1840

3 books

sort genre era audiobooks

Barnaby Rudge Charles Dickens
Nobody reads this one, which is a shame, because once the Gordon Riots kick off Dickens writes mob violence like fire spreading through paper. It's slow for a hundred pages, but Grip the raven alone (Poe loved him) earns the wait.
The Old Curiosity Shop Charles Dickens
You get Dickens at his most sentimental and eccentric here: Nell’s wandering through a harsh, theatrical world is genuinely affecting, while Dick Swiveller, with his malapropisms and cheerful self-deception, keeps the book from sinking into gloom. Quilp is a wonderfully nasty little menace.
Two Years Before the Mast Richard Henry Dana Jr.
You get the sea as working men experience it, not as a backdrop: cold watches, rope-burned hands, bad food, and the long haul around Cape Horn. Dana’s sympathy for the sailors gives the book its moral force, though the detailed shipboard routine can feel slow if you need constant action.

3 books

sort genre era audiobooks

Barnaby Rudge Charles Dickens
Nobody reads this one, which is a shame, because once the Gordon Riots kick off Dickens writes mob violence like fire spreading through paper. It's slow for a hundred pages, but Grip the raven alone (Poe loved him) earns the wait.
The Old Curiosity Shop Charles Dickens
You get Dickens at his most sentimental and eccentric here: Nell’s wandering through a harsh, theatrical world is genuinely affecting, while Dick Swiveller, with his malapropisms and cheerful self-deception, keeps the book from sinking into gloom. Quilp is a wonderfully nasty little menace.
Two Years Before the Mast Richard Henry Dana Jr.
You get the sea as working men experience it, not as a backdrop: cold watches, rope-burned hands, bad food, and the long haul around Cape Horn. Dana’s sympathy for the sailors gives the book its moral force, though the detailed shipboard routine can feel slow if you need constant action.