A Tale of Two Cities

by Charles Dickens

book data

49,327 ratings, 3.74 average rating, 2,227 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		29%
4		31%
3		24%
2		9%
1		4%

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published

May 27th 2003 (first published 1859) by Penguin Classics

binding

Paperback, 544 pages

characters

Sydney Carton, Charles Darnay, Lucie Manette

isbn

0141439602 (isbn13: 9780141439600)

description

Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Richard Maxwell.

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01/23/08

Melissa rated it:

bookshelves: teach-it

Read in May, 2009

My primary goal when I'm teaching A Tale of Two Cities to my sophomores is to make them realize that Charles Dickens didn't write creaky, dusty long novels that teachers embraced as a twisted rite of passage for teenagers. Instead, I want them them to understand why Dickens was ~~one of~~ the most popular writers in England and America during his time. I want them to see the book as the suspenseful, comedic, and sentimental piece of entertainment that it is. Because, while A Tale of Two Cities is...more My primary goal when I'm teaching A Tale of Two Cities to my sophomores is to make them realize that Charles Dickens didn't write creaky, dusty long novels that teachers embraced as a twisted rite of passage for teenagers. Instead, I want them them to understand why Dickens was ~~one of~~ the most popular writers in England and America during his time. I want them to see the book as the suspenseful, comedic, and sentimental piece of entertainment that it is. Because, while A Tale of Two Cities is masterfully written with sly humor, densely meaningful descriptions, a cast of quirky characters only Dickens could create, an endless series of telling binaries and foils, and relevant social commentary about the French Revolution as well as Dickens' time, it is also simply a damn good story. By a damn good storyteller.

I have a difficult time writing reviews about books that I adore because, when I'm not reading them, I hug them too closely to be very critical. (BTW - I frequently hug A Tale of Two Cities in front of my students... and write Charles Dickens' name with hearts around it... They think I'm crazy, but it intrigues some of them just enough to make them doubt the derisive comments of upperclassmen.) I reluctantly admit that Dickens does oversimplify the causes of the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror; however, in doing so, he successfully captures the spirit of a tumultuous period and helps readers sympathize with characters on every side of the developing conflict. I also think that the characters of Roger Cly and John Barsad get a bit messy and may have worked better as a single character. Perhaps the confusion is a result of serialization restructuring. But, really, I read A Tale of Two Cities like a costumed Lord of the Rings fan at a movie premier. I cheer when my favorite characters enter scenes and I knowingly laugh when Dickens cleverly foreshadows future events.

Though I don't think that A Tale of Two Cities is Dickens' best novel--that title I would reserve for either Bleak House or David Copperfield--I do agree with Dickens, who claims that it was his best story. It is artfully written. Dickens introduces a cast of characters, sprawled across two nations and spanning varied social classes and political affiliations, and then effortlessly weaves their stories and secrets together in a masterful way. The Modernist movement painstakingly forced literature to reflect the ambiguities and uncertainties of the real world and that's great, but sometimes it is a real joy to read a story that ends with such magnificent closure. All mysteries are solved and everything makes sense. It is beautiful.

(I have to admit that I was overjoyed when a group of my fifth period girls persistently voiced their disdain for Dickens' angel in the house Lucie and backed Madame Defarge. I think they may have created a Madame Defarge myspace, actually. Oh how the times have changed.)

"Ms. R--, you got me." "What?" "At the beginning of this book, you said you would get some of us. And that we would love it. You got me." I didn't get you G--. Charles Dickens did. I just introduced you.

Quote:

"A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other."(less)

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02/09/08

Leslie rated it:

Most satisfying ending in the English language.

Yes, the last line is a classic ("It is a far, far better thing ..."), concluding, in astonishingly concise language (for Dickens), the peace and redemption of the story's most poignant romantic hero. But this novel delivers such a gratifying experience because there are, in fact, many characters who cover significant emotional ground in their journey to love one woman as best they can.

