Charles Dickens (1812-1870) is one of the most acclaimed and popular writers of all time. His many works include the classics The Old Curiosity Shop, Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickleby, Barnaby Rudge, A Christmas Carol, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, Bleak House, Hard Times, Our Mutual Friend, The Pickwick Papers and many more. Fred Kaplan is Distinguished Professor of English at both Queens College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York. A biographer and literary scholar, he is the author of the critically acclaimed Charles Dickens, A Biography. His Thomas Carlyle, A Biography was nominated for the 1983 National Book Critics' Circle Award and for the Pulizer Prize. His Sacred Tears: Sentimentality in Victorian Fiction, Dickens and Mesmerism: The Hidden Springs of Fiction, and Miracles of Rare Device: The Poet's Sense of Self in Nineteenth-Century Poetry are all significant contributions to the study of Romantic and Victorian British literature and culture. His biography Henry James, The Imagination of Genius was recently published.
Gr 6 Up-This adaptation is well done. The pictures and panels match the tone of the story of one orphan boy's struggle to survive, and the text maintains enough of the classic for readers to understand Oliver's plight. Readers will especially like the character portraits on the inside and back covers. The art clearly defines the difference between good and evil in the story. This version opens the readership to a younger or reluctant reader audience as Dickens is long and challenging for many students.-Jessica Lorentz Smith, BendSenior High School, OR (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
The inimitable Martin Jarvis brings his talents to bear on Charles Dickens's classic in an audiobook that will delight listeners with its superb recreations of gritty 19th-century London. To escape Mr. Bumble and life in the workhouse, Oliver flees to London where he meets the Artful Dodger and becomes embroiled with Fagin's ragtag band of thieves. Jarvis simply dazzles: his performance captures both the humor and sorrow of the text, his narration is crisp, and his characterizations-his rendition of the terrifying district magistrate, Mr. Fang, is particularly memorable-are as varied as they are energetic, befitting, and enjoyable. (June) Copyright 2010 Reed Business Information.
This latest adaptation of Oliver Twist by two established French comic creators is a compilation edition of five previously published graphic novels that chronicles the orphan boy's trials through the streets of London and his eventual discovery of his parentage. Dauvillier's text choices are easy to read and flow well, and while the adaptors retained Dickens's original chapter summaries for the table of contents, the back matter, unfortunately, offers only a single-page biography and short time line of Dickens's life. Compared with other graphic novel adaptations, this version is more fully developed; it provides readers both familiar and unfamiliar with the story a clearer integration of the many narrative threads. Oliver Deloye's illustrations are done in an exaggerated, caricature style and are an interesting juxtaposition with the serious plot and realism from the original serialized novel. Verdict While there is some violence, such as Nancy's murder at Bill Sykes's hands, teenage readers and up wanting a Twist adaptation would find this edition an involving read that doesn't oversimplify the plot and retains some of Dickens's passion for the plight of the poor.-Joanna Schmidt, Forth Worth, TX (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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