Children's Stories from Dickens (Illustrated Stories for Children) (Hardcover)

~ Charles Dickens (Author), (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Charles Dickens, who was born in 1812, is considered one of the greatest of English novelists. Certainly he is the most popular. Not only did he have an important place in nineteenth-century literature, but he was also an outspoken and influential critic of society. He wrote fifteen novels as well as a number of stories and Christmas books. In lots of these children were important characters.
In his day, no one understood children better than Dickens, and he was the first writer to describe what children thought and felt and to capture the way they spoke. And he was not afraid to write about the hard and sad lives that many children led.
In the stories in this book, which have been retold by Charles Dickens's granddaughter, Mary Angela Dickens, you will meet some of the children who appear in the works of Charles Dickens.
There is Oliver Twist, who had many misadventures after he escaped from the terrible workhouse where he was born, and David Copperfield, the hero of Dickens's most popular novel, much of which records his own experiences. Little Paul Dombey is the young son of Dombey and Son, and Amy is the heroine of Little Dorrit.
On these pages, you'll also make the acquaintance of Tiny Tim, from A Christmas Carol, the fat boy from The Pickwick Papers, Jenny Wren from Our Mutual Friend, and the blind little toymaker from The Cricket on the Hearth, and Little Nell and the marchioness from The Old Curiosity Shop.
Howard Copping's wonderful paintings and drawings bring Dickens's fascinating characters, both young and old, to life.

From the Inside Flap

Charles Dickens, who was born in 1812, is considered one of the greatest of English novelists. Certainly he is the most popular. Not only did he have an important place in nineteenth-century literature, but he was also an outspoken and influential critic of society. He wrote fifteen novels as well as a number of stories and Christmas books. In lots of these children were important characters.
In his day, no one understood children better than Dickens, and he was the first writer to describe what children thought and felt and to capture the way they spoke. And he was not afraid to write about the hard and sad lives that many children led.
In the stories in this book, which have been retold by Charles Dickens's granddaughter, Mary Angela Dickens, you will meet some of the children who appear in the works of Charles Dickens.
There is Oliver Twist, who had many misadventures after he escaped from the terrible workhouse where he was born, and David Copperfield, the hero of Dickens's most popular novel, much of which records his own experiences. Little Paul Dombey is the young son of Dombey and Son, and Amy is the heroine of Little Dorrit.
On these pages, you'll also make the acquaintance of Tiny Tim, from A Christmas Carol, the fat boy from The Pickwick Papers, Jenny Wren from Our Mutual Friend, and the blind little toymaker from The Cricket on the Hearth, and Little Nell and the marchioness from The Old Curiosity Shop.
Howard Copping's wonderful paintings and drawings bring Dickens's fascinating characters, both young and old, to life.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Gramercy (July 13, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517203014
• ISBN-13: 978-0517203019
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,408,566 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book to introduce children to the prose of Dickens, September 23, 1999

By	Koonu (Bethesda, MD USA) - See all my reviews

Recently I had to spend a couple of months camping with my 8 year old daughter away from home and mom. We enjoyed reading and even rereading some of the stories from this book containing Ten children from ten different Dickens tales -- including Tiny Tim, David Copperfield, and Oliver Twist. They are featured in a generously illustrated colorful compendium. While the depictions of the children's lives are true to the originals, abridgement may infact encourage the young reader to read the original when they grow up. My daughter could empathise with homeless,motherless Dickensian kids, however she could not understand what is the big deal about Oliver asking for more if he is still hungry ! This tells us how far we have come in terms of feeding our kids well (if not good homes and both parents) since Dickens, at least in the developed countries. In one sentence this book was a nice trailer to the poignant prose of Dickens to be read aloud as well as read by curious children themselves.