Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens

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for Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens

Rating Summary based on 8 reviews

		5

		2

		1

		0

		0

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	4.6

	3.7

	3.7

	4.3

	4.9

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37 of 37 Ciao users found the following review helpful

Rebeccs

Member since 24/04/2005

Reviews written: 31

The boy who wanted more! 16/11/2005

User recommends the product

Advantages The full story, excellent humour, writing style
Disadvantages May be heavy going for some

Having just seen Roman Polanski's "Oliver Twist" and being a fan of the well-known musical "Oliver Twist," I found the book in The Works. Apparently a reproduction of the original binding, it cost the princely sum of 99p, so I pounced on the offer and started reading it almost at once while my husband went off to order food. To my surprise, having previously tried and failed with "Martin Chuzzlewit," another Dickens novel I found at a bargain price, I was instantly pulled into the story. Granted I already knew the basic story, but I was so enthralled with the he wrote about the beginnings of ... more
14 of 14 Ciao users found the following review helpful

dave27

All time classic 13/04/2001

User recommends the product

Advantages Great story telling, colourful and meaty characters
Disadvantages Forever doomed to be distorted by the film

Most people got their first experience of Oliver Twist through the 1969 Lionel Bart film of the musical version, entitled Oliver! and that certainly does stick in the memory, but the story actually dates back ages to the novel by Charles Dickens, the famous recorder of life in Victorian England. Dickens was a classic novelist who wrote some of the finest Victorian novels of all time and was a wonderful observer of the human condition. Oliver Twist vies for the title of Dickens' most famous and popular work with that other novel which has been an even richer source of cinema, A Christmas Carol ... more
29 of 29 Ciao users found the following review helpful

skmm

Member since 13/03/2001

Reviews written: 38

A Child's Torment 16/03/2001

User recommends the product

Advantages The sincere and emotional protest of Dickens
Disadvantages None

A boy losing his mother at his birth…thrown inside an orphanage…cruelly treated…and then one day fleeing to fall into the hands of thieves and criminals…ultimately saved by a benevolent, good Samaritan; does this theme seem familiar to you? I presume so, yes. This is the universal theme on which many writers wrote their stories and filmmakers made innumerable motion pictures, about the social injustice and the cruel and heartless treatment towards children throughout the world; and ironically the evil still persists. But, about one hundred and sixty three years back, a ... more
12 of 12 Ciao users found the following review helpful

ANNJSEC

BEAUTY OF A BYEGONE AGE 13/02/2001

User recommends the product

Advantages Colourful characters, captivating story
Disadvantages Olde world writing if you don't like that sort of thing

"Please Sir, I want some more".......... I wonder if there is anybody who wouldn't be able to give the name of the poor urchin who uttered those words. Oliver Twist and the author, Charles Dickens are known to lovers of classics worldwide and the story has been portrayed in countless films and television series over at least the past 50 years or so. I think I am correct in saying that Oliver Twist was written as a series in a newspaper for which Dickens worked and certainly it is easy to envisage it beginning life in this way as Oliver's life progresses from one heartrendering scene to another ... more
9 of 9 Ciao users found the following review helpful

meday

My favourite Dickens novel 17/08/2001

User recommends the product

Advantages you already know the story!
Disadvantages none

If your only experience of Oliver Twist is through musicals, films or childrens stories then I highly recommend that you read the orginal. It is one of Dickens' best works, containing interesting characters, lots of highly interesting and sometimes amusing description and a storyline that keeps you engaged throughout the book. It is a wonderful book to read aloud because of the vivid descriptions and I would recommend you read it to your children rather than the fairy tale type stories they normally produce for children. It may seem harsh because of the murder, but the way it is dealt with ... more
16 of 16 Ciao users found the following review helpful

allan1500

A Great social-criticism 24/02/2006

User recommends the product

Advantages Olivers innocence
Disadvantages Fagin-evil

Oliver Twist is one of Dickens greatest books examining how children are vulnerable and can be exploited by adults. I first read this book at school for my GCSE coursework and at first didn't find it that interesting but when I read between the lines it made much more sense. Oliver is a boy abandoned at the workhouse by his mother when he is a baby. When he is older Oliver becomes a member of Fagin's gang of thieves where he is taken advantage of from the moment he enters their den. The story develops with Oliver being abandoned and accused of being a pickpocket then being taken in by Mr ... more
0 of 2 Ciao users found the following review helpful

somebodyrandom

more please 10/04/2001

User recommends the product

Advantages a true classic
Disadvantages a bit boring

The book Oliver Twist is a very moving tragic tale about a boy who survives by the skin of his teeth and the power of his mind. The whole story starts when his 'friends' tell him to ask for more food. Obviously, in an orphanage like the one that he is in, his plea is refused and as a result of his actions he is chucked out of the factory and orphanage that he works in. He has many adventures in his life and as in many other stories; things all work out in the end. I personally had great joy reading the book and even shed a few tears for Oliver who had a very hard time without a father or ... more
0 of 13 Ciao users found the following review helpful

anneka1

Have things changed?? 18/06/2004

User recommends the product

Advantages Touching
Disadvantages Scary

Well this is one of the most well known books of all time. It's really good and touching to see that some people do care in the end. Oliver was one of the unlucky ones of his time of what he went through but there are still people today that have been through of are going through a similar ordeal ok yea they won't get sent to a work house but the childrens home's can't be seen as much better I must say. The children of our day still lose their parents from time to time and so they do have lives that are difficult. Divorce rates are going up and children are becoming more and more involved in ... more