Great Expectations

Their strapline of 'Bringing Classics to Life' pretty much says it all. Classical Comics' editions are the best we've found - not only in terms of the artwork, but also in the authenticity that their books retain. My pupils derived huge benefit from reading their versions; what's more, they thoroughly enjoyed reading them, too. William Purcell, teacher

Charles Dickens was born was born in Landport, Portsmouth, on 7th February 1812. He was the second of eight children born to John and Elizabeth Dickens. Financially, the Dickens family were comfortable, and when they moved to Chatham, Kent in 1817 they sent Charles to the fee paying William Giles' school in the area. By the time he was ten, the family had moved again; this time to London following the career of his father, John, who was a clerk in the Naval Pay Office. John got into debt and was eventually sent to Marshalsea Prison in 1824. His wife and most of the children joined him there (a common occurrence in those days); Charles, however, was put to work at Warren's Blacking Factory, where he labelled jars of boot polish. When John's mother died soon after, she left enough money to pay off the debts and reunite the family. Although brief, Charles's time at the factory haunted him for the rest of his life. Charles left school at fifteen and worked as an office boy with a Mr. Molloy of Lincoln's Inn. It was here that Charles made the decision to become a journalist. He studied shorthand at night, and went on to spend two years as a shorthand reporter at the Doctors' Commons Courts. From 1830 to 1836 he wrote for a number of newspapers; he also started to achieve recognition for his own written work. In December 1833 his first published (but unpaid for) story, A Dinner at Poplar Walk, appeared in The Old Monthly magazine. He wrote further stories for The Old Monthly; but when the magazine could not pay for them, Dickens began to write his seriesA" for The Chronicle at the request of the editor, George Hogarth. In 1835, Charles got engaged to George Hogarth's eldest daughter, Catherine. They married on 2nd April 1836 and went on to have ten children (seven boys and three girls). Biographers have long suspected that Charles preferred Catherine's sister, Mary, who lived with the Dickens family and died in his arms in 1837 at the age of seventeen. Dickens had asked to be buried next to her; but when her brother died in 1841, Dickens's placeA" was taken. The first series of Sketches by Boz was published in 1836 ( BozA" was an early pen name used by Dickens). Shortly afterwards, with the success of Pickwick Papers in 1837, Dickens was at last a full-time novelist. He produced works at an incredible rate; and at the start of his writing career, also managed to continue his work as a journalist and editor. He began his next book, Oliver Twist, in 1837 and continued it in monthly parts until April 1839. Dickens visited Canada and the United States in 1842. During that visit he talked on the need for international copyright, because some American publishers were printing his books without his permission and without making any payment; he also talked about the need to end slavery. His visit and his opinions were recorded and published as American Notes in October of that year, causing quite a stir. On 17th December 1843 his much-loved Christmas tale, A Christmas Carol (also available as a Classical Comics graphic novel) was published. It was so popular that it sold five-thousand copies by Christmas Eve - and has never been out of print since. From childhood, Dickens had loved the stage and enjoyed the attention and applause he received. He performed in amateur theatre throughout the 1840s and 50s, and formed his own amateur theatrical company in 1845, which occupied much of his time. Dickens became something of an international celebrity. In 1853 he toured Italy, and on his return to England, he gave the first of many public readings from his own works. At first he did these for charity, but before long he demanded payment. By 1856, Dickens had made enough money to purchase a fine country house: Gads Hill in Kent. Although he had admired this place ever since his arrival to the area as a child, it was not to be a happy family home. A year later, Charle