Books with title Dombey and Son: Complete With 40 Original Illustrations

Oliver Twist, subtitled The Parish Boy's Progress, is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens, published by Richard Bentley in 1838. The story is about an orphan, Oliver Twist, who endures a miserable existence in a workhouse and then is placed with an undertaker. He escapes and travels to London where he meets the Artful Dodger, leader of a gang of juvenile pickpockets. Naïvely unaware of their unlawful activities, Oliver is led to the lair of their elderly criminal trainer Fagin. Oliver Twist is notable for Dickens's unromantic portrayal of criminals and their sordid lives. The book exposed the cruel treatment of the many orphans in London during the Dickensian era. The book's subtitle, The Parish Boy's Progress, alludes to Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress and also to a pair of popular 18th-century caricature series by William Hogarth, A Rake's Progress and A Harlot's Progress. An early example of the social novel, the book calls the public's attention to various contemporary evils, including child labour, the recruitment of children as criminals, and the presence of street children. Dickens mocks the hypocrisies of his time by surrounding the novel's serious themes with sarcasm and dark humour. The novel may have been inspired by the story of Robert Blincoe, an orphan whose account of hardships as a child labourer in a cotton mill was widely read in the 1830s. It is likely that Dickens's own early youth as a child labourer contributed to the story's development.

By the time the novel appeared to tremendous popular and critical acclaim in 1871-2, George Eliot was recognized as England's finest living novelist. It was her ambition to create a world and portray a whole community--tradespeople, middle classes, country gentry--in the rising provincial town of Middlemarch, circa 1830. Vast and crowded, rich in narrative irony and suspense, «Middlemarch» is richer still in character, in its sense of how individual destinies are shaped by and shape the community, and in the great art that enlarges the reader's sympathy and imagination. It is truly, as Virginia Woolf famously remarked, 'one of the few English novels written for grown-up people'."One of the few English novels written for grown-up people." —Virginia Woolf"What do I think of ‘Middlemarch’? What do I think of glory — except that in a few instances this 'mortal has already put on immortality.' George Eliot was one. The mysteries of human nature surpass the 'mysteries of redemption,' for the infinite we only suppose, while we see the finite." —Emily Dickinson"‘Middlemarch’ is probably the greatest English novel." —Julian Barnes"They've [women] produced the greatest writer in the English language ever, George Eliot, and arguably the third greatest, Jane Austen, and certainly the greatest novel, ‘Middlemarch’..." —Martin Amis

One of George Eliot's most ambitious and imaginative novels, Romola is set in Renaissance Florence during the turbulent years following the expulsion of the powerful Medici family during which the zealous religious reformer Savonarola rose to control the city. At its heart is Romola, the devoted daughter of a blind scholar, married to the clever but ultimately treacherous Tito whose duplicity in both love and politics threatens to destroy everything she values, and she must break away to find her own path in life. Described by Eliot as 'written with my best blood', the story of Romola's intellectual and spiritual awakening is a compelling portrayal of a Utopian heroine, played out against a turbulent historical backdrop.

Oliver Twist, subtitled The Parish Boy's Progress, is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens, published by Richard Bentley in 1838. The story is about an orphan, Oliver Twist, who endures a miserable existence in a workhouse and then is placed with an undertaker. He escapes and travels to London where he meets the Artful Dodger, leader of a gang of juvenile pickpockets. Naïvely unaware of their unlawful activities, Oliver is led to the lair of their elderly criminal trainer Fagin. Oliver Twist is notable for Dickens's unromantic portrayal of criminals and their sordid lives. The book exposed the cruel treatment of the many orphans in London during the Dickensian era. The book's subtitle, The Parish Boy's Progress, alludes to Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress and also to a pair of popular 18th-century caricature series by William Hogarth, A Rake's Progress and A Harlot's Progress. An early example of the social novel, the book calls the public's attention to various contemporary evils, including child labour, the recruitment of children as criminals, and the presence of street children. Dickens mocks the hypocrisies of his time by surrounding the novel's serious themes with sarcasm and dark humour. The novel may have been inspired by the story of Robert Blincoe, an orphan whose account of hardships as a child labourer in a cotton mill was widely read in the 1830s. It is likely that Dickens's own early youth as a child labourer contributed to the story's development.

