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A Tale of Two Cities (Enriched Classics) | 
 enlarge | Author: Charles Dickens
Publisher: Pocket
Category: Book
List Price: $4.95
Buy New: $1.94
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Avg. Customer Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 106117
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 496
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0743487605
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.8
EAN: 9780743487603
ASIN: 0743487605
Publication Date: April 27, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
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Product Description
ENDURING LITERATURE ILLUMINATEDBY PRACTICAL SCHOLARSHIP Dickens's epic novel of freedom, love, and the burning chaos of the French Revolution.
EACH ENRICHED CLASSIC EDITION INCLUDES:• A concise introduction that gives readers important background information • A chronology of the author's life and work • A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context • An outline of key themes and plot points to help readers form their own interpretations • Detailed explanatory notes • Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work • Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction • A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience Enriched Classics offer readers affordable editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and insightful commentary. The scholarship provided in Enriched Classics enables readers to appreciate, understand, and enjoy the world's finest books to their full potential.SERIES EDITED BY CYNTHIA BRANTLEY JOHNSON
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| Customer Reviews:
 Quite possibly, the best book ever. August 29, 2008
I cannot say enough about this story. This is truely a masterpiece from the familiar opening to the satisfying conclusion, a work of art. Beautiful.
Sydney Carton is a cheracter that I will not soon forget.
If you read nothing else, read this. YOU WILL NOT BE SORRY.
 A Tale Reborn April 12, 2006
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
By the year 2006, can Dickens' novel A Tale of Two Cities still hold relevance? The answer is a simple yes. It is a great tale of how love, revolution, and chaos can all fall into place at the same moment. But the most interesting topic that he addresses is the theme of rebirth or revolution. This rebirth is not only that of France, but of Dr. Manette, Charles Darnay, and Sydney Carton. All of them are changed by the events happening during the time of the novel. They reshape their ideals, reintroduce themselves into the world, reinvent themselves, and revitalize their spirits. That is way resurrection is the most noticeable subject in this novel.
France is about to undergo the bloodiest revolutions that Europe has ever seen. The peasants of France revolt in hopes creating a government that will take care of their needs. They have little food and the food that they do have is rotten. Dickens does an absolutely amazing job of describing the peasants' awful situation. However, he only depicts the tragic peasants with only a negative depiction of the aristocrats. A great example of this is the way in which he descries Monseigneur's massive house and he's chocolate eating, "Monseigneur, on of the great lords...he must have died of two. (122-123)" This is a very critical view of a man with power because it never shows another side to him. This implies that he is always greedy and only looks after himself. Another bias view of the wealthy is seen in Marquis. Who is shown as a selfish, non-sympathetic man who gets what he deserves, death. "It is extraordinary... The horses there: are they right? (129-130)" With no positive view of an aristocrat, it is impossible to make a fair judgment about the rich, or the poor. Dickens goal is to justify a revolution based on poor character of the rich ruling class. He succeeds in doing so at the cost of the aristocrats of France.
The most obvious character to undergo change is Dr. Manette. As the very first chapters show, he is "recalled to life. (14)" in the course of the novel. In the literal since, he is taken out of a wrongful imprisonment of 18 years with no contact with the outside world. But on a much deeper level however, the book focuses on how he comes back into the world. He transforms from a weak, feeble shoemaker to a strong character that's able to control crowds and lead them towards the greater-good. The only fault in this complete change is that he does occasionally go back to his old ways in making shoes when he becomes depressed. But these episodes are too brief to change the fact that Manette has a complete turn around from who he is at the beginning of the novel to the end.
Charles Darnay also exemplifies a person who recreates himself in order to use the second chances he gets in life. Born into wealth, he sees the maltreatment that the rich shows towards the poor. That is why he revokes his power and rights in order to live a regular life. But after he is nearly sent to jail in England he reinvents himself as a lover as he falls in love with Lucie. However when the opportunity comes for him to save the day, he puts on his hero cape and goes back to France. Again he is arrested, but this time his life is in jeopardy has he faces the gallows. And only help from Carton is he saved from the clutches of death.
Sydney Carton is the most interesting characters in the novel because of the drastic changes that he undergoes. Dickens shows Carton as a worthless drunk with no future "Sydney Carton, idlest... that humble capacity (102)". As time goes on, he falls in love with Lucie but doesn't allow his feelings to interfere with her life. That is until Darnay's life is in danger. Carton gives up his life in place of Darnay. This clearly shows that he makes a major change in his character. This change happens because he wants to make up for the wasted life that he has lived by sacrificing himself to save another. This brings about a sense of peace in him that he has never felt "It is a far... I have ever known (443)"
With so much change and unstableness going on in the novel, it is easy to understand why the country and the fore mentioned characters of Manette, Darnay, and Carton undergo such dynamic shifts in their personas. France has its revolutions, Manette is recalled to life, Darnay is reborn twice, and Carton is resurrected as a hero and martyr. That kind of writing leads me to the conclusion that life is all about second chances and renewal. This was Dickens' purpose in writing a novel like this, and that is why A Tale of Two Cities is a book that stands out amongst the greatest literary pieces of all time.
A Tale of Two Cities paints a beautiful while dark story of the French Revolution April 11, 2006
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
A Tale of Two Cities paints a beautiful while dark story of the French Revolution and how it affects an English family. It is, by all standards, a classic. Yet, if you decide to read it and are younger than a high school senior, I suggest reading it with a good dictionary by your side. It is written in the English of over one-hundred years ago and so I would also recommend a version that includes notes on what certain phrases mean as well as a guide to the allusions used in the story. I am not recommending the abridged version, though. Reading it as it was written gives a much different experience that seems more genuine. The copy of the novel that I read was published by Pocket Books and includes explanatory notes and more which I found very helpful.
As I read I saw examples where Dickens (the author), implied satirical messages and themes relevant to the time when the book was written. Then, the situation in England resembled pre-Revolution France. Also, 1848, was known as the "Year of Revolutions". He may have been trying to discourage revolution and encourage solutions through political change, not violence. Dickens also implied, through his words, that a revolution could happen anywhere, even in England. He encouraged his message frequently but it never got old and wasn't monotonous. By using a variety of different situations, Dickens kept his message in the reader's mind. For example, at a burial of a spy in England, a mob forms and turns the burial into show of irreverent mourning and violence. He is implying that under the right conditions any group of people can turn into a violent mob. He also writes that history will repeat itself under the same circumstances. This message would have been very pertinent at the time. These messages about the state and flaws of society were frequent but were well integrated into the story. Many were fun to read due to Dickens' good use of satire and humor.
One complaint that many historians, literary critics, and others have had about A Tale of Two Cities is that the characters and depiction of the social classes are too unrealistic. I, too, thought that some of the characters were somewhat unrealistic, yet I don't believe that Dickens made them that way without reason. One example is in a moment with a member the French aristocracy. While riding at breakneck speed through downtown Paris, this noble's carriage hits and kills a child. In response, he turns to the grieving father and coolly tosses him a gold piece and drives off. I saw this action as very unrealistic, but this isn't supposed to be literal. This noble's action is part of his characterization that is just supposed to show that he is very cold. It is also supposed to symbolize the oppression of the peasants by the aristocracy. The lower class had been oppressed for so long and Dickens sums up their oppression through this one noble's action. Still, some of the characters' actions are unrealistic. After a condemned man is read his condemning sentence, he is perfectly composed and shows no signs of anxiety or emotion but love for his wife. There is no way that any human could be unafraid after that. Despite some unrealistic moments in Dickens characters, his description of the classes and their struggles is excellent. This is probably because of his experience. As a boy, Dickens was a peasant, which explains why his descriptions of peasant life and their strife are so detailed. I personally found Dickens' characters very appealing and his description of French society very enthralling.
If you are unsure if you want to read this book, my advice to you would be: definitely read it. Dickens creates a capturing world with a deep plot, exquisite use of imagery, and striking characters, all in one of the most exciting times in history. Pick it up and you won't regret it.
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