Oliver Twist

by Kathleen Olmstead, Dan Andreasen (Illustrations), Charles Dickens

Dickens’ timeless novel transports young readers to a colorful Victorian England filled with mistreated orphans, grim workhouses, and gangs of thieving children. The hero finds himself in dire circumstances after he dares to beg for more food in the orphanage. Determined to make his way in the world, he escapes to London, where he becomes involved with criminals…and finally finds a real home.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Childrens, Historical Fiction, Literature, Historical, Childrens Classics

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1837

About the author

Kathleen Olmstead is the author of several Classic Starts books, including Anne of Avonlea and Moby Dick, as well as Jacques Cousteau: A Life Under the Sea and Matthew Henson: The Quest for the North Pole, both in the Sterling Biographies series.

Reviews

[Ben · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book changes the story. It is not Oliver Twist.
For example, in the scene where Oliver is sent by the robbers through the back window to open the front door, in the original, he decided that, even if he looses his life for it, he will not open the door, but warn the house. In this edition, he decided that the only thing he could do was open the door.
That is a fair representation of the book. Read the original!

[Arsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always heard about Oliver Twist, but I hadn't read it. When I found it lying in my Father's shelf, I was thrilled.

A tale about love, betrayal, and fairness, Oliver Twist does not disappoint. Though at the end, the family twist seemed a little far fetched, I couldn't help but admire Charles Dickens' originally made book. I was thrilled, surprised, and emotional. Oliver Twist is a book that everyone should try to read.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

I insisted hard to finish it, when I read it as a teenage, and when I reread it as a young. It was difficult for me to understand why Oliver is an orphan boy, why I should pity him, and why I should believe that it's almost his fault living so misrable, ...

[Vanessa Allbutt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Charles Dickens books. He has a way of connecting all the characters in a final twist that leaves you feeling satisfied. But I found Oliver Twist less enthralling. A bit too much description of London (which I don't personally know)and I just couldn't appreciate Fagin and his band of thieves. Their conversation was boring (and sometimes hard to understand). Not my favourite of Dickens's books.

[Shivers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so good, even though some bits were sad and some bits were scary. it was a bit like a mystery. I loved the ending. I can't believe Oliver and Rose found each other!

[Linus Van · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will he find his family?

Do you like reading heartbreaking books with a really strange plot, then this book is for you.

Oliver Twist is a classic story about a boy who lost his mother. So he is an orphan. The boss of the orphanage is Mr. Bumble. He gave the name Twist to Oliver. From my point of view Mr. Bumble is my least favorite character because he is arrogant and mean to Oliver. I am certain that Oliver is my favorite character because he is always honest and I think thkat this is really important.

In the book Oliver comes in different families and these families were somehow relate to him. The best scene was when he escaped at the undertakers and landed on the streets of London. A strange boy named Dodger came to him and asked him if he wanted a place to stay. Oliver responded that he will come, but what he didn’t know is that Dodger is a thief. Dodger leads Oliver to Fagin this is Dodger’s boss he is also a thief. Oliver didn’t know that he was staying with thieves. It’s really well written how Oliver slowly finds out that they are thieves.

This is a book that reads very fast, I would recommend it to people who don’t like reading a lot. But, you need to know that this isn’t the real book. This book is a “classic start” that means that it is a shorter version of the book. They also left a lot of detail out. If you like this story, then I would recommend reading the original book.

[Pratyush Kamal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gets you the basic idea/overview of the story, but shortening and simplifying the original book also takes away the feeling of being connected to the characters which probably makes the ending worse than it actually is.

P.S. love the names Sowerberry and Bill Sikes

[Kendall-Boo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book, highlighting the lives of many in the Victorian Era.

