book and I loved some of the characters Miss Havisham and the loony Mrs Pocket so obsessed with the fact that she thinks she is descended from royalty that all she does all day is read a book about titles and her plethora of children are not being brought up or dragged up but are literally 'tumbling up'.
The book is long and has taken me an age to read due to holidays birthdays and life in general getting in the way.
I will not say anymore about the end part other than it was as it should be and I felt satisfied with it.
All in all a very character filled book and sublime writing. I liked it very much but didn't love it like I do ToTC so this for me is ****
January 18, 2022
I put the rating at 3, but really.... I think that "Great Expectations" alone would rate 3.5 and "A Tale of Two Cities" would rate 2. I just couldn't get into it. Boring and hard to get through.
January 10, 2023
I read the second novel in this collection, Great Expectations. A coming of age, a melodrama, a love story and at times comic and tragic. Dicken's expert skill in the beauty of language and his characterization and exacting detail of person, place and thing are its strong points. You feel like you are there.
The story is also overly long with rambling plot and short chapters to accommodate its original publishing schedule as a serial. A series of unlikely coincidences further the plot picking up speed in the last 200 pages. My edition has two different last pages or endings, one with a definite ending and another with a more ambiguous ending. Apparently, Dickens was encouraged to change his ending to the more hopeful ambiguous ending.
I read and listened to an audio in tandem with the text, which I found to be helpful as well as enjoyable. I think the audio helped foster the patience needed to settle into the story and appreciate it for the classic it is.
I did notice with my 21st century sensibilities, all the women in the story save one or two at the end of the story, were described as a nag, an eccentric, or cold hearted. All variations of damaged women. I wondered what, as required reading in school, young women took from that.
The story is also overly long with rambling plot and short chapters to accommodate its original publishing schedule as a serial. A series of unlikely coincidences further the plot picking up speed in the last 200 pages. My edition has two different last pages or endings, one with a definite ending and another with a more ambiguous ending. Apparently, Dickens was encouraged to change his ending to the more hopeful ambiguous ending.
I read and listened to an audio in tandem with the text, which I found to be helpful as well as enjoyable. I think the audio helped foster the patience needed to settle into the story and appreciate it for the classic it is.
I did notice with my 21st century sensibilities, all the women in the story save one or two at the end of the story, were described as a nag, an eccentric, or cold hearted. All variations of damaged women. I wondered what, as required reading in school, young women took from that.
September 9, 2012
Charles Dickens! I hardly knew ye. . .
I only read A tale of two cities from this edition (will save Great expectations for another time) and was astounded! My previous readings of Dickens must have been wrong book/wrong time, because I loved his writing. I was simultaneously caught up in the story, the style, the tempo, and vocabulary such as: 'tergiversation' and 'accoutred' and 'incommodiousness'. Perhaps I shall read critique by the by, but upon completion of this novel, I am enamored. It will take a place among my all-time favorites.
I only read A tale of two cities from this edition (will save Great expectations for another time) and was astounded! My previous readings of Dickens must have been wrong book/wrong time, because I loved his writing. I was simultaneously caught up in the story, the style, the tempo, and vocabulary such as: 'tergiversation' and 'accoutred' and 'incommodiousness'. Perhaps I shall read critique by the by, but upon completion of this novel, I am enamored. It will take a place among my all-time favorites.
June 24, 2018
I finally finished this one. Both the teens had to read it for their high school lit class with their fab teacher (not me!) so I hunkered down amid the old language. And I realized we should use bigger words. Because words are beautiful.
A classic sacrifice of love in a sea of psychotic political hate. Best of times, worst of times.
A classic sacrifice of love in a sea of psychotic political hate. Best of times, worst of times.
July 12, 2011
Put Off
-noun
1....also, set aside. to put out of the way; place to one side: Put aside your books and come for a walk.
This book has always put me in such a...well. One thing before I start on my before review..who says I cannot walk and read? 6 miles a day, every day. Hah!
This book has always put me in such a tremor since the day I encountered this gothic Yahoo, this towering Hun (yes, they all mean the same thing in the Thesarus). There is no other dead white male who bothers to cool my coffee right quick (okay, it's an exaggeration, Milton makes me squirm too). But in the event of one close patron's death, I decided to honor them with putting myself to the task. The task.
What my purpose of getting a dual copy when I only managed to read one, and knew ahead of time I would only read one, is beyond me. But I can say this: I owe Charles Dicken a fervent and eternal apology. And also to my friend who I am most certain didn't go up there so she is more than happy to meet me down there. Demned 'ooligan.