Dombey sat in the corner of the darkened room in the great arm-chair by the bedside, and Son lay tucked up warm in a little basket bedstead, carefully disposed on a low settee immediately in front of the fire and close to it, as if his constitution were analogous to that of a muffin, and it was essential to toast him brown while he was very new.Dombey was about eight-and-forty years of age. Son about eight-and-forty minutes. Dombey was rather bald, rather red, and though a handsome well-made man, too stern and pompous in appearance, to be prepossessing. Son was very bald, and very red, and though (of course) an undeniably fine infant, somewhat crushed and spotty in his general effect, as yet. On the brow of Dombey, Time and his brother Care had set some marks, as on a tree that was to come down in good time—remorseless twins they are for striding through their human forests, notching as they go—while the countenance of Son was crossed with a thousand little creases, which the same deceitful Time would take delight in smoothing out and wearing away with the flat part of his scythe, as a preparation of the surface for his deeper operations.This edition includes:- A complete biography of Charles Dickens- A index with direct links chapters

A real storyteller can make a great story out of anything, even the most trivial occurrence. Composed between 1863 and 1875, the sixty-three often outrageous sketches in Sketches, New and Old contain, for instance, a piece about the difficulty of getting a pocket watch repaired properly; complaints about barbers and office bores; and satirical comments on bureaucrats, courts of law, the profession of journalism, the claims of science, and the workings of government. In Mark Twain's hands, all these potentially dry and dull topics bristle with vitality and interest. "What fascinates Twain," Lee Smith writes in her introduction, is how people "react to the things that happen to them." Twain "lets them speak in their own voices by and large, in a chorus ranging from high-flown oratory to the plain speech of working people.... It seems generally true that the more elevated the speech, the likelier that person is to be an idiot; words of wisdom and common sense are invariably voiced by the common man"--or woman. "The most profound and moving sketch in this whole collection" Smith writes, is one "told by a freed slave." The candid, ironic, playful, and petulant sketches in this volume are indispensable to our understanding of a harried genius during thirteen quite amazing years.

Eve's Diary is a comic short story by Mark Twain. It was first published in the 1905 Christmas issue of the magazine Harper's Bazaar, and in book format in June 1906 by Harper and Brothers publishing house. It is written in the style of a diary kept by the first woman in the Judeao-Christian creation story, Eve, and is claimed to be "translated from the original MS." The "plot" of this novel is the first-person account of Eve from her creation up to her burial by, her mate, Adam, including meeting and getting to know Adam, and exploring the world around her, Eden. The story then jumps 40 years into the future after the Fall and expulsion from Eden. It is one of a series of books Twain wrote concerning the story of Adam and Eve, including 'Extracts from Adam's Diary,' 'That Day In Eden,' 'Eve Speaks,' 'Adam's Soliloquy,' and the 'Autobiography of Eve.' Eve's Diary has a lighter tone than the others in the series, as Eve has a strong appreciation for beauty and love. The book may have been written as a posthumous love-letter to Mark Twain's wife Olivia Langdon Clemens, or Livy, who died in June 1904, just before the story was written. Mark Twain is quoted as saying, "Eve's Diary is finished — I've been waiting for her to speak, but she doesn't say anything more." The story ends with Adam's speaking at Eve's grave, "Wherever she was, there was Eden."

