Dickens-The Pickwick Papers

Charles Dickens

Somewhere along the line Dickens has become known as quaint. Hollywood producers and animators have made his work to be almost in the genre of Children's Lit. Anyone who picks up Dicken's novels will find his writing to be dark and violent. Oliver Twist is a prime example. It involves child labor and exploitation, child abuse, domestic violence, kidnapping and murder. Although I adore the movie musical Oliver and love that animation has brought Dickens to kids, the book is heavy with troubling themes. Dicken's novels are much more than cute characters eating plum pudding; they are an expose' of HIS present day society. Imagine if a contemporary author wrote about these issues today and in our current vernacular. Wow! I probably wouldn't want to read them.
In Dec. of 2010, I completed The Pickwick Papers. It was the last Dicken's novel for me to read. It has taken many years to complete the goal of reading every work of Charles Dickens, but I have NO regrets! To me, he is the finest story teller and character creator of all time.

THE PICKWICK PAPERS
This was not one of Dicken's novels that I was excited about, but I found it to be a really fun book (now I contradict myself about all his books being dark).

It was different from his other novels in that it seemed to be more of a series of unrelated vignettes about the various adventures of the Pickwickians as they traveled England, rather than a novel that followed a linear plot line. I loved Joe, the carriage boy who had Narcolepsy and Sam Weller, the valet and friend of Mr. Pickwick, such a "solid citizen with great common sense.
Although these impressions stand out for me, I found it fascinating to see, in the various adventures of the club members and characters, a glimpse into future Dickens novels. Since it was his first(or thereabouts) novel, I saw characters and settings that he used later and created entire books around. It was almost as if he had an entire host of characters already in his mind just waiting for future incarnation. I struggle now for an example, but I cannot remember even one without opening and skimming the entire book again. If you read or have read The Pickwick Papers, I would love to see if you agree.