For as long as I have avoided Dickens, you'd think I'd like him more. Or at least, more than I think I do at the moment. I grew up hating this guy. And hate is not a strong enough word, it's used way too much. I was venemous towards Two Cities and little Ollie. First time I took pleasure in bad mouthing a made-up person.
Dickens loped along the to-read list with Dee Brown, William Shakespeare, Anton Chekov (who I will most likely sink my teeth into next), and Elizabeth Gaskell. And, as I quite spiritually found, that was a good thing. It was the plainest thing: I should have waited. From all my bookish friends, I have not heard that. But then, they don't remember half the character quirks or memorable dialogue either.
There are certain books that must wait upon our shelves until we are older. Some, when we are MUCH older. Trying to conquer Great Expectations at 11 was not a fabulous idea. It was just pretentiousness.
So, Great Expectations..and part of Two Cities (aye, poetic souls in authordom spit fire at me). I do believe I have yet to suck out all the poison in my snake bite. Pip, to me, is indestructibly cute. Couldn't find a better word for the little scrapper. His voice charms one, I think, though the beginning was droll. ooh, poor me. My sister the BMW gives licks much oh, much too sharp. Or something of that rot.
Further down the supposedly straight path: Pip gets in some more trouble, there's mist, a creepy lady of gentle-lady upbringing, and her beastly little ward. Admittance: I'm not much of a fighter. More of a runner. But I felt there should have been some root pulling going on here. I was pretty well dazzled by Dickensian language. I was hoping to be, as famous as his style made him. But the four stars was really for Tale of Two Cities, which I won't be able to finish in this edition, but I have a scrappy hardback that will soon assuage my fretting. Hopefully.
-noun
1....also, set aside. to put out of the way; place to one side: Put aside your books and come for a walk.
This book has always put me in such a...well. One thing before I start on my before review..who says I cannot walk and read? 6 miles a day, every day. Hah!
This book has always put me in such a tremor since the day I encountered this gothic Yahoo, this towering Hun (yes, they all mean the same thing in the Thesarus). There is no other dead white male who bothers to cool my coffee right quick (okay, it's an exaggeration, Milton makes me squirm too). But in the event of one close patron's death, I decided to honor them with putting myself to the task. The task.
What my purpose of getting a dual copy when I only managed to read one, and knew ahead of time I would only read one, is beyond me. But I can say this: I owe Charles Dicken a fervent and eternal apology. And also to my friend who I am most certain didn't go up there so she is more than happy to meet me down there. Demned 'ooligan.
For as long as I have avoided Dickens, you'd think I'd like him more. Or at least, more than I think I do at the moment. I grew up hating this guy. And hate is not a strong enough word, it's used way too much. I was venemous towards Two Cities and little Ollie. First time I took pleasure in bad mouthing a made-up person.
Dickens loped along the to-read list with Dee Brown, William Shakespeare, Anton Chekov (who I will most likely sink my teeth into next), and Elizabeth Gaskell. And, as I quite spiritually found, that was a good thing. It was the plainest thing: I should have waited. From all my bookish friends, I have not heard that. But then, they don't remember half the character quirks or memorable dialogue either.
There are certain books that must wait upon our shelves until we are older. Some, when we are MUCH older. Trying to conquer Great Expectations at 11 was not a fabulous idea. It was just pretentiousness.
So, Great Expectations..and part of Two Cities (aye, poetic souls in authordom spit fire at me). I do believe I have yet to suck out all the poison in my snake bite. Pip, to me, is indestructibly cute. Couldn't find a better word for the little scrapper. His voice charms one, I think, though the beginning was droll. ooh, poor me. My sister the BMW gives licks much oh, much too sharp. Or something of that rot.
Further down the supposedly straight path: Pip gets in some more trouble, there's mist, a creepy lady of gentle-lady upbringing, and her beastly little ward. Admittance: I'm not much of a fighter. More of a runner. But I felt there should have been some root pulling going on here. I was pretty well dazzled by Dickensian language. I was hoping to be, as famous as his style made him. But the four stars was really for Tale of Two Cities, which I won't be able to finish in this edition, but I have a scrappy hardback that will soon assuage my fretting. Hopefully.
August 10, 2021
داستانی زیبا و متفاوت از دیکنز بزرگ،
سرشار از عشق،فداکاری،همبستگی و غم...
به شخصه عاشقانه این کتاب رو دوست دارم!
واقعا پایان بندی فوق العاده ای داشت و خیلی خوب داستان بسته شد.
