The Pickwick Papers
Dickens’ first novel was originally written and published as a serial. It is a comedy relating the misadventures of the members of The Pickwick Club, whose main purpose is to discover and relate quaint and curious phenomena of social life and customs throughout England. This quest takes the members to all parts of the country, travelling by coach and sampling the comforts or otherwise of various coaching inns.
Stats for nerds
1recommend
13mentions
13people
2010–2026years
8% recommend92% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- I'm English and I think this list is terrible. It won't help you understand this country except for the narrow section of opinion that went mad after the Brexit vote.
I won't make an alternative list but reading The Pickwick Papers will give more profit than this whole list.
- I haven’t gotten to Bleak House, yet, but find I have to read Dickens with certain level of focus, and there are often so many characters that I had to reread to memorize them and picture them in my mind, for instance the party of friends we meet in The Pickwick Papers or the diverse set of people and locations in the first few chapters of A Tale of Two Cities - it’s the use of in media res maybe contributing to my off balance (and this was a book I already read once a long time ago).
- > dense, historical style
I confess, a similar thought flittered across my mind as I was reading. I was reminded of a style of writing that I had long since put behind me. That style is a slog. I enjoyed a year of intense study in literature back in 1977. I don't have the literary chops anymore, or the patience to get through Infinite Jest, let alone re-read Moby Dick or Pickwick Papers.
But, you do know better: dense is a much better word than verbose, or my rather harsh purple prose. You are kind.
Still, do you think it's okay to end a sentence with bygone? I'm going to check the HN guidelines and get back to you on that one.
- For my generation (just post-Boomer), it was the TV.
For my parents, it was the radio.
For their parents, reading out loud for everyone to enjoy ("Mr. Dickens has published another episode of The Pickwick Papers!"), or playing instruments.
- Hmmm. FWiW that was another literary jest, you know, what with Dickens famously:
...Dickens's literary success began with the 1836 serial publication of The Pickwick Papers, a publishing phenomenon that sparked Pickwick merchandise and spin-offs.His novels, most of them published in monthly or weekly instalments, pioneered the serial publication of narrative fiction, which became the dominant Victorian mode for novel publication. - > I just give you two books that you've read and you tell me which is better.
I can't wait to compare The Pickwick Papers against The Unfolding of Language.