[Dianne .F · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver Twist is a really good book to read. The book is about a young boy called Oliver, who became an orphan after the death of his mother.He lived with other orphans, they were not treated well, they had less food and were shabbily dressed.Oliver was then adopted by Mr. Sowberry, an undertaker. Noah, who also works for the undertaker insulted Oliver's mother, Oliver didn't take what Noah said too well.He becomes violent, Oliver runs away. On the streets of London, he met the Artful Dodger, he takes Oliver to a man named Fagin. Oliver stays with Fagin. Oliver didn't know that Fagin and his boys used to steal.One day Oliver went out with the Artful Dodger and another boy, the duo steal handkerchiefs from the pocket of a man, when the man realizes them missing, he sees Oliver, and assumes that Oliver took them. Oliver started to run, but he was caught by Mr. Brownlow,the man with the stolen handkerchiefs. he is taken to the courtroom, however, Mr. Brownlow can't get himself to believe that Oliver might have done it, Oliver faints in the courtroom. a man from the bookstall claimed that he saw two others doing it and Oliver was not one of them. Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver home. After some time Oliver is well again, in the care of Mr. Brownlow. Oliver eventually ends up in Fagin's hands again, but when a planned burglary goes wrong, he is wounded and is brought back to good health by Ms.Rose, his mother's sister. Oliver has a half brother named Monks from his father's previous marriage. At the end of the book, Ms.Rose gets married and Oliver lives happily ever after with Mr. Brownlow.

[Antonia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pro: easy for young children to understand and follow the story.
Con: Missing the language and details of the original and falls a little flat.

This is not Dickens. It's a Childrens version of Oliver Twist. The story is all there but it's been summarized, the best way I can word it, to make it a fast and easy read. The vocabulary and life of the words is missing. I would have thrown it away and gotten the real book, but it's actually a good way to introduce the story to my 5 year old. We read it while studying the industrial revolution and I wanted her to have a story to hang the information on. If it was just my 8 year old, I would have ditched this and read the real thing.
Th story is told simply enough, but having read other books by Dickens, this is nothing like his style. It's like watching a movie about a book. The story is there, but it's just odd and not the same.

[Isabella A C]

This book is about a young orphan named Oliver Twist. Poor Oliver Twist lost his mother when he was just a baby. Now he lives in a workhouse in England and misses his mother. He has been treated very badly and does not know what to do. so one day he runs away because he gets tired of the way they have been treating him. Will Oliver Twist make it.
I recommend this book to people who like biography's. And I like this book because it has a lot of twists and turns.

[Emily Thomson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this as preparation before I teach it to year 7s in September. While the text is different from the original it is a brilliant abridged book and I hope that that their idea of 'as a child's reading skills advance, the desire to tackle the original, unabridged version of the story will naturally emerge' comes true.
A fantastic starting place for young people to explore the classics and the issues/ themes they explore.

[Jack Blecher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good view into the the harsh world that orphans of the industrial revolution had to live in. Shows the extent of the horrors these kids went through. The story was a bit hard to follow in my opinion. Lots of switches and changes in perspective that threw off the momentum of the plot. Many characters who played semi important roles and were not memorable.

[Ryann Lund · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about a boy named oliver. He was an orphan and lived in a work house. Then he has many other homes after that. He finds his real family, and lives happily! :)

[Chanya Rabinowitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The genre is historical fiction. This book did not win any awards, but it is a shortened version of the classic "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens which won many awards. This book is appropriate for 8-10 year olds, as it is a chapter book and deals with mature subjects like murder, theft, and prison. This book is about an orphaned boy in London during the early 1800's who is first in an orphanage and then joins a gang of thieves. This book is very engaging with many colorful characters. Readers will instantly get to know Oliver Twist and want to read the book to see what happens to him. The language is derived from the classic "Oliver Twist" but simplified so younger readers can understand it. Descriptions of life in 1800's London are detailed and interesting to young readers. As a teacher I would use this book to introduce students to how children may have lived in London in that time period. A project that I might assign would be to create a diorama of their favorite scene from the book.

[Debra Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best I’ve read in the ‘Classic Start’ series. I was reading a translation of the original and I was finding it trying. Because I am reading the classic for a book club I wanted to have a better understanding of Dicken’s Oliver Twist. There were two points I did not interpret accurately and served to refresh my memory of the characters etc. I am looking forward to finishing the novel. I will add to this review if anything important was left out or changed to make it more readable.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, the book was great. I liked all the characters and how Oliver finds out his true past. The whole thing with Monks was great having him be Oliver's older brother . All of the things in the book were amazing including how Oliver starts as a poor orphan to what happens after Fagin, Sikes, Monks and the rest are arrested. Overall, I thought it was a great book for anyone looking to read a good classic book.

[Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Čítala som najprv dospelacku a potom s veľkými očakávaniami detskú verziu knihy. Príde mi, že príbehy z tej doby sú všetky rovnaké, zúfalé utrpenie dieťa s čistou dušou je týrané všetkými okolo až sa nezbaví anjel, ktorý ho spasi. Pripomínalo mi to Paňa prstenov, kde Frodo prežil len vďaka silnému spoločníkovi :-)

Ale opat, dobova atmosfera, priblíženie biedy a podmienok v ktorych žili pomáha mne aj deťom výrazne vnímať luxus, ktorý dnes máme za samozrejmosť.

[Sarah Olson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This edition of Oliver Twist invites young readers into a classic story. There are some unanswered questions at the end that are likely addressed in the original, unabridged version by Dickens, but overall the plot moves swiftly along to better capture a short attention span. The characters are sketched out well enough. Oliver’s decision to no longer want anything to do with Fagin and his gang is understandable. I read this book in about two hours.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read aloud with my 9 year old. Good intro to Charles Dickens. My daughter was completely engrossed. Very fly through it. She wants us to read the original aloud together. It’s been many years since I read it. Not sure of the vernacular I think the original will be much more vivid with the details and grim. Will see.

[Leah Hahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oliver Twist is a poor orphan boy who wants to make something of himself. He moves to London seeking fortune, but ends up with a band of thieves. Oliver must struggle to find his own true place in the world.

This book is great for a 3rd to 4th grade level. It has content that children of that age should be able to follow without issue.

[Cmeread · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believe we were supposed to read this in Advanced Sophomore English but I couldn't understand most of the language or keep track of what was going on. Now that I have read it, in my 30s, I can't say much more than 20 years ago.

[Arielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am definitely coming around to the idea of abridged classics. Gus wanted to learn more about the story of Oliver Twist and I wasn't about to try to read the original with him at age 9. These are a great introduction. He thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know it isn't Dickens and is both abridged and rewritten; yet, this version kept both my attention and that of my sons. I seriously doubt they would have been as enraptured with the original as much as they did this version.

[Yong Chiang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver Twist was a blast

Oliver twist(the book)was filled with adventure and sorrow. This book inspires people who want a good but short book to read. Oliver twist is my currently favorite book. I think you will also adore it. I promise it is a very inspiring book

[Jean-Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 11-year-old and I read this abridged version of Oliver Twist to complement our Industrial Revolution history lesson. Not being huge fan of the story, I opted for the abridged children's version for a quick exposure to the story and its cultural references. It did the job.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book and how it expressed the feelings of an orphan named Oliver Twist. Oliver left the orphanage to go to London where his adventures begin! from Pickpockets to Court to getting kidnapped it was a calming, and intense story!

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although it was abridged, it was quite an amazing and emotional rollercoaster. It really eats me up that although this is fiction, Dickens LIVED like this, and witnessed people living like Oliver Twist.

[Amani Q · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s an interesting story with well described scenes making one imagine what things and people looked like. It’s a sad story with a twist! Perhaps that’s why his given name is Twist. Definitely recommend it! Finished reading it in one day.

[Tayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story. You liked Oliver and wanted something to work out for him.