Charles Dickens

Mary Sebag-Montefiore

Barry Ablett

Thanks to its colorful cast of characters and gritty portrayal of street life in Victorian London, Dickens' "Oliver Twist" has captured readers' hearts for more than 150 years. Today's children will love it too. Oliver, a poor orphan, escapes the miserable workhouse where he was born only to fall into the clutches of a band of pickpockets led by the odious Fagin. Yet no amount of cruelty can destroy his purity...and through his goodness, he finds salvation.

Oliver Twist

Elke Maasbommel

‘Juries is ineddicated, vulgar, grovelling wretches.'

Hana 

Oliver Twist is one of Dickens's most popular novels, with many famous film, television and musical adaptations. It is a classic story of good against evil, packed with humour and pathos, drama and suspense, in which the orphaned Oliver is brought up in a harsh workhouse, and then taken in and exploited by the criminal Fagin, before being eventually rescued and taken in by a loving family. Illustrated by Gerge Cruikshank, with an afterword by Sam Gilpin. Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautifully bound gift editions of much loved classic titles. Bound in real cloth, printed on high quality paper, and featuring ribbon markers and gilt edges, Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

Rafaela Sousa

Oliver Twist (Penguin Popular Classics)

Laura Mauler

Somewhere closer to 3.5 than 4 stars.

It chugged along rather nicely at first, although I didn't like to picture the beatings and starvation too clearly. Certain characters, such as Mr. Bumble in his pomposity, were much more interesting to imagine than pathetic Oliver taking punches. However, once we came to Chapter 15 I almost tossed the book aside because I was so sad and frustrated with what happened. Almost, but I didn't.

(view spoiler)[I stuck with it through the hard bits, ones that justified the creation of a new adjective to describe the squalor and misery in Mr. Dicken's books, and came out into the sunshine of the happy ending that I knew would be waiting for me, complete with all loose ends tied up and all the villains getting their just rewards. The only real surprise was the murder of Nancy, which I didn't think for a second was going to happen. It wasn't until the final sentence of the chapter, where Bill takes a heavy club and strikes her down, and is named a murderer, that I believed it. Up through the very sentence before that I thought there was going to be a way out for her, or that he would go to the edge of death but not over. Frankly, I didn't think Dickens had it in him to kill off a woman like that. It sounds perverse that this violent death made the book, but it's true. Without Nancy's murder it's a collection of predictable cliches molded around a mildly entertaining plot; with her murder we are reminded that shock and surprise exist, even in a Dickens book. (hide spoiler)]

Macy Johnson

This book is a classic which was the main reason I read it. It's ok like the story is good but a bit boring. It ended on a cliff hanger I don't think I'm gonna read the other volumes

Jordan Bowman

This is a good book, but you can tell it's one of Dickens' first novels. The distinctive elements he usually employs are more weak or plainly missing. On the whole I liked it, but not as much as a couple other Dickens works.

Oliver Twist
            
                Naxos Complete Classics

This was the Sam Mendes version and it was incredible, Daniel Kaluuya as Bill Sykes was terrifying and perfect. I can’t recommend this enough for the holiday season!

Hannah Tierney

Todd Luallen

Classics always provide a bit of a challenge. The language is typically more foreign and therefore difficult to grasp (especially when listening to the audio book). And the fact that so many have read the book before hand and loved it, raises the bar to an almost impossible level to overcome. And yet, I still find myself reading a classic here and there, partly because I want to level up my book snobbery, and partly because I feel like the last person to see Star Wars. Such was the situation upon reading Ollie T - (his rapper name). I thoroughly enjoyed it. A great story with phenomenal characters. I'm sure I'm revisiting this topic, but Dickens creates characters that jump off the page (it doesn't hurt that Simon Vance is narrating either). Well done Chuck!

Ayden

I listened by audiobook to some chapters 

I was surprised by the length and energy that it took to read this book I assumed it was a children’s book and that I’d finish it within 2 day and beyond that this isn’t just a sad story about an orphan with a happy ending like Annie there is some hard core abuse in here and concepts that seem beyond a child’s comprehension (the hole situation with sikes and Nancy)
The only childish thing about this book is how each character is either completely bad or completely good there’s no in between and there’s no combination which I think is one of the reasons Oliver is so lovable he’s completely 100% pure and all those against him are completely and utterly evil

Ashlyn

This book is unabashedly antisemitic and, for Dickens, quite dull. Skip Oliver Twist and head straight for Great Expectations and/or David Copperfield.

