anyone read dickens??

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   acreachposted 13 years ago

   hey all, I'm just curious if there is anyone who shares my love of charles dickens writing and if they would care to share some of their favourite stories or characters.

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      Aley Martinposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Dombey and Son is my favorite! I love Edith Dombey and that Dickens had a strong woman character as his protagonist.

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   vivamaxineposted 13 years ago

   Well, yes I do,  I am surprised no-one has replied.  Bleak House is a real Favourite of mine.  I love the complicated plot, the fog, the fear, the madness, the dropping in of strange oddities like self-combustion, apparently the first written account in fiction.  I love Nemo and Lady Dedlock.  There is just so much in there, infidelity, drug addiction, madness, smallpox, greed the court of chancery and again the fog.  I find his books quite frightening, frightening because true.  I see him as a a writer of some very dark things, for instance, in the 'Old Curiosity Shop' he has no problems with pursuing the themes of child abuse, domestic violence, addiction to gambling and well, Death.  I find he has made me think about death in a very different way. 
   
   Frequently it comes as a long awaited friend, as for Nemo and Lady Dedlock, sometimes it is the only possible outlook for the Good as it is for Paul in Dombey and Son, and for the used and abused Little Nell in 'The Old Curiosity Shop'.  I can really see how death can be such a welcome caller, when there simply is no possibility of company, health, respect, money or love.
   
   Some other books I have enjoyed lately Particia Conwell, Portrait of Killer, which I thought was a very convincing exploration of the artist Sickert as being the real Jack the Ripper.  I simply cannot read enough of Edgar Allen Poe, which is a shame since there is no more to be read, Lovecraft for his convincing description of that which is Alien.  Similarly Silverberg for the Alien Years, and recently Clive Barker for his entrertaining and underivative, Coldheart Canyon.

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      acreachposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks for a very thoughtful reply, vivamaxine! Bleak House is definitely one of my favourites as well. Dickens has so many colourful characters and all of them memorable in some way regardless of how often they appear. Lady Dedlock is definitely a desperate but strong and courageous character. Joe the crossing sweeper...oh and Mr. Guppy is probably one of my favourites. But its amazing how he can take so many characters and connect them all so intricately.
      I fairly recently finished David Copperfield which was quite good as well. As with anything by Dickens, the descriptions of people are just too awesome and creative to pass over. I'm in the process of trying to complete my dickens collection but hopefully I'll have more time for that now that school is over.

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   knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

   Have read most of Dickens. But it was so long ago, maybe when I in and around 22. As I remember pretty bleak, kind of like reading 'Dead Souls' by Gogol.

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   thirdmilleniumposted 13 years ago

   I think Fagin and the Artful Dodger are my favorite Dickens characters. It may have something to do with Ron Moody and jack Wild in the movie Oliver!. I was very young when the movie came out and was very impressed.

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   ljv21posted 13 years ago

   I had a thing for Dickens way back when....he probably got me to start to love fiction and eventually got me to start writing.

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   habeeposted 13 years ago

   I love Dickens! I've read most of his novels, but I must admit that A Christmas Carol will probably always be my favorite. Nicholas Nickleby is probably my second choice.
   
   I like Dickens' imagery and his dry sense of humor. Of course, most of his characters are unforgettable, too. Most casual readers don't understand how much Dickens' writing did to change laws and opinions about social reform and justice.

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