"Within this book are timeless stories from Ancient Greece such as Icarus, the young man whose infamous flight became a cautionary tale on folly and the heeding of advice, and Orpheus, the fabled musician whose wife Euridice encounters great peril. Adventure stories, such as The Caledonian Hunt, bring stunning displays of action while the exploits of ancient and Godly heroes such as Perseus and his winged horse relay the elemental power with which the ancient Gods were attributed.Later in the text we find several representative examples of Nordic myth - the valiant story of Roland the Paladin and Freya, the formidable Queen of the Northern Gods are told. The epic story of Beowulf is rendered here in prose form, and all allude to the furious capacities of the Nordic Gods.Compiled and authored by Greek historian and scholar Jeanie Lang, the accounts within this text combine superb research with strong readability, with the freshness and originality of each story easy to behold and enjoy whether you be a student of the classics or a general enthusiast for enduring ancient mythology."

"Originally published in monthly installments between 1855 and 1857, the novel focuses on the various forms of imprisonment, both physical and psychological, while also concentrating on dysfunctional family ties. Accordingly, Dickens avidly criticizes the social deficiencies of the time including injustice, social hypocrisy, the austerity of the Marshalsea debtors’ prison, and bureaucratic inefficiency.The novel kicks off with the introduction of William Dorrit, the oldest prisoner in the Marshalsea prison, who is also referred to as The Father of the Marshalsea. His imprisonment is owed to poor business decisions, which have secured him a place in the debtors’ prison in London. Here he shares accommodation with his wife and children Fanny and Tip, and later the Dorrits welcome their second daughter Amy, who is born inside the prison and is incidentally the Dorrit of the title. The eponymous Little Dorrit grows to become a meek and benevolent young woman who despite her poor financial state, unselfishly takes care of her whole family without the slightest complaint. At the same time the novel welcomes Arthur Clennam, a somewhat idle man in his forties, who has just returned to London following his father’s death after years abroad on family business. Returning to see his mother, a cold and bitter woman, Arthur intends to discuss some details concerning their family business. Troubled by his family’s past, Arthur is determined to uncover the truth behind their fortune. Later, he becomes acquainted with Amy Dorrit, and a special friendship develops between the two, as Arthur sees it as his duty to take the young woman under his protection and unravel the mysterious past surrounding both their families. Consequently, the novel observes the mysterious intertwinement between the two families, as their carefully kept secrets slowly come to light.Nevertheless, Little Dorrit offers a colorful set of characters, a gripping central plot, and several subplots which essentially bring about the notion of redemption. Moreover, it serves as a vivid example to support the idea that anyone is able to reverse their fortune and bring down the invisible walls that seem to confine one to their self-condemned imprisonment. A classic tale depicting Victorian England with its bleak shortcomings and enduring hope, Little Dorrit enthralls with its convoluted relationships, twists and a plethora of characters and subplots, which essentially makes the lengthy novel a pleasure to devour."

"Within this book are timeless stories from Ancient Greece such as Icarus, the young man whose infamous flight became a cautionary tale on folly and the heeding of advice, and Orpheus, the fabled musician whose wife Euridice encounters great peril. Adventure stories, such as The Caledonian Hunt, bring stunning displays of action while the exploits of ancient and Godly heroes such as Perseus and his winged horse relay the elemental power with which the ancient Gods were attributed.Later in the text we find several representative examples of Nordic myth - the valiant story of Roland the Paladin and Freya, the formidable Queen of the Northern Gods are told. The epic story of Beowulf is rendered here in prose form, and all allude to the furious capacities of the Nordic Gods.Compiled and authored by Greek historian and scholar Jeanie Lang, the accounts within this text combine superb research with strong readability, with the freshness and originality of each story easy to behold and enjoy whether you be a student of the classics or a general enthusiast for enduring ancient mythology."

Jane Austen’s first novel, Northanger Abbey—published posthumously in 1818—tells the story of Catherine Morland and her dangerously sweet nature, innocence, and sometime self-delusion. Though Austen’s fallible heroine is repeatedly drawn into scrapes while vacationing at Bath and during her subsequent visit to Northanger Abbey, Catherine eventually triumphs, blossoming into a discerning woman who learns truths about love, life, and the heady power of literature. The satirical Northanger Abbey pokes fun at the gothic novel while earnestly emphasizing caution to the female sex.