The FLAME TREE COLLECTABLE CLASSICS are chosen to create a delightful and timeless home library. Each stunning edition features deluxe cover treatments, ribbon markers, luxury endpapers and gilded edges. The unabridged text is accompanied by a Glossary of Victorian and Literary terms produced for the modern reader. Dicken's first novel began as a romp, a series of amusing observations based on the travels of Mr Pickwick and his friends Nathaniel Winkle, Augustus Snodgrass, Tracy Tupman and valet Sam Weller. Their adventures increasingly highlight hypocrisy and avarice in the lives of everyday folk, beset by the doubtful actions of lawyers, politicians and local dignitaries. The reprehensible Alfred Jingle is often encountered in bizarre and awkward scenes, a lightning rod for the ills in society where marriage is not always accompanied by love, the victim not the guilty are imprisoned, and the poor are treated with barely concealed contempt. Pickwick's jovial stature allows Dickens a light touch on his social commentary and Pickwick Papers remains one of his most popular books. AUTHOR: The iconic and much-loved Charles Dickens was born in 1812 in Portsmouth, though he spent much of his life in Kent and London. A prolific writer, Dickens kept up a career in journalism as well as writing short stories and novels, with much of his work being serialised before being published as books. He gave a view of contemporary England with a strong sense of realism, yet instilled his stories with a sense of charm, fantastic characters and humour like no other. He continued to work himself hard up until his death in 1870, leaving 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood' unfinished. SELLING POINTS: Deluxe foiled and embossed cover, with gilded edges. Gift editions of much-loved classics. Accessible and timeless unabridged text. Features a glossary of Victorian and Literary terms.