Callie Anna

Very well-written. There are a lot of characters, but if you keep reading, they'll straighten out. The book is extrememly sad and depressing if looked at just as a story. If you look for what Dicken's was trying to say, you will see how funny and sarcastic it is! I won't be reading it again soon, but I bet I will in the future!

Oliver Twist, or, the Parish Boy's Progress

Trever

This is one of those books I wish I'd read in hardcover instead of mass-market paperback. The tiny font and thin pages made it really boring to read the words, so I glazed over lots of paragraphs.

Yulande Lindsay

It's been over twenty years since I read Oliver Twist and then under duress as part of a high school literature syllabus. I remember being singularly unimpressed. With the years have come several other explorations of Dickens and thus an appreciation of his works. This time I have a much more favourable impression of Oliver Twist. While still quite skeptical of the many coincidences employed to move the plot along and result in a satisfactory denouement of his story, I am struck by two distinct scenes: the murder of Nancy and the mental disintegration of the villain Fagin. These scenes are written in such a way that you seem not to only be reading the words but actually visualizing the scene as if watching it. Masterful. 

I recommend this to anyone as an introduction to the works of Charles Dickens.

mayra

im rating my experience reading this and not the book itself because it’s my goodreads and i can do whatever i want with my ratings 😡😡😡

Arden Kowalski

Perhaps one of the worst experiences you can have while reading is being disappointed by one of your favourite authors. My admiration of Dickens coupled with this truly fantastic episode of Doctor Who (shan't apologize, it was The Unquiet Dead) led me to pick up Oliver Twist on a whim a few days ago. Unfortunately, this novel didn't live up to the expectations I had given Dickens' other work. I know everyone thought they were free of Great Expectations jokes when I finished that novel, but if you'd heard my vocal delivery, you'd be saying 'please, ma'am, can I have some more?' until the cows came home. 

My most pressing issue with Oliver Twist is the antisemitism that runs throughout the entire book. While this is not a nonissue in other works Dickens wrote, here it serves to deprive any character of the Jewish faith of emotional complexity and morality. I found this language to be incredibly off-putting and upsetting, in addition to reducing one of the most major conflicts of the novel to a biased and bigoted mess. I honestly think that allowing Fagin to become a nuanced character would've significantly improved this novel. 

Other things that docked my rating: it's quite dull, honestly. It's slow-paced to the point where there are whole chapters of walking around. I love a good slow book, and anyone who's been around here for a bit knows I love the classics, but this is just dreary. Some of the most interesting moments (my favourite chapter is the interview between Nancy and Rose) have nothing to do with the titular character. It's an ineffective use of page space and plotting that is a detriment to Dickens' talent.

However, I have to give credit where credit is due. When Dickens stops meandering about and starts focusing on his characters, the writing is excellent. He was truly a master of prose and underscored so many interesting and poignant themes in the beginning and the end of the novel. The beginning of Oliver's life is pretty brilliant, and that iconic scene is made more wonderful in context. I loved Rose and Nancy as characters, and I thought the ending of the book was both appropriate and sweet. (You can't be a fan of Russian literature without loving a good coincidence.)

On the whole, it wasn't my favourite Dickens, but it wasn't terrible either. It's an average book, and I feel that Great Expectations takes a similar concept and elevates it far above what Oliver Twist accomplishes. I do think that there are compelling aspects of this; but the antisemitism, the dawdling, and the boredom I experienced from ineffectual use of page space mean that it cannot rise above three stars.

Nancy Holder

Oliver Twist, or, The parish boy's progress

Liv Rockwell

My first Dickens, and rather disappointing after Tolstoy's "War and Peace". 

I heard that Dickens is a good read for people fascinated by socio-economic matters. Thus, I'd made the assumption I would love Dickens. Another point in his favor is the fact that so many people talk about his great work. 

This book focuses on a boy born in unfortunate circumstances, which lead to a fairly miserable childhood until the end of the book when his situation is redeemed. While there are many fascinating themes worth discussing, Dickens' writing style always made me feel too aloof from the characters to feel any real pain/ or redemption when events occurred. By the end, I just sped through it to get this book completed. 

If you like Dickens' aloof writing style, or if you are a hardcore Classics fan, this is worth your time. I cannot honestly say it was worth mine.