Lucie's father battles hi...more

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06/12/08

Laura rated it:

bookshelves: classic, perennial-favorite

Years of teaching this novel to teenagers never dimmed my thrill in reading it — if anything, I grew to love it more every time I watched kids gasp aloud at the revelations! Critics are divided on its place in the Dickens canon, but the ones who think it an inferior work are simply deranged. It has everything: dark deeds, revolution, madness, love, thwarted love, forgiveness, revenge, and a stunning act of self-sacrifice. And melodrama! Oh, how Dickens loved melodrama, but in A Tale of Two Cit...more

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12/02/07

Banzai rated it:

Read in November, 2007

This was the only book I remember enjoying from my high school English classes. Re-reading it twelve years later I can see why I liked it so much--and still do.

Dickens lays it on pretty thick in parts and is perhaps trying too hard to evoke the passions and bloodlust of the French Revolution. And as lovely as dear Lucie Mannette is, she's pretty unbearable by modern women's standards. But don't worry, Dickens isn't a misogynist. He more than makes up for Lucie in the characters of Ma...more This was the only book I remember enjoying from my high school English classes. Re-reading it twelve years later I can see why I liked it so much--and still do.

Dickens lays it on pretty thick in parts and is perhaps trying too hard to evoke the passions and bloodlust of the French Revolution. And as lovely as dear Lucie Mannette is, she's pretty unbearable by modern women's standards. But don't worry, Dickens isn't a misogynist. He more than makes up for Lucie in the characters of Madame Defarge and Miss Pross. Their strength, resolve, and particularly Madame Defarge's intelligence and leadership leave no doubts that Dickens respects women.

The beginning of the novel is also a bit difficult and choppy. I don't think it's simply a matter of adjusting to his style of English; I think his prose smoothed out considerably after the first few chapters.

He also has this annoying tendency towards intentional obtuseness. The technique occasionally pays dividends, but mostly it's just frustrating as a reader to wait for him to explain what the hell he's talking about.

But all quibbles aside, A Tale of Two Cities is a remarkable novel.

His storytelling is incredibly cinematic--he himself used the term "picturesque" to describe his approach--with many scenes and setups that are perfect examples of the sorts of visual storytelling prescribed by screenwriting how-to books. I'm convinced that had Dickens lived today, he would have been an incredible screenwriter.

And though the novel is set within and inextricably linked to the French Revolution, it is not about the French Revolution. That setting is used as a spectacular backdrop within which Dickens weaves an intricate and tightly plotted tale. It never forgets that first and foremost it is telling the characters' story, not merely recounting history.

And the last chapter is just incredible. I was crying while reading it on the train this weekend. And the famous last line--"It's a far better thing..."--is well-worthy of its fame; it's the most profound, beautiful last line of a novel I have ever read.

I'll admit that it's not consistently gripping, that a great bulk of the middle of the novel is merely interesting but not engrossing. But as a means to an end--as a means to that ending--it's entirely acceptable.

Took me about 9.5 hours to read. Not a huge commitment. I strongly recommend giving it a try.(less)

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01/25/08

Tammy rated it:

Read in March, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I dont' know how to summarize my feelings about this book. It's title suggests the tale between England and France, a tale between london and Paris - and perhaps that's how Dicken's intended it. But as I got further and further into the story, to me, it begins to symbolize the tale between two sides - between mercy and vengeance, love and hate, aristocrat and peasant, freedom and oppression, and generations of poverty and tyrany. France goes from Monarchy to Anarchy to Empire in a span of 20 yea...more I dont' know how to summarize my feelings about this book. It's title suggests the tale between England and France, a tale between london and Paris - and perhaps that's how Dicken's intended it. But as I got further and further into the story, to me, it begins to symbolize the tale between two sides - between mercy and vengeance, love and hate, aristocrat and peasant, freedom and oppression, and generations of poverty and tyrany. France goes from Monarchy to Anarchy to Empire in a span of 20 years, and the turmoil, bloodlust, and hysteria of the French Revolution serve as the backdrop to some of the most engrossing chacracters I have ever encountered in Literature. The main characters, Lucie and Darney, are simple and under-developed. But Doctor Manette (incidently, I could not help but draw parallels between Manette and Hugo's Jean ValJean), Sydney Carton, Madame Defarge, and Miss Pross grow from tragic backgrounds into the strength of the novel. They rise from ashes to bring about intense and remarkable ends.
I struggled through the first part of the book, and then somehow got to a point where I couldn't put it down, and it all came down to the last chapter, for me. It was an ending I did not see coming, and found myself actually tearing up (which I have rarely done with a book) as Carton stood in line, holding the hand of a young girl, stoic and brave to face the guillotine. And his last line - "It is a far, far better thing that I do..." is one of the most beautiful and moving last lines of a book I have ever read.
I also cheered when Miss Pross stood before Madame, fiercly giving her line "I am your match". I could see it in my mind, two women - one aggresive and unrelenting in her power and leadership, dangerous and horrifying in her manical desire for revenge, and the other - defiant and protective, and unmoving because of love for her Lucie, and her will to protect her at all costs.
I have loved reading a novel where weak ones become strong in character, and where women are so portrayed in strength.
I don't think I will ever forget two moments in this book - when Monseignor's carriage kills a child, and he stands harassing the people for their carelessness, and all around look down, cowered and not meeting this gaze, except for Madame Defarge, who stands, steadily meeting his eye with a look of stone resolve. One begins to understand how the people of France emotionally came to a place where they could rise up in frenzied revenge, without mercy or pity. (Interesting, also, that Dicken's portrays two kinds of aristocrats here - Monsiegnor, who you feel deserves the anger and uprising from the people, and his fate, and Darnay, who is innocent, and even sympathizes with their plight, and who does not deserve to be targeted - two types of high society, and from both sides, thousands sent to the guillotine).
The second is when Carton has arranged his plans, and has set in motion his path to save Darney, and thus, the heart and life of Lucie, and the night before he sacrifices himself in one last great act of selflessness and love, he stands in the darkness before her window, closes his eyes, and whispers a blessing, resolved and redeemed.
This is the kind of love you hope to be able to experience - where your love and care and all that you do and feel is so strong and motivating for another, that you can set aside all you hold dear, even your own life, for the preservation of their happiness and all that THEY hold dear.
This is truly love - a pure, peaceful, life-changing love that, to me, upholds every one of Christ's teachings and ring's true the RS motto - Charity never faileth.
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11/14/07

Sarah Beth rated it:

bookshelves: fiction

Read in January, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I've never really gotten the hang of the classics - I don't know if it's that I don't make enough of an effort to really get into the language or if I haven't tried reading enough of them or if I just tend to prefer contemporary styles and topics.

So, I decided to read this on DailyLit (which is why it took me a full three months to read, a few sections at a time, first thing in the morning). And it took me a long time to get into - I didn't mind reading it, but I wasn't terribly mov...more I've never really gotten the hang of the classics - I don't know if it's that I don't make enough of an effort to really get into the language or if I haven't tried reading enough of them or if I just tend to prefer contemporary styles and topics.

So, I decided to read this on DailyLit (which is why it took me a full three months to read, a few sections at a time, first thing in the morning). And it took me a long time to get into - I didn't mind reading it, but I wasn't terribly moved by the people or stories... until, that is, about the last quarter or so of the book when it turns into a romantic's dream - and here's where the spoiler starts - ultimate sacrifices in the name of love (and not just romantic love), the irony of the oppressed becoming that which they hate, the excitement of a daring escape!

Charles returns to France, from which he long ago fled to escape the horrors of his aristocratic family. Even his wife doesn't know about his family's heritage, though, because he uses an assumed name, and his father-in-law asks him, as a wedding day favor, to keep it mum... we later learn why...