دیوید کاپرفیلد رو هنوز نخوندم ولی از نظر من، بعد از آرزوهای بزرگ این بهترین اثر دیکنز هست.
ایده ی زیبایی بود که تقریبا در اول هر فصل مقدمه ای با شاه دیالوگ ها بنویسه.
واقعا من با اینکه بیشتر اوقات سرعت کتاب خوندنم بالاست، ترجیح میدادم این کتاب رو آرام تر بخونم تا تمام نشه!(چقدر زیبا)
به شدت توصیه میشه ولی بهتون توصیه میکنم به عنوان اولین کتابی که میخواید از چارلز دیکنز نخونید.
سرشار از عشق،فداکاری،همبستگی و غم...
به شخصه عاشقانه این کتاب رو دوست دارم!
واقعا پایان بندی فوق العاده ای داشت و خیلی خوب داستان بسته شد.
دیوید کاپرفیلد رو هنوز نخوندم ولی از نظر من، بعد از آرزوهای بزرگ این بهترین اثر دیکنز هست.
ایده ی زیبایی بود که تقریبا در اول هر فصل مقدمه ای با شاه دیالوگ ها بنویسه.
واقعا من با اینکه بیشتر اوقات سرعت کتاب خوندنم بالاست، ترجیح میدادم این کتاب رو آرام تر بخونم تا تمام نشه!(چقدر زیبا)
به شدت توصیه میشه ولی بهتون توصیه میکنم به عنوان اولین کتابی که میخواید از چارلز دیکنز نخونید.
May 11, 2019
I enjoyed a Tale of Two Cities, which I tried to read years ago and stopped but picked it up again and finally finished it. I thoroughly enjoyed Great Expectations even more! I love Pip and his innate intelligence and sensitivity and feel like this is similar to Count of Monte Cristo, in that there are several major phases in the main character’s story that make it a complete story.
May 16, 2017
Bought this edition even though I already owned both books because it's just so dang pretty.
May 29, 2017
I will also do a video review here at my channel: http://www.youtube.com/magicofbooks
“A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens is set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution, following the plight of the French peasantry as they seek justice against the aristocracy.
“A Tale of Two Cities” has been one of those classics that I have been determined to read for the longest time. Even if you’ve never read the book, there’s a good chance you have heard the opening lines, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” and even the final line of the novel, “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known.” The opening and ending of the novel are perhaps some of the most recognizable in literature. So I was pretty excited to finally read this novel, especially since I adore “Great Expectations” and have read it numerous times. Unfortunately, I wasn’t that impressed with “A Tale of Two Cities.” For the most part, I found myself a bit bored, I kept zoning in and out, I couldn’t concentrate. I do appreciate what Dickens was doing with this novel though. It’s about the poor rising up against the aristocracy, something that is relatable in every century. And I do think Dickens’ prose was gorgeous, especially the whole ending when things get really tense, and there’s a certain melancholy that hits you hard. I guess, for me, I would have liked a stronger focus on Lucie, Charles Darnay, and Sydney Carton. Instead, what I got, were all these other characters that I didn’t particularly care for. More than anything, I was upset with the lack of Carton and Darnay, two characters that I thought were huge in this book, but they weren’t in it nearly as much as I would have liked. They were definitely the most interesting, the most complex. Maybe I just went into this book with high expectations and the book just didn’t live up to it. I think I might have also been expecting a bit more action since this is taking place during the French Revolution, but all there was were a lot of characters sitting around talking about action rather than actually doing something.
Overall, though I was a bit disappointed with this book, I’m glad I finally got around to reading it. Through pop culture I was already spoiled about the dramatic ending, but it was nice to read everything leading up to that ending and getting a better understanding. I would still recommend this book, especially if you have read a few Dickens’ books and want to read more. I think there are things in this book to appreciate, certain scenes, certain characters, certain moments, that make it all worthwhile.
And I feel the need to just bring up "Great Expectations" since this is a bindup, but I really have no intent on reviewing it because it's a book I've reread over and over (I think this was my 5th reread I want to say). So just for the sake of going ahead and bringing it up: I love "Great Expectations." Amazing, memorable characters. An intricate plot. So much going on, compared to "A Tale of Two Cities." And can I just say: Pip/Estella are up pretty high as far as favorite literary couples go, right alongside Darcy/Elizabeth and Jane/Rochester, which might sound weird considering how horrible Estella is to Pip. Highly recommend "Great Expectations" because I think it's one of those classics that's easy to get into and easy to read.
