What do you think?
Rate this book
Five Novels: Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations
Five Novels, Complete and Unabridged: Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities, and Great Expectations.
1483 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1861
About the author
Charles Dickens
13.9k books29.3k followersCharles John Huffam Dickens (1812-1870) was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.
Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction. Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters.
On 8 June 1870, Dickens suffered another stroke at his home after a full day's work on Edwin Drood. He never regained consciousness, and the next day he died at Gad's Hill Place. Contrary to his wish to be buried at Rochester Cathedral "in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner," he was laid to rest in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. A printed epitaph circulated at the time of the funeral reads: "To the Memory of Charles Dickens (England's most popular author) who died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, Kent, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years. He was a sympathiser with the poor, the suffering, and the oppressed; and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world." His last words were: "On the ground", in response to his sister-in-law Georgina's request that he lie down.
(from Wikipedia)
Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction. Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters.
On 8 June 1870, Dickens suffered another stroke at his home after a full day's work on Edwin Drood. He never regained consciousness, and the next day he died at Gad's Hill Place. Contrary to his wish to be buried at Rochester Cathedral "in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner," he was laid to rest in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. A printed epitaph circulated at the time of the funeral reads: "To the Memory of Charles Dickens (England's most popular author) who died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, Kent, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years. He was a sympathiser with the poor, the suffering, and the oppressed; and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world." His last words were: "On the ground", in response to his sister-in-law Georgina's request that he lie down.
(from Wikipedia)
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
Read
February 19, 20193½ stars
This leather-bound Dickens collection is a must-have for any Dickens fan and any fan of Victorian England. It looks great on the shelf, especially next to those other leather-bound classics, if you have any. The novels included are: A Christmas Carol, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, and Oliver Twist.
Wordpress
This leather-bound Dickens collection is a must-have for any Dickens fan and any fan of Victorian England. It looks great on the shelf, especially next to those other leather-bound classics, if you have any. The novels included are: A Christmas Carol, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, and Oliver Twist.
Wordpress
November 22, 2016
Oliver Twist: 4*
A Christmas Carol: 5*
David Copperfield: 4*
Great Expectations: 4*
A Tale of Two Cities: 4*
A Christmas Carol: 5*
David Copperfield: 4*
Great Expectations: 4*
A Tale of Two Cities: 4*
March 24, 2008
I first started reading Dickens in junior high. My literature teacher Mrs. Porter suggested Oliver Twist. In English we read A Tale of Two Cities. My French ancestry made this especially interesting. I was hooked. I spent many mornings before school reading in that junior high library. I love how good triumphs over evil, but not until tremendous trial has been gone through. From Oliver Twist to Great Expectations one is never disappointed. Mr. Dickens is amazing and addictive.
December 12, 2022
Book
3.5/5 stars ⭐️
👦🏻
Here’s my classic of the month: Oliver Twist!
👦🏻
Oliver Twist is about an orphan named Oliver who struggles to remain good in a society that does not offer any help. I’m Charles Dickens’ words, it is a male version of a Cinderella story from rags to riches.
👦🏻
I’ve seen the musical and movie of Twist, but I never had to read it. I’ve had to read a couple of Charles Dickens books in middle and high school, but Oliver Twist was not one of them. I really enjoyed the first half of the book and the chapters that were mostly about Oliver. The other chapters were a lot darker than I would have imagined. But other than that, I enjoyed the book! I wish I read it when I was in school.
#olivertwist #twist #orphan #books #bookreview #bookstagram #goodreadsreview #booknook #readingnook
3.5/5 stars ⭐️
👦🏻
Here’s my classic of the month: Oliver Twist!
👦🏻
Oliver Twist is about an orphan named Oliver who struggles to remain good in a society that does not offer any help. I’m Charles Dickens’ words, it is a male version of a Cinderella story from rags to riches.
👦🏻
I’ve seen the musical and movie of Twist, but I never had to read it. I’ve had to read a couple of Charles Dickens books in middle and high school, but Oliver Twist was not one of them. I really enjoyed the first half of the book and the chapters that were mostly about Oliver. The other chapters were a lot darker than I would have imagined. But other than that, I enjoyed the book! I wish I read it when I was in school.
#olivertwist #twist #orphan #books #bookreview #bookstagram #goodreadsreview #booknook #readingnook
May 12, 2017
March 29
Oliver Twist: 2 stars.
This story goes to show that crime does not pay.
March 31
A Christmas Carol: 3 stars.