So Charles returns to save a former servant who has been condemned to die, as so many have as the oppressed peasants become to oppressors in the name of the Republic. He, of course, is imprisoned; when his wife and father-in-law learn of his fate (intimately involved with the guillotine), the rush to rescue him and do, for a moment, until the loving FIL's own, and ancient, words are used against them.

But a long-forgotten suitor-hopeful of Charles' wife returns and sacrifices himself in Charles' stead so that his love won't know life without her beloved husband - he even has to trick Charles into the swap!

I'll admit, I was all blubbery at the end... as much as I love DailyLit, I think it's true purpose - to encourage people to go out and buy the books - has worked on me - now I want to curl up with an actual copy and burn through it - maybe I'll see the compelling parts of the first chunk that way...(less)

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06/25/07

Brad rated it:

bookshelves: novel

A great multi-sited novel centering on the French revolution.

My generic comment about Charles Dickens:
First of all, although I am a partisan of Dickens' writing and have read and relished most his works, I concede to three flaws in his oeuvre that are not insignificant. First, while he seemed to develop an almost endless variety of male social types, his female characters are much less well developed. Second, although he portrayed the stark brutality of economic and class inequ...more

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09/22/08

Lori Anderson rated it:

Read in October, 2008

***** SPOILER ALERT -- IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK, GO NO FURTHER! ******

"A Tale of Two Cities" is one of those books that a lot of people THINK they've read, but never have, because it has an ending that nearly everyone knows -- one man trades his life for another under the guillitine. I knew how it ended, but also knew I'd never read the book, and felt it was high time to get on with it.

There's a lot more to it than just swapping Man A with Man B. Th...more

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03/25/08

Brad rated it:

bookshelves: classic, most-hated

A painful beast of a book. It took me five attempts to get past page one hundred, and when I finally did break that barrier I pressed on until the very end so that I didn't have to suffer ever again.

Dickens is a problem for me. I admit it freely.

There was a time, many years ago, when I was a fan. I read Great Expectations for the first time in grade four, and I was in love with the book and Dickens. And I imagine that some part of my social consciousness, which wasn't a g...more A painful beast of a book. It took me five attempts to get past page one hundred, and when I finally did break that barrier I pressed on until the very end so that I didn't have to suffer ever again.

Dickens is a problem for me. I admit it freely.

There was a time, many years ago, when I was a fan. I read Great Expectations for the first time in grade four, and I was in love with the book and Dickens. And I imagine that some part of my social consciousness, which wasn't a gift from my parents, was planted with the seeds of Dickens.

Over the years, though, Dickens and I have grown apart.

I don't mean that I have "outgrown" him in any sort of condescending manner. It's not the sort of thing I expect anyone else to do, nor is it something that I blame fully on Dickens. No, we've grown apart as many couples do when one person changes through life and experience and the other remains constant.

I have become a radical over the years, and Dickens...well, he's still as bourgeois left as ever, and we're not compatible any more. He venerates the comforts of the middle class; he expounds the virtues of law and order and charity; he attacks the indignities of the abuses of power but only offers imaginary methods for overcoming them, mythologizing the bourgeoisie's ability to overthrow the things that ail us; he vilifies those who seek more radical solutions; and, whether he admits it or not, he still believes in the superiority of nobility and noble blood.

So when he starts to attack the revolutionaries in Paris and uses it to illustrate the "superiority" of civilized English behavior, when Dickens' moral soapbox weighs heavier than his plot, I begin to tune out of his lecture, and A Tale of Two Cities makes me increasingly angry from page to page.

I recognize Dickens' talent. I still love his prose. And I get why people love this book, and maybe even why you do, kind reader, but I can't stand it (and I am finding it increasingly difficult to like any of his work anymore).

I may burn this someday. But I have fully annotated the version I own and while I can burn the words of others (it's the radical in me), my lovely inner narcissist simply can't burn words of my own (unless it is for catharsis). So A Tale of Two Cities will likely survive on my shelf until I die, mocking me from its high perch in my office, whispering that a catharsis that may never come just may be necessary.(less)

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03/02/08

Werner rated it:

bookshelves: classics, historical-fiction

Read in January, 1996

recommends it for: Fans of 19th century fiction

Most of Dickens' novels were set in his own time; this was one of only two forays he made into historical fiction (both of which are set in the time of the generation immediately before his own, for which he could still draw on the impressions of living witnesses) but in it, he managed to produce one of the genre's timeless classics. All of the best traits of his writing are here: his unequaled characterizations, his mastery of plotting, his passionate sense of justice, his ability to evoke the...more Most of Dickens' novels were set in his own time; this was one of only two forays he made into historical fiction (both of which are set in the time of the generation immediately before his own, for which he could still draw on the impressions of living witnesses) but in it, he managed to produce one of the genre's timeless classics. All of the best traits of his writing are here: his unequaled characterizations, his mastery of plotting, his passionate sense of justice, his ability to evoke the atmosphere of his settings, and his capacity, as one critic has said, "to make us care about the things that matter." This is also probably the one novel, besides A Christmas Carol, that most clearly reflects his nondenominational but heartfelt Christian convictions --not so much because of the one passing narrative mention of Christ as "our Saviour," though that type of reference is rare in his writing, as because of the unmistakable Christian symbolism of the novel's climax, which is all the more powerful because its implications are left clear but unstated.

A Tale of Two Cities is also the Dickens novel most charged with socio-political relevance for today, because the present-day hard-core, totalitarian Left was born in the French Revolution (it's not at all surprising that Arthur Koestler's Stalinist characters in Darkness at Noon frequently make comparisons between themselves and the architects of the Terror!) Whole volumes could be written about the connections; but those wouldn't be strictly relevant to a review of a novel by Dickens, whose own perspective was circumscribed by the 19th century. What is relevant, though, is to note that he pegged and delineated the "humanitarian with a guillotine" mindset perfectly, in all of its stark, nauseating ugliness: its vicious self-righteousness, its utter absence of anything resembling compassion or human decency, its mindless group-think, its messianic zeal to create hell on earth in the chimerical pursuit of an imagined heaven on earth, and above all its fundamental moral springs of unbridled psychopathic hate and envy. A reading of this novel could furnish a better understanding of 20th and early 21st century political forces than most "standard" textbooks! (less)

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10/01/07

Meghan Davison rated it:

Read in October, 2007

I started reading this book in an effort to whittle away at my ever-growing "classics to read" list and expected it to be a completely perfunctory experience, so I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I rarely read anything that is older than I am, so the style and syntax were a bit off-putting at times. Dickens' sentences are long and littered with commas, but that was honestly the only thing that made the novel feel dated. Dickens is funny and sarcastic-- and his sarcasm is the...more

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06/25/07

Erin rated it:

Read in October, 2007

recommended to Erin by: Dad

I have learned SO much about the French revolution through reading this. It has given me totally new perspective on government and the lack of it. I just never truly realized that the French revolution was so horrible. I always thought it needed to happen and that Marie Antoinette and the King and the aristocracy needed to go. I never knew how blood hungry these peasants were. Dickens doesn't have one good word to say about those involved in the Revolution; yet he doesn't truly blame them e...more

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10/18/08

Pcames rated it:

Admittedly, I'm not much of Dickens fan. Talk about getting a ton of mileage out of a bad childhood...BUT this book, to me, was riveting. One of the greatest opening lines in ANY novel, one of the greatest anti-heroes of all time, Sydney Carton, and one of the greatest villianesses of all time, Madame LeFarge. And, there have been excellent film adaptatations of this book which is not something I have said more than two or three times in my life. Also, 5 stars automatically to the author that pe...more

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05/31/08

LitMom rated it:

Read in August, 2008

I'm not positive, but am pretty sure that Dickens was living in Venezuela for this past decade when he wrote the book. Apart from that, what memorable characters he created! Who can forget the "honest tradesman" with his spiky hair, rusty fingers, and "flopping" wife? Or dear, dry, dusty Mr. Lorry, still with a twinkle lurking in his eyes in spite of all the years tucked away in dry, dusty Tellons? And the question, "I hope you care to be recalled to life?" O.K.,...more

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05/14/08

Jessica rated it:

Read in June, 2008

recommended to Jessica by: the canon

Um. Wow. The last six chapters were especially amazing. I ride (and read on) the bus every day, and I don't think I've ever missed my stop - until today, deep into the conclusion of this tremendous work. I really like Dickens as a suspense writer. The whole book was very well done, but it was the second half that really did it for me. The way he portrayed the barbarism and perverted law of the French Revolution will stick with me; he made the Guillotine a character.

Plus, there is a w...more

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05/30/08

Sean O'Hare rated it:

Yeah, I know we all had to read Dickens when we were too young and it scarred us for life. Get over it. The guy had mad skills and this is his best (imo) work. Another of the books that I've read more than twice (4 times and counting). If you don't know the story then you have no idea what anyone is talking about when they mention Madame Defarge or Sidney Carton and that's a shame.

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11/04/08

Mike rated it:

Read in October, 2008

The book I read was called A Tale of Two Cities. It was written by Charles Dickens who has written stories such as Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, and David Copperfield. He was born in the 1800’s and bases most of his books on society’s failures such as poverty. This novel is about the French Revolution which was a time where France changed from a monarchy and aristocracy to a country with nationalism, citizenship, and inalienable rights. There is a complex love triangle of Charles Darnay,...more The book I read was called A Tale of Two Cities. It was written by Charles Dickens who has written stories such as Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, and David Copperfield. He was born in the 1800’s and bases most of his books on society’s failures such as poverty. This novel is about the French Revolution which was a time where France changed from a monarchy and aristocracy to a country with nationalism, citizenship, and inalienable rights. There is a complex love triangle of Charles Darnay, Lucie Mannette, and Sydney Carton throughout the book and at the end Carton sacrifices for Charles Darnay to be with Lucie Mannette.
What was interesting in this novel was the complexity and how it all comes together at the end. The book seemed confusing at the start but it began to piece together and make sense toward the end. At the beginning it switched from England to France to England to France and so on. At the end there was one main portion in France where Charles Darnay was going to be executed but Sydney Carton sacrifices himself to feel that his life was meaning something and so that Darnay and Lucie Mannette could be together. That was the best part that I liked in the book. Overall, the second half of the plot and the characters’ complexity were interesting.
One of the weaknesses that I found in the novel was its language. Charles Dickens’ language is a 19th century English which can be a little bit hard to understand. Although it was a little bit of a struggle to read, I managed to get through it. Not only was the language difficult, but Charles Dickens’ plot in the beginning was boring, long and drawn out. The beginning is when Jarvis Lorry gets a message saying “Recalled to Life”. He is told to meet a woman who is Lucie Mannette and they go to her father who has been in jail for 18 years. He was a doctor who was imprisoned for no good reason. Jarvis Lorry says that he can be recalled to life with a little help. From here on it gets a little long. So again the weaknesses of the book are its tough language, and boredom at some points.
Despite the novel’s strong points it was an overall disappointment to read. This is only because I had to struggle for a little trying to keep up with the story and the language. Anyone who likes reading Dickens books would enjoy this because they could see the resemblance in his other stories. They could better understand the book. Also if you like historical fiction you can read any on Dickens books because they all relate to things that have happened historically.
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10/21/08

Sam A. rated it:

A Tale of Two Cities Review
A Tale of Two Cities is a classic novel that takes place at the time period of the French Revolution in the late eighteenth century. Charles Dickens, a British author who also wrote Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol, had it published in 1859 at a time when the danger of social revolution seemed looming in England. In the novel, a collection of protagonists mostly including Lucie Manette, her family, and her friends face the horrors of the French Revolution and ...more A Tale of Two Cities Review
A Tale of Two Cities is a classic novel that takes place at the time period of the French Revolution in the late eighteenth century. Charles Dickens, a British author who also wrote Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol, had it published in 1859 at a time when the danger of social revolution seemed looming in England. In the novel, a collection of protagonists mostly including Lucie Manette, her family, and her friends face the horrors of the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. During the Revolution, ruthless mobs of bloodthirsty peasants avenge their years of oppression by massacring anyone connected to the once equally cruel aristocrats. When the revolutionaries seek to punish Charles Darnay, Lucie Manette’s honorable husband, for being the nephew of the evil Marquis Evermonde, the protagonists must struggle to protect the ones they love.
This novel was extremely well written and had several skillful writing elements. A significant one is the use of symbols for purposes of foreshadowing and artistic representations. For example, Dickens uses peasants slurping up spilled red wine from the streets in Chapter 5 of the first book as both a symbol for their literal hunger and as foreshadowing for when they will soon cram the streets to witness the wine-colored blood of aristocrats splatter onto the ground. Complex symbols such as this made the novel enjoyable and interesting. Another excellent literary style Dickens incorporated into his writing was the use of foils. Many characters, such as the proud Mr. Stryver and the ashamed Sydney Carton had sharply contrasting emotional characteristics, and some characters, such as the pitiless Madame Defarge, had two foils: Lucie Manette and Miss Pross. The use of foils helps the reader empathize with the admirable, yet occasionally flawed protagonists and detest the antagonists.
A Tale of Two Cities is unquestionably categorized as literary fiction, not commercial fiction. As a result of this, readers who expect the novel to possess a fast- moving plot may be disappointed. The plot as a whole was brilliant, but intricately building it took a huge amount of time. Many impatient readers could easily become disengaged from the novel while plodding through the confusing, but in some cases essential dialogues and passages that help build the setting of revolutionary France, the mood of tension and distrust, and the complex relationships between the characters. At times, the beginning chapters are discouraging when the number of characters are constantly being introduced and begin to pile up. The reader is at some times overwhelmed with the multitude of characters, their well-developed personalities, and their variety of nicknames.
Overall, this novel is worth reading because it makes the reader think and it provides more than temporary entertainment. High school readers may struggle getting through it but can find A Tale of Two Cities to be both understandable and enriching with ample amounts of concentration and reflection. This novel suits most audiences, and especially those who enjoy drama but can tolerate gory images being described and chilling thoughts.(less)

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06/21/08

Antiabecedarian rated it:

recommends it for: those who know the book jacket descriptions are always misleading.

My first Dickens.... dicky dicky dicky.... I liked it....

I had been raised to loathe anything "dickeny," because that christmas tale gives me nausea... not for my yiddishness, but on my very own sentiment....
and the costumes in tv movies meant to move us to sentimental old worldishness are revolting... HOW BIG CAN YOUR SIDEBURNS GROW, SON. & WHAT IS THAT BILLYGOAT FLOORSCRAPER BENEATH YR CHIN. Dickensian facial apparati in the modern male is hard to behold, but I'...more

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06/15/08

Mister Jones rated it:

Read in June, 2008

recommended to Mister Jones by: English People
recommends it for: 11th Grade Summer Reading

A tough, but rewarding read.

Chances are very great I would have never read this classic if I wasn't going to teach it. Furthermore, I would have never assigned it to high school students, and I feel guilty for doing so.

It's Dickens, and the language, tone, and approach is acutely Victorian. All the sentimentality of the Victorians are there with Dr. Mannette and his daughter, Luce, as well as with Sidney Carton's own morose, fatalisitc, and subservient behavior. If you co...more

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"I see Barsad, and Cly, Defarge, The Vengeance, the Juryman, the Judge, long ranks of the new oppressors who have risen on the destruction of the old, perishing by this retributive instrument, before it shall cease out of its present use. I see a beautiful city and brilliant people rising from this abyss, and, in their struggles to be truly free, in their triumphs and defeats, through long long years to come, I see the evil of this time and of the previous time of which this is the natural birth, gradually making explanation for itself and wearing it out. " More quotes...