Charles Dickens: The Old Curiosity Shop

This was a gift intended for someone, and it wasn't quite what I wanted. I believe that is because I misread the information prior to ordering. I wil use it as a gift for another person who loves to read, but it wasn't right for my boss, for whom I originally meant to give it.

Exposes the reader to many of the social morals of the day in England mid 1800. Dickens once again weaves a fine tale winning your heart and making you think about the character. Not my favorite but worthy of reading.

This competes with Bleak House as my favorite Dickens. I have highlighted so many hilariously witty passages nearly the whole thing is yellow. This is a collection of stories held together by an interesting device. And the illustrations are perfect accompaniments. If you read only one Dickens book, read this. For mature audiences only--those who have lived long enough to understand the asburdities of life Dickens so wickedly portrays.

The Kindle edition of this is perfect. The illustrations are easy to see and there are very few errors. Worth ten times the price.

Book is discussed in a video series of Dickens and I couldn't resist ordering. I am reading two other books right now, so I am only in the introduction (slow reader). It has promise of being informative as well as humorous,

A classic of humour and characterisation; an evergreen classic whose charm neither time nor repeated exposures can dim. It is good that the store gives it away almost free. Much better critics have over centuries lavishly praised this book. It is must read for everyone.

I read Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, and A Christmas Carol, and after I became accustomed to the rhythm and the language and writing style, I fell in love with Dickens' satire and irony and period realism. I have not been disappointed with The Pickwick Papers.

After reading many of Dickens' later novels it's interesting to go back to what is really the first of what could be called a novel from his earlier work. I'm sure I'm not the first to say: Shakespeare wrote well, but Dickens wrote Weller.

Rather maudlin and a novel of its time. It doesn’t play well to later audiences, Oscar Wilde stated that 'One would have to have a heart of stone to read the death of little Nell without dissolving into tears...of laughter’
I had attempted reading the novel decades ago, but tackled it again. The first few chapters are a mosh of characters being dumped out of a sack with the inclusion of a narrator, hitch we never hear from again. After that, there is a flow of sorts.

This is the work that introduced Dickens to the world and quite rightly made him a megastar. Hilarious and heart-warming, it also contains a fair amount of social comment, though this is more subtle than in his later works. Serious reviewers might snub it as a purely commercial venture but nothing by Dickens is ever going to be totally free from his own radical, reforning views; it's just that in his later works he thundered out his furious hatred of social injustice, while in this he only hinted at it. The other main criticism seems to be that because of it's structure Pickwick is fragmentary in nature rather than the cohesive whole a novel would be; ignore such petty quibbles and revel in the genuis of one of the funniest writers of all time. This may not be his best work, but for a couple of centuries it has been his most popular, and with good reason. Enjoy.

I love Victorian literature and I like Dickens but this is, to be honest, my least favorite novel of Dickens' work that I've read. There are all the hallmarks of Dickens' themes and style (quirky supporting characters, the psychology of adults that betray children, lots of twists and turns) but the two main characters (little Nell and her grandfather) are so outdated that it's difficult to identify with them. It's pretty clear that this is an earlier work of Dickens' and he hadn't yet developed the more complex characterization that makes "David Copperfield" and "Great Expectations" so masterful. If I were going to recommend a non-Dickens reader who wanted to get to know Dickens' works, I would definitely not recommend starting with this book.

This was the worst Charles Dickens book I've ever read. And I've read most of them. The characters were not fully developed. The ending was predictable. It did have some redeeming qualities, so 3 stars. Also, this e-book had type-o's. I actually skipped through parts at the end, getting bored, to read what happened to my favorite characters, which was pretty much what I expected would be the outcome. I know to expect a happy ending, which I'm actually glad for and wait in anticipation for. However, while the end was not completely happy, it was not completely satisfying in the happy parts. It felt like when you watch a movie based on real life and at the end they say "So and went on to do this..." It just doesn't always satisfy your craving to be swept away in the story. --I wasn't moved, like I usually am.

This probably captured people's attention when it was first published episode by episode. When read page after page after page as one generally reads a novel, Pickwick begins to pall. I quit halfway through with the intention of maybe returning to it one day.

Loved the sometimes bumbling adventures of Mr. Pickwick although I had trouble coming up with a picture of him in my mind. I think he may have been rather portly ( as evidenced by his getting stuck going over the garden wall) and perhaps middle aged with a very kindly face.

There are so many moments in this wonderful, sadly underrated and neglected Dickens work that are laugh-out-loud passages: Pickwick's travesty of a breach-of-promise trial, the utterances of Wellers senior and junior, the attack-dog mentality of the competing newspaper editors, the follies of young love, and on and on and on. The Pickwick Papers's tone is lighter than most of Dickens' later works, and yet its characters and descriptions and dialogue are as finely and completely formed as many of those later creations. Why, oh why, did I leave this for one of my last Dickens novels to read?? Maybe to save one of the absolute best for last. If you haven't yet delved into Pickwick, absolutely do so, and come to see why it's so wonderfully universal and timeless.

Enchanting story typical of stuff written in this era. Even though the ending is predictable, the book is charming and beautifully written. Also has enough drama to keep the reader quite interested.

I have read Charles Dickens extensively, and though this is not one of his more widely read works, I feel it is his finest. Brilliant, poignant, and incredibly funny. I find it a highly enjoyable read. Not many works are this humorous, heart-warming, and touching. I feel that it extensively explores many classes and types of people, bringing to focus the humanity in us all. I recommend it highly!

The leather bound edition is lovely, and has stood up to many readings. :)

I have read Charles Dickens extensively, and though this is not one of his more widely read works, I feel it is his finest. Brilliant, poignant, and incredibly funny. I find it a highly enjoyable read. Not many works are this humorous, heart-warming, and touching. I feel that it extensively explores many classes and types of people, bringing to focus the humanity in us all. I recommend it highly!

The leather bound edition is lovely, and has stood up to many readings. :)

With so many of Dickens' other books being considered dark and dreary (Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, et al), this is amazingly humorous. My guess when he wrote it, he was still full of youthful glee. It's a long book to get through, but it never gets dull (perhaps because each portion was originally a stand-alone story). The characters are vivid and hilarious and the adventures quite clever and inventive. Good fun all around.

Very interesting read! I have been trying to catch up on my classic literature and this was a wonderful start to that journey. Every page had me laughing and wanting to continue! Great little stories, perfect for a little night reading!

No plot to speak of, just wonderful characters. Humanity, whimsically, sharply and lovingly observed. A treasure trove of details of daily life as it was in Dickens' time.Full of delights. The wonderful illustrations are rather lost on the smaller Kindle.

This is a typical Sickens novel and features the angelic child Little Nell, whose patient suffering is largely brought about by her gambling addict grandfather. Nell is a stock figure for Sickens and is worthy and noble, though rather flat. The antagonist of the novel, Quilp, is also bad, wholly bad and malevolent without any apparent reason. He is interesting, though, in his grotesque behaviors and appearance, which deftly combine horror and humor. He is one of Dickens' most memorable villains. Also notable is Dick Swiveller, who, while not a particularly well-developed personality either, is comical. I find him to be one of the most amusing Sickens characters of all. Though the plot contains many improbable circumstances and heavy-handed foreshadowing and the descriptive digressions can make reading slow in places, the characters of Quill and Swiveller and the glimpses of social issues affecting 19th-century Britain make it worth a read.

I love Dickens. This story could be judged to be somewhat slower and more tedious than say, David Copperfield or Great Expectations, yet the subtle humorous side of human nature so beautifully related by Dickens, is there present underneath and amidst the trials, joys and sadnesses of the characters...

A marvelous story of the human spirit in both light and dark hues. Dickens is a master of the word picture without resort to sensationalism or exaggeration and is blessed with the capacity to present a tale which is both entralling and captivating.

Not happy with this edition; no introduction, no foreword, no historical nor biographical notes and no illustrations...'just the facts'. I never thought any editiion would leave out generally included notes and illustrations. Lesson learned: buy from local bookstore after handling to your satisfaction. MY local store does not stock any version of "Pickwick Papers".
I would return it, but the hassle is not worth the bother.
One positive note: book is larger tnan the average paperback, making it a good lap read.

This is a skilfully written work with amazing depth of character. The wordplay delights the imagination and warms the heart. It difficult not to have a fondness for even the nastiest cast member in this work. Witty, bizarre and horribly delightful yet at the same time heart warming and uplifting. Well worth the journey!

When I want reading entertainment that I can put down to get some work done, this is the book I return to. It takes a little adjustment to get into the rhythm of the old style, flowery, language, but it is humorous and relaxing. It is a series, so just when I think I'm near to the end, a new section appears. :-) I may never finish. LOL

I never had the chance to enjoy Dickens' works before this, and I can say in all honesty that I am glad to have begun with the Pickwick Papers. The charming characters, hilarious imagery, and evolving stories will hold a special place in my collection as one of the most enjoyable literary works I have ever read.