Barnaby Rudge Charles Dickens 9781542653800 Books
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Gathered round the fire at the Maypole Inn, in the village of Chigwell, on an evening of foul weather in the year 1775, are John Willet, proprietor of the Maypole, and his three cronies. One of the three, Solomon Daisy, tells an ill-kempt stranger at the inn a well-known local tale of the murder of Reuben Haredale which had occurred 22 years ago that very day. Reuben had been the owner of the Warren, a local estate which is now the residence of Geoffrey, the deceased Reuben's brother, and Geoffrey's niece, Reuben's daughter Emma Haredale. After the murder, Reuben's gardener and steward went missing and were suspects in the crime. A body was later found and identified as that of the steward, so the gardener was assumed to be the murderer. Joe Willet, son of the Maypole proprietor, quarrels with his father because John treats 20-year-old Joe as a child. Finally having had enough of this ill treatment, Joe leaves the Maypole and goes for a soldier, stopping to say goodbye to the woman he loves, Dolly Varden, daughter of London locksmith Gabriel Varden.
Barnaby Rudge Charles Dickens 9781542653800 Books
After a lifetime of knowing about this work only "Here comes Poe with his raven, like Barnaby Rudge,/Three-fifths of him genius, and two-fifths pure fudge," I finally read this, sometimes called Dickens' least-known novel; and almost immediately started rereading it. True, I had a research reason for immediate rereading; but find it holds up better, perhaps, the second time around. True, Dickens is particularly weak with his female characters in this one, most of them being incredibly tedious as sexist "comic relief," and the two heroines seeming sympathetic only by dint of being young. The only lady who really interests me is Barnaby's mother. But many of the male characters don't come off much better. There is a very interesting villain of the suave and polite variety, whose principal opponent is rather smoldering and almost equally interesting; and I can't help but like Gabriel Varden the locksmith (who by one account was very nearly the title character). By and large, however, it is Barnaby himself and his raven Grip who make this novel rewarding to read.Product details
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Barnaby Rudge Charles Dickens 9781542653800 Books Reviews
This is the last of all the Dickens's novels (including the five shorter Christmas Books) that I have either read or attempted. I had saved it until the last because it has not been held in very high esteem either by the critics or the reading public. I was pleasantly surprised.
Whereas there are several Dickens novels that I was unable to finish (namely, The Old Curiosity Shop, Martin Chuzzlewit, Dombey and Son, Little Dorrit, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and all the Christmas Books except A Christmas Carol), Barnaby Rudge never dragged even though it is one of Dickens's longer novels. Barnaby Rudge is as filled with memorable characters (especially the secondary ones - Miss Miggs, the Vardens, the Chesters, Hugh, Mr. Tappertitt, Dennis the hangman, etc.); places (the Maypole Inn, the locksmith's shop) and incident (the Gordon Riots) as any of his greater novels.
Stylistically, Barnaby Rudge is akin to Dickens's earlier picaresque novels (Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby). After those early successes of the 1830s, Dickens was struggling to find his mature style in my opinion. Most of the longer and shorter novels I was unable to finish come from the 1840s. (The Mystery of Edwin Drood is Dickens's last novel, but it was only half-finished at his death so it is really not fair to blame Dickens for my failure to respond to it.) Even though The Old Curiosity Shop comes between Nicholas Nickelby and Barnaby Rudge, Barnaby Rudge demonstrates all the strengths of Nicholas Nickelby and avoids the weaknesses of The Old Curiosity Shop. Barnaby Rudge is still early Dickens in my opinion.
G. K. Chesterton described a taste for early Dickens as similar to a taste for new potatoes as opposed to mature potatoes. Some people prefer new potatoes. Barnaby Rudge is not Dickens at his greatest. (I reserve that description for David Copperfield, Great Expectations and Bleak House. Along with the three novels of the 1830s already mentioned, I place Hard Times, A Tale of Two Cities and Our Mutual Friend and now, Barnaby Rudge, on the second tier of Dickens's novels.) We must remember, that Dickens at his worst is better than most writers at their best. If Barnaby Rudge were a newly discovered work by an otherwise unknown author, or by one of Dickens's contemporaries, it would be hailed as a masterpiece. As it is, Barnaby Rudge is an eminently enjoyable and readable effort by a great writer.
This is one of two historical novels that Dickens wrote--the other one being the Tale of Two Cities. Dickens does a masterful job. The story takes place during the anti-Catholic riots of 1780 in London. The riots were brutal and savage based on pure prejudice. Many Catholics had their houses burned down. The rioters even burned down the London jail when some of their fellow rioters were imprisoned. As usual, Dickens takes the side of the underdog Catholics who are being savagely abused. Dickens weaves in two love stories which both end happily. One of the protagonists is Barnaby Rudge, a boy with down's syndrome. He personifies the goodness that is in all people. His pet Raven has much to say in repeating what he hears. In one of the ironies in the book, the hangman of London ends up being hanged because he is one of the instigators of the riots. I wonder why this book has not garnered more attention. It is quite good. Dickens shows how a mob can get out of control. The riot scenes are quite graphic. This is not one of the prouder moments of the history of London.
Admittedly a lesser known work by Dickens, I found it a great read. Sure, it's a bit slow in the early chapters, but what part of any Dickens work doesn't have its moments. The cast of characters is diverse, as usual, and bring different social circumstances to the Gordon Riots in 1780 England. The chapters devoted to the Riot itself are packed with action that kept me reading far past my normal quitting time. More importantly, Dickens paints a vivid picture of both religious persecution and the irrational and unpredictable quality of a widespread riot. With brief references to the War for Independence, the novel serves as a solid insight into some of the thinking that led our Founding Fathers to enshrine fundamental liberties in the Bill of Rights.
The academic review that precedes the novel is a waste of time for any reader for enjoyment and a perfect example of the horrid quality of writing in academia today. The reviewer needs to spend less time assembling critical comment and spend some time learning how to write like Dickens.
The book was g.reat for the value but the story is not one of my favorites by Dickens. But do love just about anything he writes. His style is one of a kind
Not one of Dickens well known titles. A dark story that lays the characters and their surroundings in great detail. Not the easiest of language to digest quickly but beautifully constructed and a story that keeps moving and makes the reader want to move along just to see who gets their well deserved come uppance. Not a summer beach read, more a winter's evening spread over a couple of weeks.
After a lifetime of knowing about this work only "Here comes Poe with his raven, like Barnaby Rudge,/Three-fifths of him genius, and two-fifths pure fudge," I finally read this, sometimes called Dickens' least-known novel; and almost immediately started rereading it. True, I had a research reason for immediate rereading; but find it holds up better, perhaps, the second time around. True, Dickens is particularly weak with his female characters in this one, most of them being incredibly tedious as sexist "comic relief," and the two heroines seeming sympathetic only by dint of being young. The only lady who really interests me is Barnaby's mother. But many of the male characters don't come off much better. There is a very interesting villain of the suave and polite variety, whose principal opponent is rather smoldering and almost equally interesting; and I can't help but like Gabriel Varden the locksmith (who by one account was very nearly the title character). By and large, however, it is Barnaby himself and his raven Grip who make this novel rewarding to read.
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