Charles Dickens ~ February 7, 1812

      There is so much written about Charles Dickens, I can only here convey Happy Birthday wishes, a few pictures, a few links and a reminder to watch the Masterpiece Classic Dickens extravaganza beginning February 15 [check your PBS listings]         Further Reading: [with endless links to biographies, works, criticism] [...]

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A Few Words on Wilkie Collins

Today [January 8, 1824 - September 23, 1889] is the birthday of one of my favorite writers, Wilkie Collins.  Longtime friend of Dickens, Collins is most known for being the first writer of full-length detective stories. The Woman in White [1860]  and The Moonstone [1868] are considered his best works, and though I personally love those [...]

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Dickens ~ “A Christmas Carol”

Today we celebrate Dickens A Christmas Carol , first published on December 19, 1843.  Illustrated by John Leech, it was the first of Dickens’s Christmas stories, instantly successful, selling over 6,000 copies in a week.  It also stimulated a revival of the Christmas traditions that we associate with Victorian England, many of which we still practice [...]

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