Hooray, this is the wrap-up I've longed to write for years, and it's taken almost a decade to get here! At last I've completed every single one of Charles Dickens' major completed novels. They're finally done and dusted, read and reviewed. That's a lot of plucky orphan kids, saintly young women, and London grime. For your edification and entertainment (and to save you the slog of reading them all) I'm about to reveal my Top 5. These are the novels which I not only might, but definitely will re-read.
Note: I'm not including novellas, short stories, or unfinished works. That's why A Christmas Carol, despite being everyone's sentimental favorite, is ineligible to make the list.
My aim has been to present teasers rather than spoilers but tread carefully anyway. So counting backwards from my fifth favorite to very top pick, here they are!
5) Oliver Twist
There is far more to this story than a little workhouse boy daring to say, 'Please Sir, I want some more.' Nor is its central focus creepy old Fagin's abysmal factory that churns out young criminals. The fact that certain colorful aspects spring to our collective unconscious mind proves how brimful this classic is of iconic moments. But poor young Oliver has a dastardly, behind-the-scenes, older brother who we'd never hear of if we didn't do ourselves the favor of reading the book. The novel is a scathing indictment of the harsh Victorian society in which Dickens lived. If his era's version of charity looked cruel and soul crushing, he had a obligation to make that clear, but Dickens has also made it simultaneously delightful.
4) Great Expectations
Our hero, Pip, allows strokes of good fortune to mold him into a proper snob. That's why it's such an entertaining blast to share that pivotal moment when he discovers the *real* identity of his secret benefactor. It is definitely not the person he assumes it to be. I enjoy immersive bildungsroman tales, and this one takes its main character full circle to renewed humility. Lucky breaks may prove to be fortunate indeed, but not necessarily in the way they seem at first. It takes time and character development to draw out the nuances. And as an Aussie, I appreciate the offstage subtext that exiles to the Colony willing to work hard may have had more opportunity to change their lives than it first appeared.
3) Little Dorrit
This one makes my list because Dickens shows how sudden financial windfalls may shape any personality in detrimental ways. Even goody-goody title character, Amy, loses her mojo when her purpose to be a self-sacrificing drudge is taken away. It's quite chilling to see good fortune turn her snobbish father into a nervous wreck. We also have two characters I can't ever forget, Miss Wade and her follower, Tattycorum, who view the world through the lens of their own paranoia, which is far from accurate. Second guessing the impressions of others may give us a distorted pseudo-reality which nonetheless seems totally true to us. That revelation alone makes this one of my personal game-changing novels. It is such a psychologically immersive character study.
2) Our Mutual Friend
Three male characters earn its high spot for me. Bradley Headstone is an insanely dangerous and jealous wacko, yet he's the school teacher! Young Fledgeby is so disgustingly foul and hypocritical for somebody who presents such an innocent and upstanding face. And Eugene Wrayburn is the sort of smart-aleck who elicits fist pumps from me whenever he opens his mouth. But when a smooth and confident smart-aleck decides to mess with a thwarted lunatic, he's playing with fire. Even Dickens' inevitable 'good girl' character earns my admiration easier than his usual blindly loyal, spiritless saints. Lizzie Hexam will not cave in to pressure to marry a man she doesn't love, and she rescues the man her heart chooses in a stunning way. Solid gold.
1) A Tale of Two Cities
I find this such an outstanding Number One. It is surely one of the best French Revolution novels ever written. By showing extreme partisanship from characters on both sides of the Channel, Dickens proves singlehandedly how human nature is the toxic ingredient that promotes war. It is still so relevant in the 21st century. As for the characters who are drawn into the chaos, I'll surely never come across another doppelganger story that ticks my boxes as much as this one focused on Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. As soon as I got to the part about Sydney's breathtaking sacrificial gesture, I knew instantly this must skyrocket to my all time favorite Dickens novel. It is thoroughly devastating, breathtakingly suspenseful, and also highly romantic.
But wait, there's more!
Now, check out the following tables for some very revealing statistics. First off is the haphazard order in which I read the 14 completed major works and ticked them off over almost a decade. I've highlighted my Five Favorites in red.
Table 1: My mood-led, unsystematic reading of Dickens' major works
2017 The Pickwick Papers
2017 Great Expectations
2018 David Copperfield
2019 Our Mutual Friend
2020 Bleak House
2021 A Tale of Two Cities
2021 Martin Chuzzlewit
2022 Dombey and Son
2023 Oliver Twist
2023 Little Dorrit
2024 Hard Times
2024 Nicholas Nickleby
2025 Barnaby Rudge
2026 The Old Curiosity Shop
This indicates that my Top Five were spread across the board, as I'd expected. 2023 was an excellent Dickens year for me, yet in more recent years, I've found the quest a bit grinding, which shows. But it's only when I compare my reading list with the actual order in which they were written, that a revealing insight emerges.
Table 2: Charles Dickens' Major Works - The Publication Order
1836 The Pickwick Papers
1837 Oliver Twist
1838 Nicholas Nickleby
1840 The Old Curiosity Shop
1841 Barnaby Rudge
1843 Martin Chuzzlewit
1846 Dombey and Son
1849 David Copperfield
1852 Bleak House
1854 Hard Times
1855 Little Dorrit
1859 A Tale of Two Cities
1860 Great Expectations
1864 Our Mutual Friend
Wow, it appears I accidentally but undeniably favored Dickens' later works by far, with the exception of Oliver, which was evidently an outlier. On the strength of this I'm willing to believe I might've found the Mystery of Edwin Drood to be absolutely mind-blowing, if only he'd lived to finish it. This may be my unintentional statistical tribute to a man who was cut down in his creative prime. When Dickens died at the age of 58, I have no reason to believe he wasn't still on his upward trajectory.
Of course your Top Five and subsequent tables might look completely different from mine. To be honest, I'm steeling myself for a bit of friendly protest that neither David Copperfield nor Bleak House make my final cut as I know they are greatly loved by many. Indeed, were I to extend my list, I'd place DC in sixth place. I was surprised myself that when tally time came, I placed five others above it.
Do I have a wooden spoon award? Yes, it's probably a tie between Barnaby Rudge and Dombey & Son for least enjoyable. And for a title which pleasantly surprised me, Martin Chuzzlewit.
Please do check out my entire What the Dickens page, where you'll find my thorough reviews of every single one, along with even more discussions.
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