Charles Dickens Author: Jane Smiley
	Book Information Publisher: Viking Book Type: Paperback Members Wishing: 1 Rating: ? ISBN-13: 58576 - ISBN-10: Pages: 212

Smiley, whose novels include the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Thousand Acres, presents her new book as an attempt to see Dickens as his contemporaries would have, through his literary works. She does not completely limit herself to the works, also alluding to materials published from biographies. This entertaining and well-written volume follows his publications from 1833 to 1870 and provides a fair and balanced depiction of Dickens as the first modern celebrity. As a novelist, Smiley brings an interesting perspective to her analysis of how Dickens would have used his novel writing to explore his own personal issues. The result is not a biography or a work of literary criticism but rather a general reading of his novels and the events of his life. Recommended for general public and academic collections. Paolina Taglienti, Long Island Univ. Lib., Brooklyn, NY
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