The characters, story and writing are all pretty great. Sometimes the plot twists and coincidences are a bit much. The too-neat smarmy wrap up at the end was a little annoying. The Jewish caricature was kind of weird.

In 9th grade I read "Great Expectations." From that experience, I decided I had no interest in Charles Dickens and, despite my love of reading, never gave any of his books a chance. What a mistake! I LOVE Oliver Twist and have thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I can't wait to read more of his works, and learn more about Dickens.

So surprised by how much I loved this! Charles Dickens is hilarious!!

I enjoy Dickens' wry sense of humor, and I like the vigor with which he condemns the social evils of his time, but at some point in every one of his books I've read there's a moment where I can't help but reflect on how obvious it is that he was being paid by the installment. Twice in the novel Oliver finds a generous older benefactor who elevates him from the crime and misery into which he's been pulled, only for Oliver to be kidnapped back to his previous life. There's a chapter where Oliver's patroness Rose Maylie becomes ill for no reason and nearly dies, and it does nothing to evolve any of the characters or to move the plot in any way.

The other weird thing about this one, for me, is that relative to something like 'Great Expectations,' Oliver is barely a character in his own story. He exists to suffer and to be pitied, and I'm not sure that at any point in the story he makes an effectual decision. He barely appears in the last third of the book, which is all about the machinations of the people around him. The book mostly gets away with it on the strength of the supporting cast, but it's odd. Worth reading, but not my favorite of Dickens' works.

I read an abridged version as a kid, and reading the full story now as an adult I can see why I adored so much then. A must read for any fan of classic literature.

Quattro stelle perché:
- Dickens descrive con sarcasmo spiazzante la cattiveria dell'Inghilterra perbene e non;
- I personaggi cattivi sono davvero terrorizzanti, specialmente nelle scene con Oliver;
- Nancy è incredibile.

Non cinque perché:
- Tutto il retroscena sul passato e la nascita di Oliver mi è sembrato troppo artificioso;
- I personaggi buoni (perlopiù femminili) sono poco tratteggiati, quasi stereotipati, e le loro scene con Oliver sono troppo smielate.

The silliest trope in 19th century British literature is the reveal that all the random disparate characters were family all along it's so funny