Smart and inteligent made me reread Dickens. Had to read it in chunks, to break it up, not in a bad way. Great gift for a Dickens lover.

Loved it loved it loved it. not much more to say, I new that this book would be a winner from the title alone. So great and cute and fun and clever. recommend it to anyone that thinks they will like it.

John Mullan’s book, The Artful Dickens, is subtitled The Tricks and Ploys of the Great Novelist. I think “Tricks and Ploys” is a tad misleading. Mullan shows us the techniques that Dickens uses to achieve his effects – and he does so very well indeed. His examples cover the whole canon (All The Year Round as well as the novels) and, if you haven’t read some of those novels, be warned: there are spoilers. They’re inevitable in a book like this, presenting a close reading of the text, but you might want to know they’re in there.

It took me a while to attune myself to Mullan’s very detailed insights. I felt the first few chapters were long and tedious with sentences such as “Hypocrites, in contrast, do not so much deny themselves as transcend themselves” striking me as overwritten and meaningless. I put the book aside for a long time.

When I picked it up again, it seemed like a different book: the prose flowed; the insights were sharp and perceptive; the examples were spot-on. In fact, the experience matched exactly how I feel about Dickens: on some days, I find the books are interminable and dull; on others, they are the most brilliant novels ever written. Perhaps, with Dickens more than any other author, you have to be in the right mood?

Mullan takes topics such as “Smelling”; give us examples of Dickens using adjectives or similes involving scent or smell; and discusses how their usage makes the impact it does. As Mullan points out, the novels were originally issued in monthly parts. Dickens had to help readers remember characters last seen a few weeks, or even several months, before. Mr Jaggers in Great Expectations washes his hands with scented soap and bites the side of his forefinger; Alfred Jingle in The Pickwick Papers has a distinctive idiolect (manner of speaking) with his lack of full sentences: “Capital game – smart sport – fine exercise – very.”

I know that I shall never read Dickens in a casual manner again. I shall always feel John Mullan at my side, asking “Did you notice what Dickens did there?” Oh, I’m so glad I read this book, as my enjoyment of Dickens will be enriched by another dimension.

#TheArtfulDickens #NetGalley

Ever since I saw A Christmas Carol and Oliver when I was in my teenage years and in my adult years, saw a one man show of two short stories by Dickens and stage show about Charles Dickens by the great actor - Simon Callow, I have found him to be fascinating and been entertained by some of his works. Now, John Mullan has written about him too in The Artful Dickens... This book would be good for authors, lovers of Dickens and scholars. It is one for dipping in and out of, more than anything, or can be a bit heavy. It is non-the-less a valuable book to include in people's Dicken's collections as it is insightful.

The Artful Dickens is an incredibly indepth study, not just about him and his life about his books and elements of the man himself. Each chapter is used as different themes, whether it is smells, speech, humour, characters or writing, including changes in tenses.
It demonstrates how daring Dickens was when he wrote and changed the "shape" of writing, from what was perhaps fashionable at the time. The book demonstrates many features of the phraseology and much more, by using relevant segments of his well-known books, which are explored in great detail, but, as far as I can see, not giving spoilers as such; although this is a book that is probably best read, if you are at least a bit familiar with Dicken's works beforehand. It would then make much more sense to the reader.
I shows that Charles Dickens was a daring writer in a sense and liked to break the rules. Tying into this is an indepth look into naming characters, coincidences and even a section on "Enjoying Cliches". For the section on cliches, he also takes a look at what Martin Amis said about them and how Austen and Flaubert used language; as well as how cliches are and can be used. It very nicely then goes onto the spoken word. The book flows seemlessly from on subject to another, as bit by bit each book is examined to such a great deal of depth, disected and written. The research and the thought process, seems immense!

Interestingly and quite astonishingly, but true, Dickens is still influencing post-modern writers (and Ian McEwan's book - Enduring Love is used as an example), in his so-called "unconventional narration" and how he liked to "break the rules". The book demonstrates there is a lot to be gained by Dickens and that he did leave a legacy, in that sense, as well as his books.

Mullan then goes onto write about the smells, and let's face it, there would have been plenty of those in Dicken's time and not always pleasant ones; he insightfully links many to Dicken's books, but also to what Dicken's had said to friends, such as Wilkie Collins. Then examines the changes in tenses, starting with Edward Drood, before looking at the paranormal in a few books, but most famously - A Christmas Carol, which is always pleasing to read or hear anything about. It's more than just the books though as he takes a study of Dicken's life within the realms of ghosts in a surprising way.

I like that there is an examination of humour as there is plenty of that, with a mix of pathos in the likes of The Pickwick Papers. Mullen examines, quite acutely just how Dicken's manages to make people smile and/or laugh in so many of his books.

Enthusiasm Shines Through....
A guide to the fictional world of Dickens. A mine of information and fascinating facts - all things Dickens - through a series of essays. Throughout the work the authors’ enthusiasm for his subject shines through. Dickens aficionados should not be disappointed.

Genius. I have always loved Charles Dickens but I knew relatively little about his fascinating (albeit often cruel) life. A master work.

Thank you to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book.

Unfortunately, I am not able to provide feedback as I had not downloaded before the archive date which is completely my fault.

I will be preordering this book because I am genuinely excited to read about it and I can only apologise for my mistake!

I have always been fascinated with Charles Dickens and consider him one of my favourite authors. This book was a fabulous find! I have read plenty of books about Charles and most of them go into the same thing about his childhood, his life, where he wrote, etc but this one was different. This book delved into more obscure facts that make reading his novels even more fun, such as how he chose his character names or his favourite way of killing certain horrible characters off. This was an excellent book that brought me even closer to one of my favourite authors.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

This was a fascinating book to read. I have not read all of Dickens books but I found the authors insight as to the connection Dickens made very interesting. I would highly recommend this to students studying Dickens as it gives a new approach to him as an author.i especially loved the chapter “connections”. It has always been said that we write best when we garner from our own experiences and this was so true of Dickens.

I love Dickens and this well researched and well written book made me learned a lot about his novels, style of writing and novels.
It's entertaining and informative at the same time, recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This is a professionally written and researched book about Dickens. I think it would be great for anyone studying his writings. I felt you needed to know about his books before reading this as a background knowledge would be desirable.

Thakssk to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3 star review

‘The Artful Dickens’ is a guide to all things Dickens.

Written by John Mullan, the author takes all of Dickens’ books and delves into the worlds that Dickens had created in this guide.

Going into the book, you can really tell the author know how Dickens writes, why he wrote what he wrote and has fully and extensively researched Dickens’ life.

Hullan goes into Dickens’ characteristics and even talks about his work place and how that influenced him. 

Hullan also goes into all the descriptive language, picking out sentences and going into the history and meaning behind them.

Hullan also goes into the narration and how he talks in past and present tense throughout his novels.

From smells that influenced him to names that he created to ghosts that appeared in his novels.  He talks about how smells triggered some of Dickens’ favourite memories.

I loved how he went into how smells in Dickens’ life affected his descriptive language in his novels, you can really get a sense that Dickens wanted to put that across so the reader would get a more realistic viewpoint.

As someone who hasn’t read any of Dickens but loved his films, I found it interesting but sadly wasn’t able to fully appreciate all the details that Hullan goes into.

It’s well written and highly detailed.  For anyone who loves Dickens this is a must read.

One of my favourite books is a Dickens, Christmas Carol in fact, also when I found out on a school trip, many years ago, that I shared a birthday with Dickens, I always felt just a little bit closer too him.
I have really enjoyed similar books to this, but not on Dickens, so was really happy to be able to read this.

If Dickens is your bag, then this is the book for you to get all cozy with, as it is CRAMMED with everything Dickens, I do have to add that this is a non fiction book and not a novel of the author.

I am not a Dickens aficionado, so cannot really state wether this is comprehensive, but it really felt like it to me, the narrative was excellent in helping you digest Dickens, however, I could not read it straight, without taking breaks, as it could be a little dry at times.

Mullins does point out nuances that Dickens put into his writing, that readers like me, would more than likely miss out on, he goes onto really explain how artful Dickens really was in his writing.

Thank you Netgalley and the Publishers for allowing me to read and review this prior to publication.

Mullan's book takes us through a selection of Dickens' writing styles, topics, grammar, use of phrases in an engaging manner. I'd say this is more suitable for people who are at least familiar with Dickens more popular works - I certainly appreciated the examples more having read a number of his novels, rather than being a novice. This book certainly encouraged me to continue reading Dickens' works and to appreciate some of the more subtle nuances of his writing style.

This book is a nonfiction book about Charlies Dickens, and his novels. It's about why Dickens' books were and are so loved, and how creative and clever he was as a writer, even though critics often have a lot of negatives to say about his novels. The book is made up of thirteen different essays, each one focused on a different topic. The book is predominantly engaging, although occasionally a little dry. It's a lot more academic than I had expected from reading the blurb. There's a close analysis of his books, lots of quotes, comparisons to other novelists of the time, and quotes from his drafts and notes that show his writing process. It also includes his own words about his writing, from a collection of his letters. At times, it's like seeing into his mind even though he's been dead for so long. It's really quite fascinating. The book is extensively referenced, as well.

The book has some tantalising insights into Dickens' mind and how he worked and wrote. It shows how he developed as a writer over the course of his career, from his very first novel to his final unfinished work. He was creative and inventive, constantly improving his methods and exploring new techniques. This book opened my eyes to some of the more fantastical elements of his works. There are also discussions on his clever use of cliches, his innovative uses of language, and how he chose the names for his incredibly memorable characters.

I have read a fair number of Dickens' novels. I found the parts of this book that talked about books I had already read the most interesting, but also, reading about books I haven't yet read made me excited to read them. This is not really a book to dip in and out of for trivia, more something to absorb and think about. It's probably most interesting to people who are big Dickens fans, or who are interested in literature.

I have a confession to make: prior to picking up this book, the only Dickens I'd read was A Christmas Carol and selected extracts from Great Expectations (this confession is even more egregious considering I was an English teacher for 12 years). So it's a testament to Mullan's writing that, shortly after finishing The Artful Dickens, I picked up Bleak House - a copy of which has been sitting on my bookshelves for nigh on 20 years - and began reading. Mullan's literary criticism is always warm and generous, never less than fascinating, and while I wouldn't recommend other Dickens novices read this, for anyone who knows Dickens well, it will be a delight.

A very well written and in-depth look into the works of Charles Dickens, highly recommended. I would suggest it more suitable for readers already familiar with his novels and imagine it will be a valuable study aid for students.

This was such a unique book. I feel very lucky to have had the chance to read it. Well done to the author.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK & ANZ). for the arc of The Artful Dickens by John Mullan.

This follows John Mullan whom is the author delve in and investigate and explores Charles Dickens whom is the eccentric genius... from how he ended up played with his alter egos to his rendering of smells and his use of coincidences within his books.

If you are a Charles Dickens fan then you will love this!!

This was such a beautiful and interesting read going in deep about Dickens himself...

4 stars⭐⭐⭐⭐

No doubt about it: I have been a huge fan of Dickens for many years. His stories have been by my side from teen age and I have often marvelled about the way he pulls off these engrossing plots. This book lifts the veil on Dickens’s storytelling tools, dismantles the smoke and the mirrors. Hence it sometimes almost feels sacrilegious, as if you are forbiddenly peeking behind the scenes of a sacred theatre set. How he employs fantasies, similes, comic interludes, the senses, the tenses and the supernatural to furnish his narratives is shown in many examples from his literary career. It also explains Dickens’s naming of his characters in great detail, his love for a solid cliché and, of course, his sense of humour. Thankfully, the book is interspersed with letters and anecdotes of Dickens’s life, so it is never a dull or dry literary analysis, but an entertaining ramble through his world and the influence it had and still has on past and present authors.
And because there are scores of little excerpts from Dickens’s novels given throughout, you will undoubtedly be compelled to read or re-read those old familiar friends.