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A review by happylilkt
Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
5.0
4.5 Stars
Oh, Dickens.... I read [b:Great Expectations|2623|Great Expectations|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327920219l/2623._SY75_.jpg|2612809] my first year of high school and it was not bad but it was not amazing for me like it is for some Dickens fans*, but then sometime as a young adult (after I watched the BBC film of David Copperfield with a young Daniel Radcliffe, Bob Hoskins, Maggie Smith, et al) I decided to read [b:David Copperfield|58696|David Copperfield|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1461452762l/58696._SY75_.jpg|4711940] and found myself on a Dickens binge with [b:A Tale of Two Cities|1953|A Tale of Two Cities|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1344922523l/1953._SY75_.jpg|2956372], [b:Hard Times|5344|Hard Times|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348651243l/5344._SX50_.jpg|6751955], and [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327868529l/18254._SY75_.jpg|3057979]. But the latter was my least favorite and I must have moved on. Since then I've read [b:A Christmas Carol|5326|A Christmas Carol|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1406512317l/5326._SY75_.jpg|3097440] a few times and, honestly, felt that I had ticked the Dickens box, if you know what I mean? I still reread A Christmas Carol and David Copperfield (and A Tale of Two Cities) because they are just so wonderful, but not sure I felt the need to read more. I mean, who reads EVERY Dickens book...?**
And so it stood. But then one of the most enduring and endearing book clubs I have been a part of elected [b:Nicholas Nickleby|325085|Nicholas Nickleby|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1352758388l/325085._SY75_.jpg|4993095] for our December/January read. Shame on me for doubting you, Charles Dickens! I was reminded of why he and [a:Jane Austen|1265|Jane Austen|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1588941810p2/1265.jpg] are the master and mistress of amusing side-characters. Yes, Dickens makes his heroes perfect and his villains the worst; yes, everything is very episodic (hello, serials!), amusing, and at times sentimentally tragic. But I am not embarrassed to say that I laughed, I cried, and I bored my husband by reading passages aloud (tip: it's not usually entertaining for those who haven't been reading with you).
yearbook notes for my favorite characters:
Mrs. Nickleby, you got me shaking my head. John Browdie, you are the best that Yorkshire could ever offer. Tim, may your heavenly ledgers be legible and accurate. Newman Noggs and Smike, you both have my heart!
*I think it's kind of like Wuthering Heights. Some love it and others don't really get it. For me, it's Jane Eyre and David Copperfield. Sorry, Pip.
**I'm not committing myself or anything, but I will now freely acknowledge that it could happen to me.
Oh, Dickens.... I read [b:Great Expectations|2623|Great Expectations|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327920219l/2623._SY75_.jpg|2612809] my first year of high school and it was not bad but it was not amazing for me like it is for some Dickens fans*, but then sometime as a young adult (after I watched the BBC film of David Copperfield with a young Daniel Radcliffe, Bob Hoskins, Maggie Smith, et al) I decided to read [b:David Copperfield|58696|David Copperfield|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1461452762l/58696._SY75_.jpg|4711940] and found myself on a Dickens binge with [b:A Tale of Two Cities|1953|A Tale of Two Cities|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1344922523l/1953._SY75_.jpg|2956372], [b:Hard Times|5344|Hard Times|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348651243l/5344._SX50_.jpg|6751955], and [b:Oliver Twist|18254|Oliver Twist|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327868529l/18254._SY75_.jpg|3057979]. But the latter was my least favorite and I must have moved on. Since then I've read [b:A Christmas Carol|5326|A Christmas Carol|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1406512317l/5326._SY75_.jpg|3097440] a few times and, honestly, felt that I had ticked the Dickens box, if you know what I mean? I still reread A Christmas Carol and David Copperfield (and A Tale of Two Cities) because they are just so wonderful, but not sure I felt the need to read more. I mean, who reads EVERY Dickens book...?**
And so it stood. But then one of the most enduring and endearing book clubs I have been a part of elected [b:Nicholas Nickleby|325085|Nicholas Nickleby|Charles Dickens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1352758388l/325085._SY75_.jpg|4993095] for our December/January read. Shame on me for doubting you, Charles Dickens! I was reminded of why he and [a:Jane Austen|1265|Jane Austen|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1588941810p2/1265.jpg] are the master and mistress of amusing side-characters. Yes, Dickens makes his heroes perfect and his villains the worst; yes, everything is very episodic (hello, serials!), amusing, and at times sentimentally tragic. But I am not embarrassed to say that I laughed, I cried, and I bored my husband by reading passages aloud (tip: it's not usually entertaining for those who haven't been reading with you).
yearbook notes for my favorite characters:
Mrs. Nickleby, you got me shaking my head. John Browdie, you are the best that Yorkshire could ever offer. Tim, may your heavenly ledgers be legible and accurate. Newman Noggs and Smike, you both have my heart!
*I think it's kind of like Wuthering Heights. Some love it and others don't really get it. For me, it's Jane Eyre and David Copperfield. Sorry, Pip.
**I'm not committing myself or anything, but I will now freely acknowledge that it could happen to me.