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Writer's pictureKaterina Panagi

Where to start reading Charles Dickens

Dickens wrote some of the most incredible characters and fascinating plots in literary history. The writing style of Charles Dickens is amazing. His stories are vivid and descriptive, often sassy and sarcastic. There is certainly a reason why the work of Dickens continues to be enjoyed almost 200 years after it was first created.



Charles Dickens enjoyed a great deal of popularity in his own time. With many of his works first published as serialised novels, he struck a chord then with his exploration of the human condition, of poverty and injustice, and his sharp character studies that managed to be both witty and perceptive. And what people loved then, we still love now. Many of his themes remain relevant and resonant, and his characters still feel familiar, offering that same mirror to readers to see ourselves more truly. But he was a prolific writer; and authored at least 19 novels and short stories. If you’ve never tried one, or you’re not sure which to read next, here’s a quick guide to a few of them that make a good starting point.





A Christmas Carol (1843)

Arguably Dickens’ most famous book, and as long as you’re appropriately close to Christmas this is a great place to start for several reasons. Firstly, it’s short – only just over 100 pages in most editions, which would only take a couple of hours curled up in front of a fire with a glass of mulled wine. Secondly, the actual plot of Scrooge and the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future, are so well-known that you can settle in and enjoy the details, festive spirit, and Dickens’s storytelling.


Great Expectations (1860-61)

In 2011 Great Expectations was voted the UK’s favourite Dickens by readers of the Guardian, and it’s probably my personal favourite as well. I had never read Charles Dickens until I did an English elective at university and this was on the syllabus. I had thought he wasn’t for me, but I fell for this coming-of-age story of fortunes lost and found, partly because of the character of Miss Havisham, the jilted bride rotting away in her wedding dress. A relatively small (for Dickens) cast of key and charismatic characters makes Great Expectations easy to get – and stay – emotionally invested in.


Oliver Twist (1837-39)

You may think you know the story of Oliver Twist due to the iconic 1968 film, Oliver!, but if you don't mind the lack of musical numbers, then there is so much to gain from reading the novel. The book includes some of Dickens' most complex, and endearing, characters from the strangely loveable rogue Fagin, to the heart-breaking bravery of Nancy, as Oliver tries to find a home of his own.


Hard Times (1854)

Once, and perhaps only once, you deem yourself a fully signed-up Dickens fan, it’s time for Hard Times. Although it is one of his shorter novels, it is – as the title suggests – one of his harder reads, although not without its fans. Exploring issues around trade unions, worker conditions, and the impact of the Industrial Revolution, it tackles big social questions head on, and prioritises the social issues Dickens’s cared deeply about over plot or character. While not necessarily his most enjoyable or accessible read, it’s a key part of Dickens’s work and philosophy.



Dickens is a writer who is perhaps rivalled in England only by William Shakespeare. His work has transformed the world we live in, from the way we celebrate Christmas, to our understanding of class and poverty. He has come to define the age he lived in and in many ways, created our imagining of Victorian London.



Some of my favourite quotes from Dickens's novels:


“There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humour.”

A Christmas Carol


“We need never be ashamed of our tears.”

Great Expectations



“There is a wisdom of the head and wisdom of the heart.”

Hard Times







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