There are some aspects of Dicken's writing that I really like, for example, he is one of the very very few authors who properly uses all punctuation marks. Although I said very few I can't think of another author who does...
On the other hand there are some issues I have with Dicken's writing and that is when he does not specify who he's writing about. There was a part in the story when Bob Cratchit was sitting next to a bed of a child. At this point Tiny Tim had died and little Bob was downstairs, so which child's bed was he sitting next to?
I could remember clearly the version of this movie starring Reginald Owen as Ebenezer Scrooge. I miss Christmas.
April 24
David Copperfield: 1 star
I found this story to be incredibly boring. David Copperfield was a very dull person, and it seems that his history was overtaken by the people he met, more so than himself. I didn't find these other characters to be much less dull, and Dickens ensured they were regurgitated to the very end.
May 12
Great Expectations: 1 star
I saw the movie Great Expectations with Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow soon after it was released and either I don't remember it correctly or the book is very different from the movie because it didn't seem familiar to me. This could be a good thing, but it's not. I found this story very similar to David Copperfield and also very boring. Pip was an ingrate, but he was very young, however he really didn't care about Abel Magwitch until he found out he was Estella's father. I didn't really like any of the characters in this story. Maybe it's because I read them back to back, but they all seem to have very similar traits and bleed into one another.
Oliver Twist: 2 stars.
This story goes to show that crime does not pay.
March 31
A Christmas Carol: 3 stars.
There are some aspects of Dicken's writing that I really like, for example, he is one of the very very few authors who properly uses all punctuation marks. Although I said very few I can't think of another author who does...
On the other hand there are some issues I have with Dicken's writing and that is when he does not specify who he's writing about. There was a part in the story when Bob Cratchit was sitting next to a bed of a child. At this point Tiny Tim had died and little Bob was downstairs, so which child's bed was he sitting next to?
I could remember clearly the version of this movie starring Reginald Owen as Ebenezer Scrooge. I miss Christmas.
April 24
David Copperfield: 1 star
I found this story to be incredibly boring. David Copperfield was a very dull person, and it seems that his history was overtaken by the people he met, more so than himself. I didn't find these other characters to be much less dull, and Dickens ensured they were regurgitated to the very end.
May 12
Great Expectations: 1 star
I saw the movie Great Expectations with Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow soon after it was released and either I don't remember it correctly or the book is very different from the movie because it didn't seem familiar to me. This could be a good thing, but it's not. I found this story very similar to David Copperfield and also very boring. Pip was an ingrate, but he was very young, however he really didn't care about Abel Magwitch until he found out he was Estella's father. I didn't really like any of the characters in this story. Maybe it's because I read them back to back, but they all seem to have very similar traits and bleed into one another.
July 26, 2013
This 1500-page baby is the 200th book I rate here on Goodreads! It's the biggest book I own (so far), and I've spent a good while on it, for obvious reasons (Edit: Actually only exactly two months, and I was away for vacation for one, lol). It's been a nice journey!
Here are my reviews on each of the five novels in this collection:
Oliver Twist
A Christmas Carol
David Copperfield
A Tale Of Two Cities
Great Expectations
I guess if you check out all of my reviews on those, there's not much more to say!
I think this book is a great bundle of classics to have, and great to pull out of the bookshelf at least every christmas! Some of these can be pretty heavy to read, so it might take a while before you actually read them again, but I definitely think this is a staple to have in your collection if you love classics as much as I do.
Here are my reviews on each of the five novels in this collection:
Oliver Twist
A Christmas Carol
David Copperfield
A Tale Of Two Cities
Great Expectations
I guess if you check out all of my reviews on those, there's not much more to say!
I think this book is a great bundle of classics to have, and great to pull out of the bookshelf at least every christmas! Some of these can be pretty heavy to read, so it might take a while before you actually read them again, but I definitely think this is a staple to have in your collection if you love classics as much as I do.
December 31, 2013
I hated Great Expectations in high school so I was skeptical of this, but I'm a sucker for a nicely bound edition of classic works so I gave it a try. Dickens was far more entertaining reading it as an adult than it was as a kid.
February 5, 2017
Five novels by a master, it doesn't get much better than that!
Want to read
January 30, 2008The last time I read this was for an 8th grade book report; maybe it'll be better 15 years later.
September 19, 2022
These stories are classics for a reason. David Copperfield and Great Expectations took a while to get through, but they were worth it. Dickens' casts of characters are so colourful and they are so memorable.
A Christmas Carol will always be one of my favourite Christmas stories.
A Christmas Carol will always be one of my favourite Christmas stories.
