Author:Charles Dickens,Hablot K. Browne,George Cattermole,Daniel Maclise,Samuel Williams,Norman Page,Norman Page,Norman Page
'His characters are marvellous, his insights wonderful ... You don't expect reality but you get something bigger and better' Ruth Rendell
The Old Curiosity Shop was an instant bestseller that, even while it was criticized for its sentimentality, captured the hearts of the nation with its portrayal of little Nell Trent, who is thrown into a terrifying world when her beloved grandfather is unable to pay his debts to the loathsome Quilp. Alongside the pathos of the innocent, tragic Nell are some of Dickens's greatest characters: the ne'er-do'well Dick Swiveller, the mannish lawyer Sally Brass, the half-starved 'Marchioness' and the lustful Quilp himself, a creation of demonic power and cruelty.
Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Norman Page
A fix of high comedy from a writer who provokes almost as much as he entertains
—— Daily MailAs I raced to the end, I found myself applauding Elton. This is a tough subject tackled with courage and commitment
—— Will Hutton , ObserverPacked with Elton's trademark sharp wit and biting social commentary.. colourful and thought-provoking
—— Waterstone's Books QuarterlyOne of the most brilliantly sustained and focused pieces of satire I've ever read
—— Douglas AdamsKiller prose...a viciously funny satire that also works as a tongue-in-cheek thriller
—— The Sunday TimesHere is a fine Iliad for our times, to be read with great pleasure
—— Philip Howard , The Times