Our Mutual Friend
by Charles Dickens
published
1978
(first published 1865)
by Bounty Books
edit
binding
Hardcover, 857 pages
isbn
051725705X
(isbn13: 9780517257050)
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of this book.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
lists with this book
Where's the love? Add this book to your favorite list.
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 1576)
Before Goodreads, before the Internet (aka the dark ages) I kept a list of Books Read and I've finally added them all in here. On that list is Our Mutual Friend. The title is right there, in my handwriting. So I must have read it. As it is 900 pages long, you would think I'd remember it, but I don't. In fact I had thought it was the one remaining Big Dickens I hadn't read & was saving it for a rainy day, or 90 rainy days. Now I am wondering if I was possibly not sober when I added it to my B...more
Like this review?
yes
(4 people liked it)
26 comments
I don't know if I was supertired or Dickens gawt slawppy, but I spent three pages last night thinking I was reading about the inner life of a dinner table the family had nicknamed "Twemlow".
The confusing to passage: There was an innocent piece of dinner-furniture that went upon easy castors and was kept over a livery stable-yard in Duke Street, Saint James's, when not in use, to whom the Veneerings were a source of blind confusion. The name of this article was Twemlow. Being first cousin to Lord Snigsworth, he was in frequent requisition, and at many houses might be said to represent the dining-table in its normal state. Mr and Mrs Veneering, for example, arranging a dinner, habitually started with Twemlow, and then put leaves in him, or added guests to him. Sometimes, the table consisted of Twemlow and half a dozen leaves; sometimes, of Twemlow and a dozen leaves; sometimes, Twemlow was pulled out to his utmost extent of twenty leaves. Mr and Mrs Veneering on occasions of ceremony faced each other in the centre of the board, and thus the parallel still held; for, it always happened that the more Twemlow was pulled out, the further he found himself from the center, and nearer to the sideboard at one end of the room, or the window-curtains at the other. ...more
The confusing to passage: There was an innocent piece of dinner-furniture that went upon easy castors and was kept over a livery stable-yard in Duke Street, Saint James's, when not in use, to whom the Veneerings were a source of blind confusion. The name of this article was Twemlow. Being first cousin to Lord Snigsworth, he was in frequent requisition, and at many houses might be said to represent the dining-table in its normal state. Mr and Mrs Veneering, for example, arranging a dinner, habitually started with Twemlow, and then put leaves in him, or added guests to him. Sometimes, the table consisted of Twemlow and half a dozen leaves; sometimes, of Twemlow and a dozen leaves; sometimes, Twemlow was pulled out to his utmost extent of twenty leaves. Mr and Mrs Veneering on occasions of ceremony faced each other in the centre of the board, and thus the parallel still held; for, it always happened that the more Twemlow was pulled out, the further he found himself from the center, and nearer to the sideboard at one end of the room, or the window-curtains at the other. ...more
Like this review?
yes
(2 people liked it)
7 comments
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
Lovers of language
I started by listening to this book on my iPod via audiobooks. The story is so complex and the language so achingly well done that I finally bought it just to look at the words because hearing them is not enough.
Reading them is better. I believe this is Dickens' last work; it may well be his best. It's long (the guy was paid by the word) but, like all his works, it is well worth the effort.
Reading them is better. I believe this is Dickens' last work; it may well be his best. It's long (the guy was paid by the word) but, like all his works, it is well worth the effort.
Like this review?
yes
(2 people liked it)
26 comments
Read in July, 2007
Along with the usual(I find hilarious)Dickensian caricatures, this book contains one of my most passionate literary crushes, Mr. Eugene Wrayburn. I love Dickens and enjoy novels, but I've rarely wished so much that I could meet a character in real life. Eugene is hilarious and suffers from ennui, observe: "'Generally, I confess myself a man to be doubted,' returned Eugene, coolly, 'for all that.' 'Why are you?' asked the sharp Miss Wren. 'Because, my dear,' said the airy Eugene, 'I am a bad...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Dickens' last full novel, and his best in my opinion. Will the aristocratic Eugene seduce the noble working-class Lizzie, or repent? Will Lizzie's obsessed schoolmaster suitor come to a bad end that reflects the 1860s fad for detective stories and sensational crimes? Will the headstrong Bella eventually repent of her obsession with marrying money? Will everyone good wind up married and/or rich anyway? Will the scenes in the taxidermist's shop be creepy, but in a really genial way?
It's Dicken...more
It's Dicken...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Read in November, 2005
Dickens doesn't get any better than this. The heroines are complex and engaging, and he has *so* much to say about the state of his corrupt society. It's really more about money than anything else. Not a single character (from Lizzie, who'd prefer not to think about money, to Bella the "mercenary little wretch", to Charley, the ACTUAL mercenary wretch, to Mr. Boffin and Mr. Wegg and the Lammles) doesn't benefit from the (mis)fortunes of anyone else, which is sort of universally true.
...more
...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Read in September, 2007
recommends it for:
I. J. Reilly
The book introduces itself as a satire about the peril of money, but Dickens quickly dispenses with this device, as he dispenses with his criticism of the law in Bleak House, and takes up again his (and my) cherished themes: the prison that is social inequality, the hopelessness of achieveing "authenticity", and the importance of being extremely attractive. Yes, there is disfigurement! Yes, there are Jews! Yes, there is a VERY creepy sexual undercurrent. (Similar to Sologub's Petty Dem...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
One of my favorite Dickens' books. Much darker in material and tone than his other works. Some of the best characters I have ever read. Dickens portrayal of Headstone portrays obsession frighteningly accurately. Money, murder, and obsession populate every page. Highly recommended!
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Read in October, 2008
Charles Dickens' penultimate novel, and last complete one, is a compendium of the best and worst of his art. The characters are present, perhaps too many, but they lack the fresh life an spirit of earlier works like Dombey & Son or Bleak House.
The metaphors are present, but the waters of Our Mutual Friend are dark and foreboding, ultimately leading to death; while the waters of earlier works, such as Dombey again, hold the promise of life. It seems that Dickens is worn out and it shows in ...more
The metaphors are present, but the waters of Our Mutual Friend are dark and foreboding, ultimately leading to death; while the waters of earlier works, such as Dombey again, hold the promise of life. It seems that Dickens is worn out and it shows in ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
recommends it for:
Lovers of good stories, great characters, and any & all writers of fiction
In the same vein as Aqua Net, jelly shoes, and locker rooms, the great Dickens was to be left behind along with most memories of my adolescence. A Christmas Carol, A Tale of Two Cities, and Oliver Twist were more than enough from this Victorian monolith to saturate my tolerance for sentimentalism and melodrama. Yet, I've recently set myself on a literary odyssey to rediscover what makes these classics such enduring pieces, and the journey has certainly paid off in tenfold. ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in August, 2008
Dickens certainly knows how to weave a story! Our Mutual Friend revolves around the death of John Harmon. Harmon, whose estranged father willed him the Harmon estate on the condition that he marry Bella Wilfer--a woman wholly unknown to him, is murdered at sea on his return home to claim his fortune. With this as the basis of the story, we are then introduced to a spattering of characters either directly or indirectly involved in the Harmon matter. It is superbly written, inducing laughter, ...more
Like this review?
yes
4 comments
Read in March, 2008
recommends it for:
Anyone with a little bit of patience
This is the second Dickens book I've read after A Tale of Two Cities, and I was familiar with the story from watching the BBC miniseries. Maybe it was because of watching the movie adaptation (where some parts were cut or sped along) that I found the book very...scattered. There are so many plot lines and characters that it could almost have been a volume of collected short stories that slightly overlap. Some of the characters were not my favorites to read about (Wegg and Venus, and espec...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in February, 2008
It is really amazing how creative a mind Dickens' was, to have created so many characters over roughly four decades, and each of them so well-crafted and loved - no doubt bearing some similarity to Jenny Wren's dolls. Even the truly awful characters like Rogue Riderhood, Bradley Headstone and Veneerings have found soft-spots in many readers (or maybe I am alone in this opinion?). It took a while to figure out how all the various threads came together, and it was well worth the effort. Just no...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in April, 2008
Intrigue, murder, mistaken identity, double cross, double agents, spies and other nefarious aspects of 19th century England.
This extremely long novel by Charles Dickens has more characters and more story lines that I could keep track of.
Some of the characters I did get to know, whether I wanted to or not:
The Veneerings -- Empty spaces inside human skin. The chapters with the Veneerings in them seemed like wasted reading time to me, although G.K. Chesterton argued that they were the highli...more
This extremely long novel by Charles Dickens has more characters and more story lines that I could keep track of.
Some of the characters I did get to know, whether I wanted to or not:
The Veneerings -- Empty spaces inside human skin. The chapters with the Veneerings in them seemed like wasted reading time to me, although G.K. Chesterton argued that they were the highli...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2005
When I first read this book several years ago, I enjoyed it until the end, which I felt left Bella simultaneously over-manipulated and unreasonably expected to be grateful for it. When I reread it last month, it seemed to me I had missed the generosity of both Dickens and John Harmon in arranging all things precisely for and out of love for Bella. She's not Dickens' most endearing ("little") woman --Lizzie in this novel is much better -- but after the many hundreds of pages of Dickens'...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I really like the made for tv version of this book that BBC made several years ago, and enjoy the story. However, something about the book was extremely tedious and I was never able to complete it. I'm really not a big fan of Charles Dickens, though I still have not read "Tale of Two Cities", or "Prince and the Pauper" and "A Christmas Carol" so maybe and should withold judgement on him until I read those first. I have read "Great Expectations" and thought...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in May, 2004
Our Mutual Friend, Dickens’ last complete novel, follows the fortunes of kind-hearted and generous Mr. and Mrs. Boffin; their mysterious secretary Mr. Rokesmith; willful, beautiful, and spoiled Miss Bella Wilfer; and numerous other characters as their lives are drawn together and changed by the notorious Harmon Murder. The many intricate and seemingly unrelated plot lines wind their way through a wonderful Dickensian world to a rather surprising but thoroughly satisfying denouement. Dickens’...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
Any Dickens Lover
I have been pleasantly surprised how much I am enjoying this book. I have been a Dickens fan since high school. I have read most of his well known works, but haven't read anything by him in a while. It is a great story & I love reading it. A great plot about a dustman who inherits a fortune and all the subplots that surround the death of the dustman's benefactor. His characters are wonderfully described with humor & the names of the characters are perfect for their personality. I am rea...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in December, 2007
A fascinating melange of Dickens' writing styles in this his last completed novel. Spanning acid social satire to the treacly maudlin, Our Mutual Friend provides some of Dickens' best character studies within a plot framework whose artifice stretches the reader's credulity to breaking point. It appears that Dickens attempted to make amends for his negative depiction of a Jewish character (Fagin, in Oliver Twist) by presenting the noble, gentle and much maligned Riah in Our Mutual Friend. The par...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I took this book with me to the beach one evening and cannot say which I enjoyed more, Dickens masterpiece or the magnificent sunset. It is my third time reading this book and I so enjoy the characters and plot. My favorites are Eugene Wrayburn and Lizzie, although Bella does grow on you. Mrs Boffin is splendid and Jenny Wren so peculiar and quaint. Lizzie and John Harmon are the principled, good sort of people who remain their upright static selves. Eugene and Bella are more human, impulsive, f...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