“A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens is set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution, following the plight of the French peasantry as they seek justice against the aristocracy.
“A Tale of Two Cities” has been one of those classics that I have been determined to read for the longest time. Even if you’ve never read the book, there’s a good chance you have heard the opening lines, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” and even the final line of the novel, “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known.” The opening and ending of the novel are perhaps some of the most recognizable in literature. So I was pretty excited to finally read this novel, especially since I adore “Great Expectations” and have read it numerous times. Unfortunately, I wasn’t that impressed with “A Tale of Two Cities.” For the most part, I found myself a bit bored, I kept zoning in and out, I couldn’t concentrate. I do appreciate what Dickens was doing with this novel though. It’s about the poor rising up against the aristocracy, something that is relatable in every century. And I do think Dickens’ prose was gorgeous, especially the whole ending when things get really tense, and there’s a certain melancholy that hits you hard. I guess, for me, I would have liked a stronger focus on Lucie, Charles Darnay, and Sydney Carton. Instead, what I got, were all these other characters that I didn’t particularly care for. More than anything, I was upset with the lack of Carton and Darnay, two characters that I thought were huge in this book, but they weren’t in it nearly as much as I would have liked. They were definitely the most interesting, the most complex. Maybe I just went into this book with high expectations and the book just didn’t live up to it. I think I might have also been expecting a bit more action since this is taking place during the French Revolution, but all there was were a lot of characters sitting around talking about action rather than actually doing something.
Overall, though I was a bit disappointed with this book, I’m glad I finally got around to reading it. Through pop culture I was already spoiled about the dramatic ending, but it was nice to read everything leading up to that ending and getting a better understanding. I would still recommend this book, especially if you have read a few Dickens’ books and want to read more. I think there are things in this book to appreciate, certain scenes, certain characters, certain moments, that make it all worthwhile.
And I feel the need to just bring up "Great Expectations" since this is a bindup, but I really have no intent on reviewing it because it's a book I've reread over and over (I think this was my 5th reread I want to say). So just for the sake of going ahead and bringing it up: I love "Great Expectations." Amazing, memorable characters. An intricate plot. So much going on, compared to "A Tale of Two Cities." And can I just say: Pip/Estella are up pretty high as far as favorite literary couples go, right alongside Darcy/Elizabeth and Jane/Rochester, which might sound weird considering how horrible Estella is to Pip. Highly recommend "Great Expectations" because I think it's one of those classics that's easy to get into and easy to read.
April 15, 2025
Finishing this novel a second time while answering questions during my reading helped me appreciate this book a lot. To be brief, this story is about how Pip s ambition brought him to what he thought was his fate, but what was ultimately a life of a learning experience.
By leaving the marshes to go to London, Pop realizes that it will take more than just money to make him happy.
Distraught with Estella’s emotional complexity toward him, Pip holds on with hope than even if money can’t make him fully satisfied, she will. However, this changes with time.
Mirroring this change in the plot, the convict and Pips benefactor reflects Pips epiphany’s at this point in the novel.
He finds that with Estella getting married and his money running out with Magwitches faltering, it was never really money that gave him hope. It was his ambition for more to life that Pip felt he deserved.
At the end of the novel, Dickens fate for Pip is beautifully put into place when the marsh fog settles over him and Estella. Estella says that Pip will always be her friend because their love could never reach an equal yokedness. The marsh fog is present here to fall upon Pip.
His fate of common life sealing into place with Estella’s last declaration.
Pip is an example of how great expectations for your life are meant to teach us a lesson more than they are to become true.
By leaving the marshes to go to London, Pop realizes that it will take more than just money to make him happy.
Distraught with Estella’s emotional complexity toward him, Pip holds on with hope than even if money can’t make him fully satisfied, she will. However, this changes with time.
Mirroring this change in the plot, the convict and Pips benefactor reflects Pips epiphany’s at this point in the novel.
He finds that with Estella getting married and his money running out with Magwitches faltering, it was never really money that gave him hope. It was his ambition for more to life that Pip felt he deserved.
At the end of the novel, Dickens fate for Pip is beautifully put into place when the marsh fog settles over him and Estella. Estella says that Pip will always be her friend because their love could never reach an equal yokedness. The marsh fog is present here to fall upon Pip.
His fate of common life sealing into place with Estella’s last declaration.
Pip is an example of how great expectations for your life are meant to teach us a lesson more than they are to become true.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 11, 2021
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
First Published 1859
An Oprah Book Club Pick #OBC
BOOK#82 OF #100𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓮
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Charles Dickens', A Tale of Two Cities, begins with these famous words. On the eve of the French Revolution of 1789, the story follows Charles Darney, a French aristocrat-turned-revolutionary, and Sydney Carton, a purposeless British lawyer in love with Darney's wife, Lucie. Sydney's love for Lucie inspires him to join the Revolution alongside his friend Darney, at a time when both France and England are experiencing tensions between the upper and lower classes.
First released in 1859 via magazine installments A Tale of Two Cities, is ultimately the tale of Carton and Darney, London and Paris... A Tale of Two Men.
First Published 1859
An Oprah Book Club Pick #OBC
BOOK#82 OF #100𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓮
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Charles Dickens', A Tale of Two Cities, begins with these famous words. On the eve of the French Revolution of 1789, the story follows Charles Darney, a French aristocrat-turned-revolutionary, and Sydney Carton, a purposeless British lawyer in love with Darney's wife, Lucie. Sydney's love for Lucie inspires him to join the Revolution alongside his friend Darney, at a time when both France and England are experiencing tensions between the upper and lower classes.
First released in 1859 via magazine installments A Tale of Two Cities, is ultimately the tale of Carton and Darney, London and Paris... A Tale of Two Men.
February 21, 2021
Now having finished this second, and somewhat lengthier, Dickens classic, I am baffled that anyone thought it reasonable to assign Great Expectations to teenagers. I recall turning the pages - a great many pages - and getting the gist of Pip being foolish and Estella being cruel. I cannot at that point in my life, reading the words quickly to meet a course deadline, have grasped much of the novel at all.
Following the high drama of A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations' quieter focus on the development of its main character, his relationships with iconic secondary characters, and its more textured, bittersweet prodigal son plot, made it a book to get lost in, perfect for dreary winter evenings. The two novels are well paired. Tackling them together was daunting, but immensely rewarding.
Following the high drama of A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations' quieter focus on the development of its main character, his relationships with iconic secondary characters, and its more textured, bittersweet prodigal son plot, made it a book to get lost in, perfect for dreary winter evenings. The two novels are well paired. Tackling them together was daunting, but immensely rewarding.
March 19, 2023
The last time I read Great Expectations was as part of High School English curriculum so I was interested to read it again as an adult. I really enjoyed reading it this second time round, it's surprisingly funny and the story moves quickly keeping the reader engaged. The characters are quirky, intense and bizarre in all the best ways. If you can push past the 'ye olde' english it's definitely worth it!
April 2, 2024
Not an easy read but well worth the effort. I'm glad I finally read this classic.
August 31, 2024
A Tale of Two Cities was truly brilliant.
It took a bit to really feel like I had a good grip on the story complexity and character connections, but once I did, wow, I was enthralled to the very last, evocative sentence.
Great Expectations was the most profound and eloquent depiction of character growth I have ever read. Truly a beautiful and unforgettable story that will be forever close to my heart.
It took a bit to really feel like I had a good grip on the story complexity and character connections, but once I did, wow, I was enthralled to the very last, evocative sentence.
Great Expectations was the most profound and eloquent depiction of character growth I have ever read. Truly a beautiful and unforgettable story that will be forever close to my heart.
July 11, 2018
This was confusing to understand at first. Dickens has a way about him in which his narrative lays out the pieces of a puzzle while keeping the bigger picture being put together in the dark: as you continue digging into the story, that’s when the small details from the first half of the book start coming together as significant and the way that the characters are entangled together become clearer. Enjoyable and set against the background of the French Revolution, I can see the appeal of this book as a classic. **A Tale of Two Cities**
July 23, 2012
So I just finished A Tale of Two Cities and started Great Expectations but thought I'd write my review of the first while it was still on my mind. I had previously attempted to read this book twice but found it very trying to get past the first few chapters. The writing is true to it's time period and to Dickens in that it is flowery and the vocabulary is archaic. I confess I had to look a few words up. There were so many characters and plot lines started at the same time I found it hard to follow during these first few chapters (probably why I had given up in the past). I can only imagine how difficult it would have been to try and follow this book as you waited for the weekly chapters to be released over a 7 month period as it was originally released, I would have given up then too.
That said once you get through the first third of the book and have a solid grasp of the characters Dickens does a great job of tying it all together and you find all those characters and plots really do have there place. And for the last third of the book I found myself staying up way too late reading and having trouble putting the book down.