The Penguin English Library Edition of Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens 'A parish child - the orphan of a workhouse - the humble, half-starved drudge - to be cuffed and buffeted through the world, despised by all, and pitied by none' Dark, mysterious and mordantly funny, Oliver Twist features some of the most memorably drawn villains in all of fiction - the treacherous gangmaster Fagin, the menacing thug Bill Sikes, the Artful Dodger and their den of thieves in the grimy London backstreets. Dicken's novel is both an angry indictment of poverty, and an adventure filled with an air of threat and pervasive evil. The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

Jade Flynn

I first read Oliver Twist in my early teenage years so I thought it was due for a reread because I couldn't remember anything. This would be closer to three and a half stars than four because I did enjoy Little Dorrit and Bleak House more. If you're interested in reading Dickens but you aren't a fan of plot-less 1000 page novels, this is the Dickens for you. Not too sure it should've been titled Oliver Twist though.

Jeremy Anderberg

Most people know the broad theme of the story, which is an orphan boy who ends up on the mean streets of London. And that's really the gist of it. Poor Oliver gets tossed around by the system, and finds his way into an unsavory crew of pickpockets and thieves. The book is the story of how he finds his way out, which is quite a roller coaster ride for readers.

It's indeed dark at times, but Dickens writes "I confess I have yet to learn that a lesson of the purest good may not be drawn from the vilest evil." Among the unsavory characters and sometimes depressing scenes, young Dickens (he was just 25 when he started this novel) also paints a picture of what deep human sympathy and a sense of warmth and security can do to one's soul. Yes, there's the evil Fagin and Sikes, but there's also the absolute rays of light that are Mr Brownlow and Rose Maylie. Dickens' deft ability to combine satire, wit, deep emotion, and engaging plot is unmatched in literature.

While the story is approaching 200 years old, I don't want to give too much away for those who haven't read it. Dickens can throw in a crazy plot twist with the best of 'em.

Ultimately, this is a novel about good and evil, about the innocence of children, about what society can do to a man who's down on his luck, and about love, redemption, and belonging.

Oliver Twist is, in a word, marvelous. An utter triumph. I've only read three of Dickens' works, but I can't wait to get into the next one. I can't get enough of the guy.

Laurie Abrial

I feel sad, like I'm saying goodbye to friends; what an adventure and what a writer! I definitively have to read more of Dickens' work.

Emma Tickner

Emily

2.5 stars, read for school, it was alright

Oliver Twist (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) (Barnes & Noble Classics)

Hope Brockway

Oliver Twist is one of my favorite classics of all time. 

I have no idea why I'm so obsessed with this little orphan who asks for more, but I am. I've watched all the movie and TV versions of this story I can get my hands on, and I still feel the pull to read this book again. I always laugh at the same jokes, cry at the same scenes, and gape at the pages of descriptions. (This is a classic after all.) 

I read this book for the first time in seventh grade. (Yeah, I'm a nerd like that.) I read the kid's version with a picture on every page and the ginormous font size, but I devoured it. I loved the story of this scrawny kid who, somehow, survived the many robberies, kidnappings, and jail sentences thrown his way. 

This is the book that gave me a love of classic literature, and I will never forget that. To this day, Oliver is one of my favorite characters and you can still hear me humming some of the songs from the musical around the house.

*emmie*

Jolie

Ana Jankovic

The book I am particularly attached to, emotionally and by memory. It is really a piece of work worth reading. Sad plot and fates of the characters, poverty and gloomy background throughout the novel seem to give it a special place in today's literature. It reminds us how life can be cruel, unjust, but also how it is possible to stay innocent and kind-hearted like Oliver, even after everything he's been through.
We have absolutely nothing to worry and complain about...

Sonia Flores

Oliver Twist. Qué decir de este niño. Qué decir de este libro.
Vamos a ver, encontré esa historia bastante desesperante. Con esto, Dickens nos mostró el otro lado de la moneda. No la parte bonita, elegante y soberbia de la época, no, sino los sufrimientos de quienes no poseen ciertos beneficios. Nos mostró la parte más baja de la sociedad, no solo por sus carentes privilegios, más bien nos dejó ver a aquellos quienes, teniendo algunos, pueden comportarse como verdadera escoria. Nos demuestra una vez más lo que ya muchos sabemos, que la humildad no se mide según lo que se posee en este mundo.
Nos cuenta la historia de un muchacho que es víctima de un montón de injusticias y sufre desde su nacimiento, aunque volviéndose cada vez más consciente de sus infortunios. Es inocencia mezclada con corrupción, y la maldad queriendo consumir la bondad de quienes han sabido diferenciarlas. Es muchas cosas, es todo, y creo que la razón por la que le doy esta calificación no es porque se trate de un clásico o se trate de Dickens, sino por lo que la obra representa. A falta de palabras, diré que es un libro que todos deben leer.

Oliver Twist

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