Charles Dickens: A Life

With the delectable wit, unforgettable characters, and challenging themes that won her a Pulitzer Prize and national bestseller status, Jane Smiley naturally finds a kindred spirit in the author of classics such as Great Expectations and A Christmas Carol. As "his novels shaped his life as much as his life shaped his novels," Smiley's Charles Dickens is at once a sensitive profile of the great master and a fascinating meditation on the writing life.

This biographical deep dive offers brilliant interpretations of almost all the major works, an exploration of Dickens's narrative techniques and his innovative voice and themes, and a reflection on how his richly varied lower-class cameos sprang from an experience and passion more personal than his public knew. Smiley's own "demon narrative intelligence" (The Boston Globe) touches, too, on controversial details that include Dickens's obsession with money and squabbles with publishers, his unhappy marriage, and the rumors of an affair.

Charles Dickens is a fresh look at the dazzling personality of a verbal magician and the fascinating times behind the classics we read in school and continue to enjoy today.

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Adult Hc/Tr
Published: 11/29/2011
ISBN: 9780143119920
Pages: 224
Weight: 0.40lbs
Size: 7.10h x 5.00w x 0.70d

Review Citations: New York Times Book Review 12/18/2011 pg. 32

Accelerated Reader Quiz #/Name: 75909 / Charles Dickens
Reading Level: 10.4 / Interest Level: Upper Grade / Point Value: 12