I think this book is also a great read for anyone studying the French Revolution to get an idea as to what the atmosphere was like and also why there was so much discontent. I have always found the this part of French history a bit ridiculous if not even comical, (I have a dark sense of humor)only because the french ousted a king only to follow him with a dictator and emperor and eventually a king again. Really a lot of blood shed for no real outcome, but I digress. Overall this first book of the set is a great read.
Great Expectations: So this book was a lot more linear in it's plot than A Tale of Two Cities which made it easier to follow but it was not nearly as intriguing. I found myself frequently asking, "Who cares?" and overall think the story with it's great commentary on pride and forgiveness could have been summed up in about half the words it was written with. So I would give A Tale of Two Cities 4 stars but Great Expectations only 3.
That said once you get through the first third of the book and have a solid grasp of the characters Dickens does a great job of tying it all together and you find all those characters and plots really do have there place. And for the last third of the book I found myself staying up way too late reading and having trouble putting the book down.
I think this book is also a great read for anyone studying the French Revolution to get an idea as to what the atmosphere was like and also why there was so much discontent. I have always found the this part of French history a bit ridiculous if not even comical, (I have a dark sense of humor)only because the french ousted a king only to follow him with a dictator and emperor and eventually a king again. Really a lot of blood shed for no real outcome, but I digress. Overall this first book of the set is a great read.
Great Expectations: So this book was a lot more linear in it's plot than A Tale of Two Cities which made it easier to follow but it was not nearly as intriguing. I found myself frequently asking, "Who cares?" and overall think the story with it's great commentary on pride and forgiveness could have been summed up in about half the words it was written with. So I would give A Tale of Two Cities 4 stars but Great Expectations only 3.
January 8, 2012
"Tale" is a good read, especially the later chapters.
This is a review of "Tale of Two Cities." I have not (yet) read 'Great Expectations.'
I found the first part was somewhat slow and confusing, though still enjoyable. The whole thing seems random and haphazard at first, but it all fits together in the end ... every last bit, though it wasn't until I read the Cliff notes that I was able to piece together how.
The last third or so of the story was in the "couldn't put it down" category. Dickens' perceptiveness of the fickle nature of justice and the plight of the underclasses makes for an engagingly human narration.
I found that keeping a brief list of the character names and the years was quite helpful. Possibly essential. Not sure how I feel about the edition, (a Borders closing sale acquisition) beautifully printed but with no annotations. Annotations do get in the way of the flow of the text sometimes, and I think I got most of what was going on without them. But if your edition has them, that's probably better.
The Cliff notes (available for free online, which I am reading afterward) cleared up several mysteries, but also contain spoilers, so I wouldn't recommend reading them beforehand. Their explanation was essential to my comprehension of the first few pages, filled with rich allusions decipherable only to someone familiar the time current to when Dickens wrote. Although not essential to the plot, nice to have.
I think this one is worth a re-read, now that I understand better the shape of the plot.
This is a review of "Tale of Two Cities." I have not (yet) read 'Great Expectations.'
I found the first part was somewhat slow and confusing, though still enjoyable. The whole thing seems random and haphazard at first, but it all fits together in the end ... every last bit, though it wasn't until I read the Cliff notes that I was able to piece together how.
The last third or so of the story was in the "couldn't put it down" category. Dickens' perceptiveness of the fickle nature of justice and the plight of the underclasses makes for an engagingly human narration.
I found that keeping a brief list of the character names and the years was quite helpful. Possibly essential. Not sure how I feel about the edition, (a Borders closing sale acquisition) beautifully printed but with no annotations. Annotations do get in the way of the flow of the text sometimes, and I think I got most of what was going on without them. But if your edition has them, that's probably better.
The Cliff notes (available for free online, which I am reading afterward) cleared up several mysteries, but also contain spoilers, so I wouldn't recommend reading them beforehand. Their explanation was essential to my comprehension of the first few pages, filled with rich allusions decipherable only to someone familiar the time current to when Dickens wrote. Although not essential to the plot, nice to have.
I think this one is worth a re-read, now that I understand better the shape of the plot.
November 27, 2017
Charles Dickens bildungsroman novel 'Great Expectations' was released periodically from December 1860 to August 1861. Many of the characters from the book have taken a prominent place in our popular culture, e.g., awful yet wizardly love forsaken Miss Havisham, the beautiful and cruel Estella, and the naive narrator of the novel Pip.
But I feel it is not just another Dicken's novel with the good being utterly good and the villains the most wicked. There is a ton of gray matter in their personalities; but of course, this being a Victorian novel, the goodness hails victorious in the end.
Pip breaks the stereotypes and recognizes his real beneficiaries; whether it be his ignorant brother in law Joe, or the ex-convict benefactor Abel Magwitch. Miss Havisham, too, does some good in the end and regrets her past mistakes, Estella sees the trueness of Pip's love, Jaggers and Wimmick form a more familial work relationship, Joe finds love again with Biddy, and Abel gives his money to make Pip a gentleman.
Does Pip fulfill the great expectations that were bestowed upon him? I believe so. His world as a middle-aged man, albeit still devoid of Estella's love, is a happier one than what he possessed as a child.
But I feel it is not just another Dicken's novel with the good being utterly good and the villains the most wicked. There is a ton of gray matter in their personalities; but of course, this being a Victorian novel, the goodness hails victorious in the end.
Pip breaks the stereotypes and recognizes his real beneficiaries; whether it be his ignorant brother in law Joe, or the ex-convict benefactor Abel Magwitch. Miss Havisham, too, does some good in the end and regrets her past mistakes, Estella sees the trueness of Pip's love, Jaggers and Wimmick form a more familial work relationship, Joe finds love again with Biddy, and Abel gives his money to make Pip a gentleman.
Does Pip fulfill the great expectations that were bestowed upon him? I believe so. His world as a middle-aged man, albeit still devoid of Estella's love, is a happier one than what he possessed as a child.
August 20, 2011
::::::::::::::Review for 'A Tale of Two Cities'::::::::::::::::
This book was fantastic!! It's on my new top ten list. It's so intricate! Dickens weaves together the characters, places, and events flawlessly, like a beautiful tapestry. Or better yet, knitted together. ;-)
I can't recommend this book highly enough. The plot is absolutely wonderful. Nothing is lacking from this book.
:::::::::::::Review for 'Great Expectations' :::::::::::::::::
This book was good, but nowhere near as good as "A Tale of Two Cities." Like I said I liked it, but didn't love it. It went a little slowly at parts. The whole book kind of had the feel of (as I call it) a 'boy movie.' What I mean by that is a movie where the lighting is low and creepy the entire time. Also I really didn't like the end of the book. I was holding out for a happy ending, and well, it wasn't as happy as I wanted it to be. My copy also included the ending as originally conceived by Dickens, but I didn't like that ending either.
Over all it's a fine book. There's enough reason to read it simply in the fact that it's famous literature. Who knows, you might really like it. :-)
This book was fantastic!! It's on my new top ten list. It's so intricate! Dickens weaves together the characters, places, and events flawlessly, like a beautiful tapestry. Or better yet, knitted together. ;-)
I can't recommend this book highly enough. The plot is absolutely wonderful. Nothing is lacking from this book.
:::::::::::::Review for 'Great Expectations' :::::::::::::::::
This book was good, but nowhere near as good as "A Tale of Two Cities." Like I said I liked it, but didn't love it. It went a little slowly at parts. The whole book kind of had the feel of (as I call it) a 'boy movie.' What I mean by that is a movie where the lighting is low and creepy the entire time. Also I really didn't like the end of the book. I was holding out for a happy ending, and well, it wasn't as happy as I wanted it to be. My copy also included the ending as originally conceived by Dickens, but I didn't like that ending either.
Over all it's a fine book. There's enough reason to read it simply in the fact that it's famous literature. Who knows, you might really like it. :-)
February 11, 2011
I first read Dickens in high school and when Oprah named it her book club pick, I thought I'd try it again.
A favorite passage in Great Expectations, Pip to Estalla:
"Out of my thoughts! You are part of my existence, part of myself. You have been in every line I have ever read, since I first came here, the rough common boy whose poor heart you wounded even then. You have been in every prospect I have ever seen since--on the road, on the sails of ships, on the marshes, in the clouds, in the light, in the darkness, in the wind, in the woods, in the sea, in the streets. You have been the embodiment of every graceful fancy that my mind has ever become acquainted with. The stones of which the strongest London buildings are made, are not more real, or more impossible to be displaced by your hands, than your presence and influence have been to me, there and everywhere, and will be. Estella, to the last hour of my life, you cannot choose but remain part of my character, part of the little good in me, part of the evil." 720-721
A favorite passage in Great Expectations, Pip to Estalla:
"Out of my thoughts! You are part of my existence, part of myself. You have been in every line I have ever read, since I first came here, the rough common boy whose poor heart you wounded even then. You have been in every prospect I have ever seen since--on the road, on the sails of ships, on the marshes, in the clouds, in the light, in the darkness, in the wind, in the woods, in the sea, in the streets. You have been the embodiment of every graceful fancy that my mind has ever become acquainted with. The stones of which the strongest London buildings are made, are not more real, or more impossible to be displaced by your hands, than your presence and influence have been to me, there and everywhere, and will be. Estella, to the last hour of my life, you cannot choose but remain part of my character, part of the little good in me, part of the evil." 720-721
May 22, 2011
Great Expectations:
I liked this book MUCH more than the other although it wasn't until the last 100 pages that I really didn't want to put it down and needed to know how the story concluded.
A Tale of Two Cities:
Reading other people's reviews, I feel the same way - that it took me almost halfway through the book to understand who everyone was and what was going on (maybe I should have read a synopsis of the book first). I found the language difficult and the rhythm offbeat. Maybe if I'd read this with a group and we discussed it along the way it would have been more enjoyable. The last hundred pages or so I did start to get into it and had a picture of the time painted more vividly in my mind. To think about what facing the guillotine was really like.... and how brutal and blood-thirsty people were was frightening. It did illuminate a time that I would like to know more about.
I liked this book MUCH more than the other although it wasn't until the last 100 pages that I really didn't want to put it down and needed to know how the story concluded.
A Tale of Two Cities:
Reading other people's reviews, I feel the same way - that it took me almost halfway through the book to understand who everyone was and what was going on (maybe I should have read a synopsis of the book first). I found the language difficult and the rhythm offbeat. Maybe if I'd read this with a group and we discussed it along the way it would have been more enjoyable. The last hundred pages or so I did start to get into it and had a picture of the time painted more vividly in my mind. To think about what facing the guillotine was really like.... and how brutal and blood-thirsty people were was frightening. It did illuminate a time that I would like to know more about.
November 20, 2011
For some reason, I was never required to read A Tale of Two Cities in high school, and 35 years later, I picked it up. It was educational - although it is a novel, I learned a lot about the French revolution - and eventually captivating. It did, however, take awhile to get to the point of "I can't put this down."
It has been awhile since I've read Dickens; perhaps the last time was Great Expectations a few years ago. (That one, I read in high school, again in college, and probably twice more since.) Dickens' language is a bit hard to follow at times, simply because it was the prevailing way to communicate in the mid-eighteenth century, and more than once during this book, I found it a helpful way to fall asleep at night.
The book's conclusion, however, was riveting, unexpected, and poignant. Well conceived, even though it requires some concentration to get through it.
It has been awhile since I've read Dickens; perhaps the last time was Great Expectations a few years ago. (That one, I read in high school, again in college, and probably twice more since.) Dickens' language is a bit hard to follow at times, simply because it was the prevailing way to communicate in the mid-eighteenth century, and more than once during this book, I found it a helpful way to fall asleep at night.
The book's conclusion, however, was riveting, unexpected, and poignant. Well conceived, even though it requires some concentration to get through it.
October 10, 2014
It never crossed my mind that I gonna hate this book ever or even Dickens himself.For me Great Expectations in particular had memories for me ,since I studied it before at a boring place we called it school nowadays.What I had read now was just one of the most boring & shallowest thing I've ever read in my entire life.
The thing is Dickens doesn't have it when it comes to writing about details,narrating or even describing the characters.The only thing he has got is the plot, the idea rather than that nothing!
Dickens..sir I have been living in a lie for more than 10 years that you were one of my favorite authors but it turned out to be a lie, a lie that have left a big ache in my heart!
The thing is Dickens doesn't have it when it comes to writing about details,narrating or even describing the characters.The only thing he has got is the plot, the idea rather than that nothing!
Dickens..sir I have been living in a lie for more than 10 years that you were one of my favorite authors but it turned out to be a lie, a lie that have left a big ache in my heart!
December 23, 2010
In Barnes & Noble last night I noticed these two were packaged together and part of Oprah's Book Club....who woulda thought? I used to devour Dickens as an 11- 13 year old...when i read Dickens, Thackeray, Austen, Bronte, and Hardy. I would choose one of the Classics series at the library that had the list of all in the series on the back, take it to my Dad, who would suggest one to read next. Little did I realize he had me read almost every great 19th century British novel until years later when I was an English major!
What I wonder -- can digital readers make it through these tomes that describe the itty-bitty details of life? Could I do it now? Not sure. I may try.
What I wonder -- can digital readers make it through these tomes that describe the itty-bitty details of life? Could I do it now? Not sure. I may try.
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