Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens | Book Review
1:03 PM
The irony of this review relies on the fact that I got pickpocketed by a 10 year old-ish boy at 10 a.m. while going to my internship and carrying this book around for some commuting reading time.
Oliver Twist is a classic story told and retold through theatre, movies and music. Written by Dickens and initially published as a monthly installment, the book became so popular that several theater adaptations were performed before it ever finished being published. Later on, multiple movie versions of the story came to life, not to mention the celebrated Broadway musical.
Despite the huge popularity of Dickens' second novel, I had never watched any movies, gone to any theater presentations or ever picked up the book. So, one day, probably years ago now, I crossed paths with this used copy of the classic at a thrift shop and decided to purchase it for the exorbitant amount of 5 dollars. Bargain. Still, it remained rotting on my TBR shelf until I was packing for my European adventure last January and decided this read was well overdue.
Oliver Twist, as I am certain you already know, tells the story of little Oliver, an orphan boy living quite the miserable life. When, eventually, Oliver decides to escape his apprenticeship and runs away to London, he is unknowingly recruited by a professional group of pickpocketers lead by the awful Fagin. Soon enough, the poor boy is thrown in various dreadful and dangerous situations, which eventually leads to his background being questioned.
Dickens explores quite a numerous amount of important subjects in this book, such as how your surroundings influence who you become, the idea of mercy and redemption, social class and poverty. The representation of London's 1830's society is extremely realistic and detailed, truly taking you to that scenery. And his trip into portraying greed and skepticism and the narrator's use of irony are absolutely flawless, making this a highly interesting story.
Personally, however, this was a bit of a tiresome read. Although I am a fluent English speaker, it is still not my first language, making this book pretty difficult to get through. I'd only recommend this book to advanced english readers. Additionally, at parts, I found Dickens writing overly descriptive and slow, which meant it took me a while to get into it. Although I started reading this book in January, I abandoned it and only picked it up again in August/September.
Also, as a book of his time would predictably do, Dickens fails in the racism and feminism aspects. Consistently calling Fagin "the Jew" in order to demonstrate his horribleness, clearly associating judaism and criminality. Further on, the few women portrayed in Oliver Twist have very flat personalities and fit perfectly into woman's stereotypical parts in society and family, always depending on the men in their lives to move along with everything (with the exception, maybe, of Mrs. Bumble).
All in all, I enjoyed the read and recommend everyone give it a try too. The subjects explored are really interesting and the irony of the narrator adds to the enjoyment. Rooting for Oliver comes as the most natural of emotions and you soon find out that every moment is tied together, somehow.
8 thoughts
Oh, this is one of my favourite books ever...I love Dickens so much, I also watched the film, which is amazing in my opinion! Thanks for sharing :)
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Tamara xxx
Thanks for taking the time to comment, Tamara! I'm looking forward to watching the movie now that I have finished the book too!
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Hi Helena, thanks! Your blog is so nice! We can def follow each other!
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I think I have the exact same edition! hahahaha I have never read it, but I want to do it so bad, I have lots of classics that I want to read, but I don't have any time! This review has made me want to pick them all and read them!
ReplyDeleteHave a nice day, lovely xx
selenaponcestyle.blogspot.com.es
Nicee! I'm a sucker for Penguin published classics tbh! This is such a great book! But I know what you mean, I had a hard time finding time to read it too, I mostly read it commuting to and from my internship (which is basically why it took me ages to finish it!)
DeleteThanks for the comment!
xx
I'm sorry to hear you were pickpocketed! I remember reading this book in High School, one of my favourites by Dickens :)
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It's okay now.. Unfortunately he took a sentimental item, but I guess it's the sentiment that matters and not the items right? :)
Deletexx
Great post! Have a nice weekend:)
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