Oliver Twist; or, the Parish Boy's Progress Dickens, Charles 19th Century,19th Century Literature,British Literature,Fiction,Victorian Literature

Three volumes. Illustrated with twenty-four steel-engraved plates by George Cruikshank. First edition, first issue, with all the first issue points called for by Smith including "Boz" on the title pages and the "Fireside" plate in Vol. III. With half-titles in Vols. I and II and no half-title in Vol. III (as called for by Smith), and advertisements. Publisher's original reddish brown cloth, with arabesque design in blind to boards, spines lettered in gilt with four sets of blind-stamped bands (each set with four bands), and yellow coated endpapers. Very good set, with light toning to spines and board margins, some fading to spine gilt on Vol. III, discrete reinforcement to spine ends, some ink staining to spine of Vol. II and some tiny, scattered ink dots to boards of all three volumes, bumped and worn corners, contemporary bookseller label ("Dimmock, Perfumer, Printseller, etc. Cambridge.") and contemporary ownership signature ("C. Hines") to front pastedowns of all three volumes, light spotting, soiling and occasional creasing to pages, and some spotting to plates. Overall, an excellent copy of arguably Dickens' most popular novel, in its very desirable publisher's cloth. With contemporary bookseller description laid in (Inman's Bookshop). Housed in a custom brown slipcase. Smith I, 4. Published shortly after the enactment of the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, which mandated that state poor relief would only be given to workhouse residents, Oliver Twist served as a vehicle for Dickens' criticism of the effects of poverty left unabated. Specifically, this novel tells the story of poor, orphaned Oliver Twist who is drawn into the dark underbelly of London, rife with child labor and petty crime. The book features some of Dickens' most colorful characters, including Fagin, the Artful Dodger, Bill Sykes, and Nancy. The book has received many film adaptations over the years, including David Lean's classic 1948 version starring John Davies as Twist and Alec Guinness as Fagin, and the 1968 musical film Oliver!, which won six Academy Awards and was itself adapted from the same-titled 1960 Tony Award-winning musical.