YA Buddy Readers' Corner ♥ discussion

A gripping portrayal of London's dark criminal underbelly, published in Penguin Classics with an introduction by Philip Horne.

The story of Oliver Twist - orphaned, and set upon by evil and adversity from his first breath - shocked readers when it was published. After running away from the workhouse and pompous beadle Mr Bumble, Oliver finds himself lured into a den of thieves peopled by vivid and memorable characters - the Artful Dodger, vicious burglar Bill Sikes, his dog Bull's Eye, and prostitute Nancy, all watched over by cunning master-thief Fagin. Combining elements of Gothic Romance, the Newgate Novel and popular melodrama, Dickens created an entirely new kind of fiction, scathing in its indictment of a cruel society, and pervaded by an unforgettable sense of threat and mystery.

This Penguin Classics edition of Oliver Twist is the first critical edition to faithfully reproduce the text as its earliest readers would have encountered it from its serialisation in Bentley's Miscellany, and includes an introduction by Philip Horne, a glossary of Victorian thieves' slang, a chronology of Dickens's life, a map of contemporary London and all of George Cruikshank's original illustrations.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Chapter 13
(view spoiler)[I really didn't know much about Oliver Twist beyond 'Can I have some more, SIr' and had no idea how sad Oliver's life was. Obviously, I figured he was poor, but not how he had been passed around and beaten. He's finally in a good place and they're going to ruin it for him. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 17
(view spoiler)[ Even when they don't have Oliver, Mr. Bumble has to ruin things for him. Also, I don't know how Mrs. Mann can be so flip about these children dying. Almost like it's a joke to her. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 29
(view spoiler)[ I can only imagine a grown man taking pride in shooting a little boy. Man, these characters are something. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 36
(view spoiler)[ Way to let him down, Rose. At least she was honest with him and he knows that she does care about him. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 39
(view spoiler)[ Yes! Nancy. I love that she finally got away from Sikes, even if just to go to the right thing once. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 41
(view spoiler)[ I love that Oliver now has this little team working for his well being. It's about time. (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 50
(view spoiler)[ I have never been so satisfied by a death as I was by this one. And he hung himself, even accidentally which was so fitting. (hide spoiler)]