The Old Curiosity Shop

Charles Dickens

Jan 1841 · Chapman and Hall

About this ebook

In this tale, first published serially in 1841 and 1842, Dickens follows Nell Trent, an angelic and unfailingly virtuous girl of "nearly fourteen" and her grandfather as they navigate a world populated by villains, criminals and ne'er-do-wells. The public response at the time equalled modern reactions to the Harry Potter books, the audience rapt to learn of Nell's fate. Does she live a life of comfort, of which her grandfather dreams? Or does fate have something less noble in store for poor Nell?

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Ratings and reviews

Do not read the comments below as some people just blurt the ending out and tell all the main parts... ruins it for us new readers... delightfully stupid they must be... good resding to you all

'The old curiosity shop' is, perhaps, the culmination of all the themes and ideas that Dickens had been working on throughout his first three novels. Though it may lack some of their spontaneity, there is no doubt that this was his most refined work to date, and a great one to boot.

England in the mid 1800s: a woven broadcloth of characters up to all sorts of pursuits, and each with a flaw or two of various types and degrees. Well written and well woven storylines which end with varying levels of happiness or despair for each character.