June 28, 2024
Summary:
David's happy childhood was marred by the arrival of his cruel stepfather. After years spent at a harsh school and in child labour, David finds stability in London as a law clerk. But it is not until he pursues his ambitions as a writer and admits his love for his childhood friend Agnes that his story reaches a truly happy ending.
David's happy childhood was marred by the arrival of his cruel stepfather. After years spent at a harsh school and in child labour, David finds stability in London as a law clerk. But it is not until he pursues his ambitions as a writer and admits his love for his childhood friend Agnes that his story reaches a truly happy ending.
December 15, 2017
I read only A Christmas Carol this time around. I wish Goodreads had a way to mark having read one story from a collection, but alas...
January 6, 2019
Only read AChristmas Carol this time around. It is a favorite of mine. I read it every Christmas.
October 4, 2020
You know the stories are good.
Well formatted and no glaring typos. Not abridged - you get the complete version. Easy to navigate. Worth the 99 cents. ;)
Well formatted and no glaring typos. Not abridged - you get the complete version. Easy to navigate. Worth the 99 cents. ;)
November 17, 2020
Beautiful book. Received as a gift. Classic stories in one leather bound book. Been reading Dickens for years and years. This book is for any Charles Dickens fan.
Read
January 28, 2021Great book
August 1, 2021
A collection of fascinating stories! 5/5 stars
Read
March 15, 2022IT WAS THE BEST OF BOOKS, it was NOT the worst of books...
Wow, that sounded stupid...
Wow, that sounded stupid...
August 30, 2022
Brings me so much childhood memories I LOVE IT
September 4, 2022
Oliver Twist - 4 stars
A Christmas Carol - 5 stars
David Copperfield - 4 stars
A Tale of Two Cities - 5 stars
Great Expectations - 4 stars
A Christmas Carol - 5 stars
David Copperfield - 4 stars
A Tale of Two Cities - 5 stars
Great Expectations - 4 stars
January 1, 2023
/only read "A Christmas Carol" but can't find the proper edition/
It's OK I guess... A bit too black and white for my taste.
It's OK I guess... A bit too black and white for my taste.
Shelved as 'did-not-finish-or-start'
October 30, 2023DNS 10/30/23
January 10, 2016
Reading several Dickens novels within about a year may have been a mistake, as they do feel repetitive -- Orphan Boy Makes Good! is the theme of 3/5 of the books in this omnibus. But they do all remain funny and thoughtful, clever and entertaining. I still retain a personal loathing of Tale of Two Cities, but that's my problem, not Charles'. My favorite of this bunch was definitely A Christmas Carol; not because I love Christmas, but probably because I love stories about ghosts and/or assholes getting their due. And after a lifetime of exposure to the trope, theme, references to, and adaptions of the story, it was nice to finally read the original and realize, yes, it does fully deserve its cemented place in our culture.
March 15, 2017
Excellent writing. What more can you say about these grand novels?
I have a little grouse about the Kindle compilation though. I bought this compilation at a very cheap price for my Kindle, but with the length of the stories and the lack of a detailed table of contents hence no easy way to navigate through the books, I found my reading experience a bit diminished. Having read the first three novels, I think I will read the last two in print form at a later point so that I can savour the experience more.
I have a little grouse about the Kindle compilation though. I bought this compilation at a very cheap price for my Kindle, but with the length of the stories and the lack of a detailed table of contents hence no easy way to navigate through the books, I found my reading experience a bit diminished. Having read the first three novels, I think I will read the last two in print form at a later point so that I can savour the experience more.
Read
July 9, 2009David Copperfield is gong and tedious. Story resolutions do not merit the effort it takes to get to them -- do not let the first 200 pages fool you with their promises. I would recommend reading anything else by Dickens -- even and especially Bleak House -- before picking up this 600-page, slow-paced monstrosity.
May 7, 2016
Great book. Boy is it long at times but I have enjoyed my journey with Dickens. Classics such as Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, Great expectations (My favourite), tale of two cites and the Adventures of David Copperfield.
Not all the novels were exciting though they did give great insight to Victorian life and values, something that can easily be forgotten in today technological world.
Not all the novels were exciting though they did give great insight to Victorian life and values, something that can easily be forgotten in today technological world.
February 19, 2008
This was my first post-high school Dickens and it is incredible! - That guy could write - Highly recommend
August 21, 2008
Though I didn't read this exact version, I have read these all unabridged and these are probably my top five favorite Dickens works.
Read
October 20, 2008well all books r gr8 i m inspired
April 12, 2009
Not my favorite Dickens book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews