Oliver Twist [Treasury of Illustrated Classics]

by Kathleen Costick (Adapter), Charles Dickens

Introducing young readers to literary classics will be easy with each of the twelve titles in the Treasury of Illustrated Classics series. Each title contains short, concise chapters for easy comprehension and lasting enjoyment. Adorned with beautifully illustrated covers, hardcover editions are a decorative addition to any reader's library.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Classics, Chapter Books

184 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Helen Purdon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not having read the original novel but knowing the story, this is a fast-paced condensed version that is an ok, read-aloud to introduce elementary-age children to the Dickens story. There are cruel and violent inferences and specifics, but for my girls, it was an opportunity to speak plainly about evil, motives, and choices that are to be made.

[Sanz · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was not a good book to read aloud to my young children.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished reading the TREASURY OF ILLUSTRATED CLASSICS version of “OLIVER TWIST” by CHARLES DICKENS. This 2004 book was specially adapted for Young Readers and is Fully Illustrated. Oliver Twist, or The Parish Boy's Progress, is the second novel by Charles Dickens, and was first published as a serial 1837–9. The story is of the orphan Oliver Twist, who starts his life in a workhouse and is then apprenticed with an undertaker. He escapes from there and travels to London where he meets the Artful Dodger, a member of a gang of juvenile pickpockets, which is led by the elderly criminal Fagin.Oliver Twist is notable for Dickens's unromantic portrayal of criminals and their sordid lives, as well as exposing the cruel treatment of the many orphans in London in the mid–nineteenth century. The alternate title, The Parish Boy's Progress, alludes to Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, as well as the 18th-century caricature series by William Hogarth, A Rake's Progress and A Harlot's Progress.An early example of the social novel, Dickens satirizes the hypocrisies of his time, including child labour, the recruitment of children as criminals, and the presence of street children. The novel may have been inspired by the story of Robert Blincoe, an orphan whose account of working as a child labourer in a cotton mill was widely read in the 1830s. It is likely that Dickens's own youthful experiences contributed as well.Oliver Twist has been the subject of numerous adaptations, for various media, including a highly successful musical play, Oliver!, and the multiple Academy Award winning 1968 motion picture. I own the 1985 BBC movie as well as the 2009 Charles Dickens Collection Volume 1.

[Shaleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

The reviews on this cracked me up. Obviously those of you who were shocked by the darkness in this novel have never even heard of Charles Dickens. This book is a great way to introduce children 5+ to the beauty of classic literature & in a way that opens up discussion ab the subjects of socioeconomic development & class differential. My kids are well acquainted with the importance of learning about people who are differ from themselves but sometimes they get a bit spoiled & reminding them of the things they have to be geared for & these types of stories do it in a way that is also time well spent together.

[Bri (the short story guy) · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story!
I've always admired Dickens and think of him as one of the WORLDS greatest writers. They did a superb job w/ this adaptation, I'm looking forward to my kids reading it.
Great expectations was also very well done.

[Melissa French · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good, fast-paced edition for a young reader.

[Delia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not like this book. I don't know if it was the story itself or because it was an adaptation. I didn't expect a children's version to be so dark and violent.

[Joshua · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Cruz Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think that it was sad because Oliver ran away from very cruel people and found someone that helped him and found out that they were thieves that forced him to do robberies with them but found a nice family and got kidnapped by the thieves ran away and over and over till he got to be in a family that will take care of him