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Spoiler alert! I really enjoyed this novel. I felt so sorry for Nell. I was however a little surprised by the ending. Dicken had just about got his characters back together when Nell dies and the grandfather did not care about his younger brother. It could have ended so differently. Altogether though, an excellent book.
I feel like this novel has a lot more symbolism and dark undercurrents than Dickens’ other work, but I’m not sure what those elements mean. Food for thought.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is the first of Dickens' books that I've read that I didn't particularly care for. Overall the book was somewhat depressing, and I didn't really connect with any of the characters.
Oh, man. This was an experience. I'm familiar with Dickens from [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327868529s/18254.jpg|3057979], mainly, although I've read [b:A Tale of Two Cities|1953|A Tale of Two Cities|Charles Dickens|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344922523s/1953.jpg|2956372] as well. I guess the latter should have warned me that things don't always turn out so great for the protagonist, but still. This was a little bit of a shock for me, in all honesty.
I liked this book. You'll see it took me a while to get through it, but that's almost always true with Dickens. It makes sense to me that this novel, and several of his others, were released serially, because I often felt like taking a break and reading something else every time I got to the end of a chapter. Not because I wasn't enjoying myself, but because... well... paid by the word, you know?
But let's get in to my favorite thing about this book: it tricks you. Kit starts the novel as a secondary character, and ends up being the hero upon whom we spend the final pages learning about. That was a delightful surprise, as watching the character grow over the course of the novel continually made me love him more and more.
Nell and her grandfather are one-note characters, but Dickens wrings every last bit of sympathy out of the reader in telling their story. This goes for a lot of the characters, like Kit's family, the Schoolmaster, and the Garlands. He's always had a knack for doing that.
I'm feeling a tad conflicted about the ending. I didn't think that he'd have the guts to kill Nell off at the end. I was thinking of this more like [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327868529s/18254.jpg|3057979], where the protagonist is put through so much hell but then gets rewarded with comfort and love at the end. But nope. Nell gets to a place where she can be comfortable and safe, and then dies shortly after. Now that I'm thinking about it, we also have Nancy meeting a grisly end in [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327868529s/18254.jpg|3057979]. Hey, why do all the ladies get axed off, Dickens? What's with that?
But in all seriousness, Nell's death didn't quite work for me on a literary level. I know that people die sometimes, and that just because somebody deserves a happy and long life doesn't mean they'll get it. But I'm not entirely sure what this sad ending is supposed to accomplish. It shocked me so much that I couldn't really feel the full power of it, you know? What would have been the problem with giving the grandfather and Nell a quiet out-of-the-way contended life? I think one of the cool things about this novel is how Kit goes from being singularly enamored with Nell, to growing and achieving a whole network of friends and loved ones and a profession he excels at. The moment when he runs off to find Nell is almost like a reversion of his character, as he drops everything to run to her side. It would have been interesting if Kit had found Nell alive, and the two young people could have had one final conversation where Kit realizes that his life has grown beyond this singular purpose. Nell has her life, Kit has his. There's something dissatisfying about Kit's choice to move on being taken from him by the fact of Nell's death. I don't know... am I making sense?
I gave this book four stars, though, because... well, obviously it's beautiful. It's an insightful look at urban vs. rural living, at class warfare, at greed and avarice and how these things may be overcome (looking at you, Richard Swiveller, surprise MVP of the novel). It's a work of genius just like everything else by Dickens that I've ever read. This guy is remembered for a reason.
I liked this book. You'll see it took me a while to get through it, but that's almost always true with Dickens. It makes sense to me that this novel, and several of his others, were released serially, because I often felt like taking a break and reading something else every time I got to the end of a chapter. Not because I wasn't enjoying myself, but because... well... paid by the word, you know?
But let's get in to my favorite thing about this book: it tricks you. Kit starts the novel as a secondary character, and ends up being the hero upon whom we spend the final pages learning about. That was a delightful surprise, as watching the character grow over the course of the novel continually made me love him more and more.
Nell and her grandfather are one-note characters, but Dickens wrings every last bit of sympathy out of the reader in telling their story. This goes for a lot of the characters, like Kit's family, the Schoolmaster, and the Garlands. He's always had a knack for doing that.
I'm feeling a tad conflicted about the ending. I didn't think that he'd have the guts to kill Nell off at the end. I was thinking of this more like [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327868529s/18254.jpg|3057979], where the protagonist is put through so much hell but then gets rewarded with comfort and love at the end. But nope. Nell gets to a place where she can be comfortable and safe, and then dies shortly after. Now that I'm thinking about it, we also have Nancy meeting a grisly end in [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327868529s/18254.jpg|3057979]. Hey, why do all the ladies get axed off, Dickens? What's with that?
But in all seriousness, Nell's death didn't quite work for me on a literary level. I know that people die sometimes, and that just because somebody deserves a happy and long life doesn't mean they'll get it. But I'm not entirely sure what this sad ending is supposed to accomplish. It shocked me so much that I couldn't really feel the full power of it, you know? What would have been the problem with giving the grandfather and Nell a quiet out-of-the-way contended life? I think one of the cool things about this novel is how Kit goes from being singularly enamored with Nell, to growing and achieving a whole network of friends and loved ones and a profession he excels at. The moment when he runs off to find Nell is almost like a reversion of his character, as he drops everything to run to her side. It would have been interesting if Kit had found Nell alive, and the two young people could have had one final conversation where Kit realizes that his life has grown beyond this singular purpose. Nell has her life, Kit has his. There's something dissatisfying about Kit's choice to move on being taken from him by the fact of Nell's death. I don't know... am I making sense?
I gave this book four stars, though, because... well, obviously it's beautiful. It's an insightful look at urban vs. rural living, at class warfare, at greed and avarice and how these things may be overcome (looking at you, Richard Swiveller, surprise MVP of the novel). It's a work of genius just like everything else by Dickens that I've ever read. This guy is remembered for a reason.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Old Curiosity Shop is a meandering, at times captivating, at times pedestrian in its plotting and structure. But what might start as a slightly confusing and wayward journey turns into a heartbreaking and sometimes horrifying study of kindness and brutality, those who impoverish and those who enrich and the reader is all the more grown for reading it. It’s finale is famous in its tragedy but the really resonant feeling is one of terror. The impish and evil Quilp, the hidden and watchful Marchioness and the travelling performers who lurk on the edge of our protagonist’s capture. The ever evocative image of the spot-covered stranger staring into the flames is as powerful now as it was over a hundred years ago. The most lingering scenes involve the ghoulish transformation of a helpless and feeble figure into a haunting thief, curdling the blood of the child he loves most. Despite its flaws with pacing and plotting, this is Dickens reaching some of his most imaginative and affecting heights.
Charles takes the time to clarify that the pony lived a happy life and for that I am grateful.
It was a well written story but it was so sad to read. I hated how it ends . I thought when everything goes down things start to go up again but in this story it only got worst. Charles dickens writing's are always full of tragedies.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes