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Martin Chuzzlewit
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Martin Chuzzlewit Paperback - 2017

by Charles Dickens


About this book

While writing Martin Chuzzlewit, Dickens declared it 'immeasurably the best of my stories.' 

Set partly in America, the novel includes a searing satire on the United States. Martin Chuzzlewit is the story of two Chuzzlewits, Martin and Jonas, who have inherited the characteristic Chuzzlewit selfishness. It contrasts their diverse fates of moral redemption and worldly success for one, and increasingly desperate crime for the other. This powerful comedy involves hypocrisy, greed, and blackmail, as well as the most famous of Dickens's grotesques, Mrs. Gamp.

Martin Chuzzlewit is considered one of Dickens's last picaresque novels. 

From the publisher

Martin Chuzzlewit is a novel by Charles Dickens, considered the last of his picaresque novels. It was originally serialised between 1842 and 1844. Dickens thought it to be his best work, but it was one of his least popular novels. Like nearly all of Dickens' novels, Martin Chuzzlewit was released to the public in monthly instalments. Early sales of the monthly parts were disappointing, compared to previous works, so Dickens changed the plot to send the title character to America. This allowed the author to portray the United States (which he had visited in 1842) satirically as a near wilderness with pockets of civilisation filled with deceptive and self-promoting hucksters.

First Edition Identification

Martin Chuzzlewit was published in 19 monthly installments, each comprising 32 pages of text and two illustrations by Hablot K. "Phiz" Browne. Published in 1842-1844. 

The first compiled book edition was published in1844 by Chapman & Hall.


Details

  • Title Martin Chuzzlewit
  • Author Charles Dickens
  • Binding Paperback
  • Pages 620
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
  • Date 2017-07-13
  • ISBN 9781548820510 / 1548820512
  • Weight 1.8 lbs (0.82 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.02 x 5.98 x 1.25 in (22.91 x 15.19 x 3.18 cm)
  • Themes
    • Topical: Coming of Age

About the author

Charles John Huffam Dickens (7 February 1812 - 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.